to the flow of capital, to develop a new private - public fund specialising in initial public offerings for smes, to put forward a fintech strategy to support new digital technologies in our financial system, to ensure a common approach with member states on cryptocurrencies, and to develop a green financing strategy to ensure that we can direct investment and financing to the transition to a climate - neutral economy. i very much welcome this ambitious open and clear course. the financial market agenda in particular provides us with a suitable framework for thinking strategically about the most important developments over the coming five years and the longterm way ahead. moreover, i think we should be even bolder when it comes to the three principles of integrated markets, digitisation and sustainable finance as a basis for our success. in my view, we must come up not only with a fintech strategy, but also with a bolder approach to digitisation in finance and how this will transform the economy and international trade. libra or stable coins more generally, cyber - security in algorithmic trading and elsewhere, artificial intelligence and its ethical as well as labour and financing implications, open banking and its implications, bigtechs and how they will affect competition policies and financial stability – these are only the tip of this strategic iceberg. the ideas behind green finance are still relatively new, and most banks don ’ t have them on their radar – neither the opportunities nor the risks that they entail. banks have to strengthen their management of climate - related risks substantially. but when it comes to regulation, i do not think that we should try to further sustainability through lowering risk weights – a green supporting factor would be the wrong instrument. integrated, digital, green finance can be a huge lever for achieving the goal of a sustainable economy that works for all. therefore, it is of vital importance that we, the eu27, pursue a resilient financial market strategy that rests on three principles : integration, digitalisation, and sustainability. conclusion 4 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches ladies and gentlemen, let me conclude my remarks leaving brexit and commenting a statement of the book. on page 97 it reads : “ progress to achieve greater stability has been made. ” i can confirm that suggestion. looking back the last 12 month a lot has been done. big banks are undergoing deep restructuring. small and mediums sized banks are adapting to the low interest rate environment, as our lsi - stress test revealed. public - sector banks are heading

. to be sure, the concept of a capital markets union is not as clear - cut as that of a banking union. capital markets are complex and non - bank finance takes many forms : corporate bonds, private equity, public equity, venture capital or peer - to - peer lending, to name just a few. and integration not just relates to financial products but also to integral elements of the respective markets, such as stock exchanges and central counterparties. thus, any attempt to form a capital markets union would require a lot of different measures in a lot of different areas. nevertheless, the idea of a capital markets union has gained some traction lately. among others, the president of the european commission, jean - claude juncker, and yves mersch, member of the executive board of the ecb, have promoted the concept of a capital markets union. to me, it would be a logical step to supplement the banking union with a capital markets union. it would reduce fragmentation in european financial markets and, at the same time, enhance their efficiency and stability. thus, it is certainly a goal worth pursuing. 5. conclusion ladies and gentlemen george washington is credited with having written, more than two centuries ago in a letter to a friend, that a united states of europe would come into being. this is certainly a bold vision which has been voiced repeatedly since the days of george washington – by winston churchill and, more recently, the former vice - president of the european commission, viviane reding. the vision of a united states of europe is a very broad approach aiming at an encompassing political integration. in my speech today, i have taken a more modest approach and argued from an economic point of view. i have highlighted three areas where deeper integration might help to enhance the stability of monetary union. the first area is public finances, although a fiscal union is currently a rather unrealistic vision. the second area is the banking system, and here we are on the eve of a major step towards bis central bankers ’ speeches integration – in november of this year, the banking union will become reality. the third area is capital markets. looking to the future, i consider a capital markets union another project that would contribute to enhancing the stability of monetary union. in my view, integration is the way forward as long as it is balanced. not all proposals for deeper integration that are currently being discussed fulfil this criterion. take the example of eurobonds : in essence, eurobonds would provide a joint