The UK's Brexit vote in June came as a blow to most in the EU, but the lack of widespread financial shock in the immediate aftermath of the vote showed how the improvements made to the euro area's post-crisis banking sector are paying off. France's central bank governor looks at why this was the case, but warns there is no room for complacency and calls for further progress on the economic part of the EU’s agenda.
The EU's right to free movement has been blamed as a key reason behind the UK's vote to leave the union, as well as cited for being a drain on countries that lose their workers to more affluent neighbours. But how accurate or fair is this? Stefanie Linhardt looks at both sides of this increasingly heated debate, and examines the likely fate of refugees into Europe.
The EU should abandon a one-size-fits-all mentality to ensure a diverse banking market by setting proportionate regulation and encouraging innovation, says Chris de Noose of the European Savings and Retail Banking Group.
Determining how UK financial services interact with the EU following the referendum will be no easy task. One approach might be to look to how banking regulation was originally negotiated, suggests former Association for Financial Markets in Europe director Peter Beales.
The shadow banking sector got a bad press after the global financial crisis, but it can be a valuable source of innovation while helping to mitigate financial risk, writes Harald Benink of the European Shadow Financial Regulatory Committee.
A patchy economic performance in western Europe in 2015 saw its lenders slide further down the global rankings. HSBC is clinging on to its global top 10 position, however, while there is some good news for Greek and Italian lenders.