De Nederlandsche Bank published a keynote speech by Olaf Sleijpen setting out a three-part agenda to raise Europe’s productivity and innovation: deepen the EU Single Market, build a true Savings and Investment Union, and modernise the EU budget. The speech links Europe’s weak productivity performance to persistent cross-border barriers within the EU, fragmented financial markets that do not provide enough risk capital for scaling innovative firms, and an EU budget still largely oriented toward past priorities. Citing the Draghi report, Sleijpen highlighted an estimated EUR 800 billion in annual investments needed for climate, digitalisation, defence and innovation, and pointed to a venture capital gap versus the United States, where availability is three times higher. Proposed actions included reducing cross-border infrastructure and regulatory barriers, limiting member-state “gold plating” by relying more on EU regulations than directives, tightening enforcement of state aid rules while using targeted EU-level support where justified, encouraging households to shift savings toward investment (including through supplementary pensions), and lowering cross-border frictions affecting equity and venture capital via changes to tax procedures, insolvency frameworks and corporate governance, alongside simplified reporting and compliance. On EU public finances, Sleijpen argued that the next Multiannual Financial Framework due in 2027 should redirect spending toward EU-level public goods such as research, climate, defence and cross-border infrastructure. He also noted that any move toward common EU debt issuance should be accompanied by reductions in national debt to keep overall public debt sustainable, stressing that the euro area’s average debt-to-GDP ratio is high and should be reduced to support monetary and financial stability.
De Nederlandsche Bank 2025-11-25
De Nederlandsche Bank publishes Sleijpen speech calling for a deeper Single Market, a Savings and Investment Union and EU budget reform
De Nederlandsche Bank published a keynote speech by Olaf Sleijpen outlining a three-part agenda to enhance Europe's productivity through deepening the EU Single Market, establishing a Savings and Investment Union, and modernizing the EU budget. Sleijpen emphasized the need for EUR 800 billion annually for climate, digitalization, defense, and innovation, highlighting a venture capital gap with the United States. He proposed reducing cross-border barriers, enhancing EU-level support, and redirecting the EU budget toward public goods to sustain stability.