The European Commission has fired the starting gun on the Capital Markets Union (CMU), the flagship
agenda to deliver a single market for capital, by publishing its
widely trailed first green paper (GP). In December we set the scene for the rapidly evolving CMU
agenda and, although the GP is wide ranging, it contains little new
information.
Principles
The principles adopted for the CMU coincide with those of the
Juncker Commission's growth agenda: maximising economic growth,
increasing financial stability, removing barriers to cross-border
investment, ensuring consumer protection, and enhancing
competition. They apply to all 28 Member States.
The Commission's Approach
The Commission intends to take a "bottom-up" approach which will be
"based on an assessment of the outstanding priorities, both in
terms of likely impact and feasibility, underpinned by thorough
economic analysis, impact assessment, and consultation."
Further, the Commission makes the case that
