[20150311]IN10245_欧洲资本市场联盟.pdf

CRS InsightsThe European Capital Markets UnionJames K. Jackson, Specialist in International Trade and Finance (jjacksoncrs.loc.gov, 7-7751)March 11, 2015 (IN10245)OverviewOn February 18, 2015, the European Commission released a draft proposal for a Capital Markets Union(CMU) to complement its current efforts to create a Banking Union. The CMU is intended to strengthencapital markets in the 28-member European Union (EU) in order to provide a viable alternative to thecurrent bank-centered funding model commonly used by European firms. The Banking Union is distinctfrom the CMU because it is intended to break the link between private bank failures and governmentdebts; it also is intended to provide stability to the financial system in ways that will support the CMU.The 2008-2009 financial crisis and the European sovereign debt crisis of 2010-2012 continue to hamperprospects for economic recovery in Europe; new investments by European firms continue to lag behindthe levels reached prior to the financial crisis and bank lending to firms remains sluggish. Currently, EUfinancial markets are characterized by a lack of standardization in important financial products andresistance at the nati