In my Jean Monnet keynote lecture on the International Conference on Banking and Finance at the University of Warsaw on 10 July 2017, entitled “Whatever it takes: Retail Banking Market Integration and Financial Stability in the Eurozone”, I have highlighted the role of retail banking market integration for turning a still incomplete European Monetary Union into a more stable currency union.

The main message of the lecture is that retail banking market integration goes some way to provide more urgently needed risk sharing in the Eurozone, yet this might not be enough for two major reasons. First, the Banking Union is still incomplete. In particular, a single European fiscal backstop for the single resolution mechanism and the still lacking European deposit insurance is required. Secondly, given the empirical evidence on the reluctance of retail banking markets to integrate, additional public risk sharing is needed. Ultimately some fiscal solidarity in the Eurozone is necessary to make the monetary union sustainable.