Exactly 20 years ago, the euro was introduced to world financial markets as an accounting currency. Both the European Commission and the European Central Bank think that the euro is a great success. But is it? Mary Pieterse-Bloem, Professor of Financial Markets at Erasmus School of Economics and Global Head Fixed income in the Global Investment Center of the Private Bank of ABN AMRO, gives her opinion in the Dutch Financial Times.
Superficially, the euro appears to be a success. However, if you look closer, you could ask whether it really is, says Professor Mary Pieterse-Bloem. The euro is thought to be successful because it still exists in its original form, no country has withdrawn from the Eurozone and because the European Central Bank (ECB) conducts one monetary policy in the Eurozone as a whole. Financial integration became reality very fast, but it did not take long until it experienced a setback: the European debt crisis. The ECB has put in great effort to overcome this crisis, but there are still threats around the corner. Structural reforms are needed, but the Eurozone its budget and fiscal structure form an obstacle for this.
- Professor