The European Commission presented yesterday a Green Paper on building a Capital Markets Union by 2019. The goal of this new flagship initiative is to develop deeper and broader EU capital markets to provide Europe with the financial muscle it needs to grow competitively in the global economy. The project will be developed under a multipronged strategy covering several capital market segments, from securitizations and covered bonds, to private placements and long term finance. It will also include some cross-sector measures. The proposed approach will promote market-driven initiatives in order to minimize the scope for new regulation, and highlights the critical role of banks in capital markets. The Consultation is open until May 13 and an action plan will follow in the second half of 2015.