As in previous crises, the COVID-19 pandemic brought to the fore the remaining flaws in the original design of EMU. The above mentioned measures are a step in the right direction to address the current challenges posed by the pandemic. However, they remain temporary in nature. Looking forward, more durable improvements are needed to improve the EMU architecture.
It is necessary to enhance risk sharing by creating a permanent macroeconomic stabilisation mechanism either in the form of a safe asset and/or a central fiscal stabilisation tool. Further efforts should also be made to complete the Capital Market Union and the Banking Union (I will come back to banking sector issues at the end of my presentation).