Nicholas C Garganas: The European financial marketplace Speech by Mr Nicholas C Garganas, Governor of the Bank of Greece, at The Economist Conference: Private Banking and Asset Management, Athens, 22 October 2002. *  *  *  Ladies and gentlemen, Let me start and by thanking The Economist for inviting me to speak at this conference.
In recent years, there has been a visible acceleration in the development and integration of EU financial markets. In what follows, I will discuss, first, why financial integration is desirable, second, why it has occurred, third, trends toward financial integration in the EU, and fourth, the role of public policy in supporting integration. Why is financial integration desirable?