Markets would indeed have collapsed if the Heads of State and Government of the euro area had not agreed – that weekend – to establish a European Financial Stability Fund to support countries in difficulty and if the ECB had not decided to intervene directly in some securities markets to restore their proper functioning.
That action stopped the speculative rout and forced market participants that had taken short positions against the euro and some sovereign assets to bear losses. The actions succeeded in preserving the integrity of the euro area. 2  BIS Review 118/2010  It would be a mistake to think that the risks which emerged last spring will never occur again.