At the same time, insufficient progress has been made in creating a European banking market. Euro area banks largely operate in their home markets, leading to overcapacity and making the Union more susceptible to fragmentation.
3/7  BIS central bankers' speeches  Fragmentation along national lines and overcapacity are also visible at the aggregate European level if we compare some key figures for the sector with those of other currency areas. From 2013 to 2017, the average return on equity for the euro area banking sector was 4.5%, while it was 9% in the United States.