The Savings and Investments Union: Exploring the European Commission's New Plans for Capital Market Integration in the EU

Key takeaways

1. The European Commission (EC) has published a renewed policy strategy with a view to integrate European capital markets, the “Savings and Investments Union”, following the Capital Markets Union action plans and its efforts to create a Banking Union.
2. The policy strategy seeks to create an EU financial system that channels household savings to finance the activities of European priorities, in particular international competitiveness and the green, digital and social transitions. The strategy is divided in four strands of work, targeting actions towards citizens, businesses, markets and the centralisation of supervision.
3. The strategy will inform the EC’s actions throughout its 2025-2029 work programme - a mid-term review on the strategy will be published by Q2 2027.
4. The proposed policy-measures will affect almost all stakeholders in the financial sector.

On 19 March 2025, the European Commission (EC) published a communication titled "Savings and Investments Union – A Strategy to Foster Citizens’ Wealth and Economic Competitiveness in the EU" (SIU). In the press release, the EC also made available a Questions and Answers page (Q&As), a Factsheet and a dedicated site.

In this briefing, we explain the SIU, why it was adopted, its key features and the first actions taken by the EC to implement the SIU. 

 

What is the SIU?

As the title suggests, the SIU is a policy strategy adopted by the EC. The strategy sets out legislative initiatives and non-legislative policy actions that the EC plans to implement, to improve the way that the financial system of the European Union (EU) channels household savings to productive investment by businesses. To this end, the strategy provides a framework that aligns all aspects of the EU financial system, which should create more and better financial opportunities for EU citizens and businesses.

The strategy is one of the priorities of the EC. Underlining its importance is the appointment of Maria Albuquerque by President Ursula von der Leyen as Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union. In the mission letter to Commissioner Albuquerque, Von der Leyen emphasised the strategy in order to ‘unlock the substantial amount of private investment’ needed for the green, digital and social transitions.  

 

Why was it adopted?

At the heart of the SIU lies the political desire to mobilise private capital to support core EU priorities by making the EU’s single financial market deeper and more liquid. The idea of the SIU was introduced in the report by Enrico Letta titled “Much More than a Market – Speed, Security, Solidarity: Empowering the Single Market to deliver a sustainable future and prosperity for all EU Citizens”. In this report, Letta proposed the creation of the SIU as a transformation of the Capital Markets Union (CMU) project, which the institutions have not been able to complete. Therefore, the SIU draws on actions implemented under the two CMU Action Plans and actions to develop the Banking Union, but it differs from these strategies by taking a holistic approach, encompassing the entire EU financial system, according to the EC.

The EC, the Council of the EU, the European Parliament and the European Council consider the SIU as a key strategy to mobilise private capital for multiple challenges faced by the EU, as documented in joint conclusions, policy proposals and meeting minutes. These plans envisage that the SIU supports the green, digital and social transitions, while boosting other priorities, in particular the EU’s competitiveness, open strategic autonomy, economic security and defense industry.

 

Key aspects

The SIU sets out initiatives and policy actions along four strands of work: (1) Citizens and Savings; (2) Investments and Financing; (3) Integration and Scale; (4) Efficient Supervision in the Single Market. In addition, it contains dedicated actions to enhance the integration and competitiveness of the EU banking sector.

 

Citizens and Savings

This strand has two aims. One aim is to encourage retail participation in capital markets, by incentivizing retail investors to invest part of their substantial savings (approximately EUR 10 trillion), so they can get a higher return on their savings.

Proposed policy measures in this respect include:

1. Creating a European blueprint for savings and investments accounts or products by Q3 2025, as well as a recommendation addressed to Member States on the tax treatments of these accounts.
2. Facilitating agreement on the Retail Investment Strategy package, which consists of (1) a Proposal for an Omnibus Directive as regards the Union retail investor protection rules, and (2) a Proposal for a Regulation amending the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPS) Regulation to modernise the key information document.
3. Adopting a financial literacy strategy by Q3 2025 to create a more ‘investment savvy’ culture among citizens, while also increasing best practices among Member States and providing further guidance on implementing existing financial competence frameworks.
4. Exploring with the European Investment Bank Group and others, how to increase opportunities for retail investors to access suitable financial products that fund EU priorities.

The second aim is to develop the supplementary pension sector, by supporting further uptake of pension schemes in this sector by citizens. Proposed policy measures include issuing recommendations on the use of auto-enrolment, tracking systems and dashboards and a review of the existing EU frameworks for Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision (IORPs) and the Pan-European Personal Pension Product (PEPP). 

 

Investments and Financing

This strand also pursues multiple aims, with the ultimate goal to increase the availability of capital for European businesses, while lowering financing costs.

Proposed policy measures include:

1. Taking measures by Q4 2025 to stimulate equity investments by institutional investors. The EC seeks to set out criteria for the favourable prudential treatment of investments by insurers, banks and pension funds, through a variety of instruments (including guidance and delegated rule-making specifying e.g. Solvency II and the prudent person principle for pension funds).
2. Reviewing and upgrading the EuVECA Regulation by Q3 2026 in order to make the label more attractive, including by widening the scope of investable assets and strategies.
3. Taking action to remove differences in national taxation procedures, including through enforcement of free movement of capital and other single market freedoms, and by issuing recommendations.
4. Implementing the Listing Act in a manner that makes EU public markets more attractive, in particular for SMEs, through adopting delegated and implementing acts that are simple and minimise burdens.
5. Proposing by Q3 2026 measures to support exits by investors in private companies, possibly through multilateral intermittent trading of private company shares.

On securitisation, the EC has already proposed measures focused on simplifying due diligence and transparency, and adjusting prudential requirements for banks and insurers, as announced in the SIU strategy.

 

Integration and Scale

This strand of work has two main aims: consolidating trading and post-trading infrastructures and further developing the asset management sector.

Proposed policy measures include:

1. Introducing in Q4 2025 an ambitious package of legislative proposals including rules on central securities depositories, financial collateral and settlement and on the trading market structure, to inter alia remove barriers to cross-border activity, modernise the rules and ensure better price formation on trading venues. The EC will also consider replacing Directives with Regulations.
2. Proposing legislation in Q4 2025 to remove remaining barriers to the distribution of EU-authorised funds across the EU, as well as measures to reduce operational barriers affecting cross border groups of asset managers to simplify operations and to ensure more efficient access and servicing of clients.
3. Considering a potential review of the Shareholder Rights Directive by Q4 2026 to make it easier for investors, intermediaries and issuers to operate across the EU.

The EC has already set up a dedicated channel for all market participants to report on barriers encountered in the single market, which it uses to step up enforcement actions to accelerate their removal.

 

Efficient Supervision

The EC aims to harmonise supervision, which would support market integration as market participants receive the same supervisory treatment irrespective of their location in the EU. It is interesting to note that the EC addresses the divergent application of harmonised rules by national authorities, espite having a single rulebook, which may discourage cross-border activities. One thought the EC mentions is the possibility to transfer direct supervision at EU level in certain cases, e.g. where market participants have a significant cross-border presence or in cases of new or emerging sectors (e.g. crypto asset services providers) where it may be more efficient to develop supervisory capacity at EU level.

Proposed policy measures include:

1. Calling on the European Supervisory Authorities and national authorities to make full use of available tools and implement the simplification agenda set out in the Simplification Communication.
2. Proposing measures in Q4 2025 to strengthen supervisory convergence tools and make them more effective, and to achieve more unified supervision of capital markets (as indicated in the Competitiveness Compass), including by centralising certain tasks.

 

Competitiveness and integration of the Banking Sector

The aim of the EC is to integrate the EU banking sector by further developing the single rulebook and the Banking Union.

Proposed policy measures include:

1. Inviting the Council and the European Parliament to agree on an ambitious outcome in the negotiations on the Crisis Management and Deposit Insurance package (also addressing arrangements to manage the failure of mid-sized banks). The EC will also take “decisive steps” to further develop the Banking Union.
2. Publishing a report in 2026 assessing the overall situation of the banking system in the Single Market, including the evaluation of the banking sector’s competitiveness.
3. Continuing to assess developments in banking markets to swiftly address threats to financial stability, the internal market or international competitiveness.

 

Outreach and Engagement

The EC will publish a Savings and Investments Union mid-term review by Q2 2027, to give a state of play on overall progress and reflect input received from the outreach and engagement it plans as part of the SIU strategy. 

 

The Consultation

On 15 April 2025, the EC launched a targeted consultation to gather feedback on barriers to capital markets integration across the EU, whether they stem from legal, regulatory, technological or operational practices. The consultation is a key part of the SIU’s implementation strategy, as it seeks to identify and address such barriers to facilitate a more market-driven process for developing and integrating EU capital markets, thereby enhancing financial opportunities and boosting economic competitiveness.

With the consultation, the EC seeks to understand the frictions experienced by market participants across a broad range of issues. It consists of two parts, addressing the simplification and burden reduction; trading, post-trading and horizontal barriers to related infrastructures; asset management and funds; supervision and horizontal questions on the framework.

The consultation closes on 10 June 2025.

 

Next steps

Given the broad coverage of the SIU, the actions implemented under the strategy will impact actors across the financial services space. The list of planned actions allows entities to assess whether their activities will be impacted, and to design strategies and allocate resources accordingly.

However, while some actions – such as relaxing prudential rules or stimulating securitisation – will provide actors with clear benefits of greater choice or less transaction costs, the impact of other actions – such as the centralisation of supervision – is less straightforward. Ultimately, it will depend on the specific measures used of the implementation in each case.

We are closely following the implementation of the SIU strategy.

In case of questions, our European Financial Services Regulatory Team is happy to assist you.