ECB: Draghi calls for single authority for EU markets

ANKARA

European Central Bank (ECB) governor Mario Draghi on Wednesday issued a call for the creation of a single authority to govern the financial markets in the EU.

Draghi had been expected to provide insight into the ECB's upcoming decision on interest rates and future monetary policy, but the ECB governor disappointed traders and investors with no mention of the subject -- the euro held at its previous value of about 1.07 against the dollar after the speech.

Speaking at the Bank of England's Open Forum on financial regulation, Draghi said: "For countries that are part of the single market and that also share a single currency, as in the euro area, it is clear that a fully integrated banking and capital market and a higher degree of institutional integration to protect that market is of great importance," he said.

"Countries that share a single market and a single currency need deeper institutional integration," Draghi said.

"Cross border markets create a community of interest from which each member stands to benefit," Draghi said. "But they also heighten shared exposure to the potential detriment of all, so they need governance. This is true at the global level and the European level. It is even more true for countries sharing the single currency. For them, it is even more important to complete economic and monetary union in all its aspects."

He said national governments or courts of law are inadequate in single-handedly providing full protection to their citizens against abuse of property rights or unfair competition.

“For the market to be truly free, there needs to exist a judiciary power that can enforce the Rule of Law on all, everywhere. It has to have jurisdiction across the entire market," Draghi said.