Goldman CEO urges Europe to review 'overbearing' regulations in French opinion piece
June 24 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon urged Europe to reconsider its "extensive" regulatory requirements through an opinion piece published in French newspaper Les Echos on Tuesday, as they place unnecessary burden on companies.
"Europe remains an outlier in terms of the extensive – often overbearing, duplicative, and costly – obligations it places on firms," the chief of the world's second-largest investment bank wrote, as he plans to convene a board meeting in Paris this week.
The region's financial system - often seen as a barrier to investment - has been criticized for its national-level regulations, overlapping reporting obligations and slow progress on capital markets and banking union reforms.
Companies, analysts and investors have argued that the rules raise costs, complicate cross-border activity and put the bloc at a disadvantage to the U.S. and other major economies.
Solomon said one of the EU's biggest challenges is that individual countries can veto reforms to protect narrow national interests, a dynamic that he argued has consistently weakened the bloc's economic, financial and geopolitical power.
"Reducing or eliminating unwieldy and ineffective structures and processes will send a loud message that the EU is focused on efficiency, results and economic growth," Solomon said in his opinion piece, opens new tab.
His comments come as initial public offerings in Europe trail the U.S. due to weaker valuations and patchy investor demand.
"Member states need to play their part in building the pools of long-term capital needed to channel financing more forcefully into both public and private markets - where much of the economic activity in Europe is now happening," Solomon wrote.
In the first quarter, Goldman earned the highest fees from advising clients on deals in Europe, the Middle East and Africa region, according to data from Dealogic.
It was ranked second by revenue earned in the region's overall investment banking league tables. Goldman's London office, its largest in Europe, is the headquarters for its international operations.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
42 minutes ago
- Reuters
EU plans to add carbon credits to new climate goal, document shows
BRUSSELS, June 28 (Reuters) - The European Commission is set to propose counting carbon credits bought from other countries towards the European Union's 2040 climate target, a Commission document seen by Reuters showed. The Commission is due to propose a legally binding EU climate target for 2040 on July 2. The EU executive had initially planned a 90% net emissions cut, against 1990 levels, but in recent months has sought to make this goal more flexible, in response to pushback from governments including Italy, Poland and the Czech Republic, concerned about the cost. An internal Commission summary of the upcoming proposal, seen by Reuters, said the EU would be able to use "high-quality international credits" from a U.N.-backed carbon credits market to meet 3% of the emissions cuts towards the 2040 goal. The document said the credits would be phased in from 2036, and that additional EU legislation would later set out the origin and quality criteria that the credits must meet, and details of how they would be purchased. The move would in effect ease the emissions cuts - and the investments required - from European industries needed to hit the 90% emissions-cutting target. For the share of the target met by credits, the EU would buy "credits" from projects that reduce CO2 emissions abroad - for example, forest restoration in Brazil - rather than reducing emissions in Europe. Proponents say these credits are a crucial way to raise funds for CO2-cutting projects in developing nations. But recent scandals have shown some credit-generating projects did not deliver the climate benefits they claimed. The document said the Commission will add other flexibilities to the 90% target, as Brussels attempts to contain resistance from governments struggling to fund the green transition alongside priorities including defence, and industries who say ambitious environmental regulations hurt their competitiveness. These include integrating credits from projects that remove CO2 from the atmosphere into the EU's carbon market so that European industries can buy these credits to offset some of their own emissions, the document said. The draft would also give countries more flexibility on which sectors in their economy do the heavy lifting to meet the 2040 goal, "to support the achievement of targets in a cost-effective way". A Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the upcoming proposal, which could still change before it is published next week. EU countries and the European Parliament must negotiate the final target and could amend what the Commission proposes.
Times
an hour ago
- Times
EU wants free hand luggage. Here's how it could hit flight prices
With his wheelie bag in tow, Peter Bellew strode towards the gate at Munich airport to board his easyJet flight, bound for Gatwick, in the spring of this year. 'You'll need to pay to bring that onboard, Sir,' said a member of the dispatch team, pointing to the cabin luggage. The remark elicited a wry smile as the passenger handed over his credit card. Little did the airport employee realise it, but as easyJet's chief operating officer from 2019 to 2022, Bellew was the very man who introduced such fees in the first place. Baggage charges are big business for budget airlines such as easyJet. Last year, the Luton-based carrier raked in £2.5 billion in 'ancillary revenues' — just over a quarter of its overall takings. But if the EU gets its way, this vital income stream may come to an end. • I'm sick of squabbles about overhead lockers. This is how to behave Politicians in Brussels are pressing ahead with reforms to give passengers the right to travel with a cabin bag weighing up to 7kg free of charge, in addition to a smaller item that can fit under the seat. Other changes include giving under-12s, or those travelling with disabled passengers, the right to pick a seat next to their accompanying traveller, also free of charge. Last Tuesday, MEPs on the European parliament's transport and tourism committee passed the changes, voting 38-2 in favour. The European parliament now has three months to consider the new laws, after which they will be adopted, if politicians do nothing. Alternatively, they can be adopted, rejected, or amendments proposed. On the face of it, this seems good news for consumers. A cabin bag can cost from £6 to £60 on Ryanair, depending on the flight and when you buy your ticket. At easyJet, the charge is £5.99 to £48, and on Wizz Air it varies from as little as £13 to as much as £140. These fees would, in effect, be outlawed if Brussels legislators get their way — although the EU is proposing that they apply to wheelie bags with dimensions that add up to no more than 100cm, which is smaller than the maximum size allowed by all three budget carriers. For airlines, the reforms could be devastating. Cabin baggage fees have grown to become a big part of the add-ons charged by low-cost carriers — often to the chagrin of their customers. At Wizz, ancillary income represents nearly half — about 45 per cent — of total revenues. Ancillaries at Ryanair equate to 34 per cent of the top line, and 26 per cent at easyJet. The three airlines are now raking in £8.5 billion from add-ons annually. This was not always the case, however. In 1999, Ryanair customers were spending an average of €7.48 on ancillaries, compared with €23.57 (£20.15) nowadays — a threefold increase. Publicly available figures for Wizz go back to 2014: per-passenger spending on add-ons has risen from €25.40 then to €37.08 now. Charging for bags at easyJet is a newer phenomenon, brought in by Bellew in 2021, with passengers spending an average of £27.39 on ancillaries. Airlines argue that these measures have allowed them to keep headline fares down. And the numbers appear to support this. Average per-passenger fare income on Ryanair was €52.52 in 1999 and is now €46.10. Wizz fares have also fallen, from €47.39 to €46.01 between 2014 and now. This is why airlines argue that the EU reforms will backfire on travellers. • How airline fees have turned baggage into billions 'It's actually going to be more damaging for consumers,' said Yvonne Moynihan, Wizz Air's chief corporate and ESG officer. 'Fares are going to be driven up because we're going to have to price fares to include the price of the luggage.' Robert Boyle, a former British Airways executive and now an independent analyst, agreed that the main effect of the EU's proposed changes would be to drive up headline fares. But he empathised with Brussels' ambition. 'It is hard not to have some sympathy from a passenger point of view,' he said. 'It is mostly a trick to generate a low headline price with almost everyone paying for the carry-on in practice — or, to put it another way, a bait-and-switch commercial strategy. 'A few people who are willing and able to travel without cabin bags will end up being forced to pay a higher price.' However, easyJet is not convinced. It reckons 40 per cent of its customers travel only using the under-seat bag, for instance. Meanwhile, IATA, the global airlines trade body, said 'consumer research tells us that the majority of travellers want to pay the lowest price possible'. Spiralling fares are just one potential consequence of the EU reforms. Another is that flight punctuality could deteriorate as turnarounds — the change-over period when a plane lands and is prepared for its next flight — are slowed down. 'Before wheelie bags were rationed, low-cost airlines suffered chaotic turnarounds,' said Andrew Lobbenberg, transport analyst at Barclays. 'Carry-on bags were being moved at the last minute, creating slow turnarounds, delays and dissatisfied passengers. 'Turnarounds would [also] become more challenging as the aircraft do not have enough overhead bin space for all passengers to bring wheelie bags on board,' he added. Evidence from easyJet appears to corroborate this. Before the airline began charging for cabin bags in 2021, handling luggage that could not fit in overhead compartments because they were full was one of the main causes of delays. Since then, cabin baggage-related delays in offloading passengers are understood to have fallen by 94 per cent. There is also aviation's carbon footprint to consider. With all passengers empowered to bring two items of luggage on board, aircraft weights would rise, leading to additional fuel consumption and greater carbon emissions. • Hand luggage: Ryanair, easyJet and British Airways policies explained A final complexity is that Brussels' reforms, should they come into force, would not necessarily apply to all flights. The current proposals affect EU and non-EU registered airlines that fly out of the European bloc. But they would apply only to EU-registered aircraft flying into the EU. This means that the rules would not apply to domestic UK flights or to flights from the UK, for example, into the EU. Passengers would benefit from the free cabin bag rule on their return to Britain, however. It is ripe for confusion. The prospect of the changes — and the fallout from them — has raised the hackles of Willie Walsh, the former British Airways boss who now heads IATA. 'When regulators meddle in commercial or operational issues they don't understand, they usually get it wrong. If EU parliamentarians insist on regulating where regulation is not needed, they should be prepared to take responsibility for its negative consequences,' he said. The saving grace, as with so many EU reforms, is that progress on passenger air travel rights is likely to be glacially slow. The changes to baggage regulations are a late addition to a wider overhaul of passenger compensation — known as EU261 — that has been in the works since 2013. In addition, the move would contradict existing European laws that give airlines the freedom to set their own pricing. This, industry leaders say, leaves the door open to a protracted legal challenge. Furthermore, the proposals would need to be ratified by individual member states. The complexities around this were highlighted when Spain suspended its own proposals to outlaw cabin baggage fees late last Thursday. Experts are split as to why the EU proposals have not hit the share prices of major listed budget airlines. Lobbenberg said: 'The market has not reacted clearly to this issue, I think, because it is highly unclear what comes next. While consumer organisations are pushing hard to outlaw wheelie bag fees, the member states agreed to allow them.' But another senior industry executive said: 'I think that with all the geopolitical tensions, and associated increases in oil prices, these proposals have just been missed.' Whatever the reason, for now, airlines are monitoring the situation carefully — not to mention grumpily. 'What's next? Mandatory popcorn and drinks as part of your cinema ticket?' said Ourania Georgoutsakou, managing director of trade body Airlines for Europe.
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
easyJet launches new flights from Scotland to stunning European summer getaway
The new twice-weekly services are perfect for a long weekend to the heart of France's fantastic wine country FRENCH FANCY easyJet launches new flights from Scotland to stunning European summer getaway Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) EASYJET has launched its first flights and package holidays from Scotland to a stunning European summer getaway. The country's largest airline is now offering holidaymakers the chance to head to Bordeaux in France. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Holidaymakers can now make their way to Bordeaux with easyJet Credit: Getty 4 The city is best known for its wine and vineyards Credit: Alamy 4 easyJet now offers new twice-weekly services to the French city from Edinburgh Credit: Alamy Scots can make their way to the French city from Edinburgh Airport. The first flight took off on June 26 and will operate every Thursday and Sunday throughout the summer. The new twice-weekly services are perfect for a long weekend to the heart of France's fantastic wine country. Travellers to Bordeaux can explore the historic city, famous for its beautiful stone façades and fine wines. The city also attracts visitors with its delicious food and lively cultural scene. Culture vultures can visit the Cité du Vin to learn about the history and production of wine, and experience the Bassins de Lumières, a unique art museum that uses light and sound to create immersive experiences. After exploring the city's museums, travellers can head to the city's historic centre, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and sample Bordeaux's many culinary delights and its world-class wines. Passengers can get their hands on seats available at and via the app from £35.99. Package holidays are now on offer to the new route, with a range of four and five star hotels available. Packages start from just £187 per person. Shopper urges others to nab £8 Morrisons case perfect for EasyJet flights and a breeze to take through the airport All city breaks to Bordeaux from Edinburgh include flights and hotel, covered by the tour operator's Ultimate Flexibility, offering freedom to change a booking, a refund guarantee, and best price guarantee. Ali Gayward, easyJet's UK Country Manager, said: "It's great to be launching our latest route from Edinburgh to Bordeaux, the ideal destination for those seeking the ultimate culinary break in France's wine country, or convenient access to the city centre for business. "easyJet is always looking to add more great value connectivity for our customers in Scotland and we look forward to welcoming even more customers onboard from Edinburgh this summer." Jonny Macneal, Head of Aviation at Edinburgh Airport said: "We're raising a glass of France's finest to easyJet's new route to Bordeaux, adding yet another connection to mainland Europe for both our leisure and business travellers. "Making sure we have direct flights to and from destinations we know are in demand is important for any airport, and we're delighted to be adding some French flair to our departure board."
