Europe needs to accelerate capital market integration, encourage investment and turn tokenisation into practical benefits, according to industry leaders speaking at the opening session of AFME’s OPTIC 2026 in London. During the session, the panelists discussed how Europe can improve its competitiveness while addressing fragmentation, digitalisation and financial resilience.
Francisco Bejar, head of Custody at SIX, argued that Europe should focus on harmonisation while making better use of its diversity. He pointed to differences between European markets as both an opportunity and a source of friction, calling for measures that reduce costs and improve connectivity, liquidity and market access.
Jean-Jacques Barberis, deputy CEO for Coverage and Digital Assets at CACEIS, cautioned that infrastructure integration alone would not solve Europe’s financing challenges. “The infrastructure question is important, but it would not solve the question by itself,” he said, highlighting the role of policymaking and the structure of European financial systems in directing capital.
Tokenisation moves towards practical use cases
The panel also discussed how tokenisation and decentralised finance could expand investor access and support cross-border investment. Katie Harries, Director and head of Europe Policy at Coinbase, said new models could help connect investors with markets beyond their home jurisdictions.
She argued that policymakers should establish principles for regulatory recognition across borders, rather than creating unnecessary barriers between jurisdictions. “The most important step now is creating those principles on which different jurisdictions can recognise each other’s regimes,” Harries said.
Sam Riley, CEO of Clearstream Securities Services, said financial market infrastructures would have a role in connecting traditional and digital markets. He highlighted the potential for tokenised securities to improve collateral mobility and liquidity management, while stressing the importance of maintaining safe and trusted infrastructure.
Val Wotton, managing director and Global Head of Equities Solutions at DTCC, similarly pointed to the economic benefits of making collateral more readily available across markets. These could include better balance-sheet utilisation, lower precautionary liquidity requirements and faster access to assets during periods of market stress.
Speed and cooperation remain priorities
The speakers warned that fragmented infrastructure and inconsistent regulation could undermine Europe’s ability to compete globally. They also stressed that financial risks increasingly cross national borders, making cooperation between market infrastructures essential.
Wotton called for a broader approach to resilience, arguing that firms should look beyond individual institutions and jurisdictions to the wider financial ecosystem.
Asked what trade-off Europe was avoiding, Wotton returned to the need for faster action: “It really has to accelerate.”
The discussion concluded that technological innovation, regulatory alignment and greater cross-border cooperation will be important to strengthening European capital markets, while ensuring that digitalisation delivers tangible benefits for investors and businesses.