Speech van minister Heinen bij de Euronext Conference Paris 2026
Speech van minister Heinen, uitgesproken op de Euronext Conference Paris 2026. Het gesproken woord geldt.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today, we gather to discuss Europe’s capital markets.
Yet the importance of this discussion reaches far beyond finance.
It touches the very foundations of our freedom, which is at the heart of our European values.
The values reflect the fundamental belief that each person has the inherent right to think, to speak, to worship, to love and to live according to one’s own choices.
These ideas were strongly shaped by Enlighted thinkers such as John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
Liberty reflects our commitment to the institutions and laws that protect those freedoms.
This is about Democracy. The rule of law. Constitutional government.
Ideas shaped by thinkers like Montesquieu.
Ideas that shaped revolutions.
And they still shape our lives today.
For me personally,
these ideas shaped my political convictions.
Being in politics,
I have come to realize that freedom and liberty are never guaranteed.
It requires two fundamental conditions:
prosperity and security.
The two are inseparable.
Without security, prosperity cannot flourish.
Without prosperity, security cannot be sustained.
For Europe, both are now at stake.
Today it is clear that Europe must step up.
Europe was built on the promise of freedom,
Our task now is to make that freedom prosper.
We have to invest more in defence for our security.
We have to invest more in economic growth for our welfare.
For this, we need political leadership.
Move beyond our own limitations.
And work together.
We have done this before.
Seventy-five years ago, Europeans faced a different challenge.
And we responded with an extraordinary idea: the Coal and Steel Community.
These commodities were once seen as the most important for the economy,
and for war.
When we turned these core resources into a force for unity,
we created something far greater than economic value alone.
A French idea, for which the Netherlands too helped lay the foundation,
resulted in decades of peace and prosperity.
The European Coal and Steel Community became a Union,
concerned with much more than just economic affairs.
Jean Monnet, one of the French architects, said it rightly so:
'We are not making a coalition of states, but we are uniting people.'
This kind of leadership has endured up to today.
And this is the leadership we need again, today.
As coal and steel were seen as the core commodities of the twentieth century,
I believe capital is one of the defining commodities of the twenty-first.
In politics, capital is often criticized and seen as bad.
I see it as a force for good.
The same force that can unite Europe as coal and steel once did.
Capital enables investment, fuels innovation, and drives growth.
It can turn a start-up into a scale-up, and a scale-up into a champion.
Together with free markets, free people and free thinkers,
Free-floating capital will drive prosperity.
And as the great economist Adam Smith observed:
‘These forces can promote the general good of society’.
Being one of the wealthiest continents in the world,
Europe is abundant in capital.
That capital is waiting for us to unlock its full potential.
For this, we need a Capital Markets Union.
The key to drive economic growth and forging deeper European cooperation.
We have discussed this for far too long.
It is now time to act.
I see a new generation of leaders in Europe.
Willing to step up.
And ready to say: let's get this done
Therefore, the Netherlands together with the largest economies in Europe
are taking the lead.
Under the strong leadership of Roland Lescure, the French minister of finance. And Lars Klingbeil, the German minister of finance,
This group of six countries recently came together to draw up a plan.
To overcome national restrictions.
And to set ambitious goals and deadlines.
We see the need for centralised supervision on the capital markets.
Something that was long considered off the table.
We need it to harmonize rules and create a level playing field.
And to stimulate the free flow of capital throughout Europe.
So, let’s get this done.
We see the need for financial innovation on the capital markets.
From securitization to digital finance.
And to be autonomous and more competitive on a global scale.
So, let’s make this a reality.
And we see the need for simplification of rules on the capital markets.
As complex and different European rules impede businesses and investors.
So, let’s put this into action.
I am convinced that the Capital Markets Union can again be something more than just creating economic value alone.
It can lead Europe into a new era of cooperation.
Ultimately open to neighbouring countries that are now outside the EU,
that share our values and even helped shaping them in the past.
A new project, led by a new generation.
Making Europe the centre of global finance once more.
For that, Europe must stay an open economy,
Connected to the world.
The European Union is already a global trade powerhouse.
Our trade value ranks among the highest in the world.
For 80 countries, the European Union is their most important trading partner.
But we must not stop there, we need to expand opportunities to invest.
Such as recently with Latin-America and India.
In politics, people often focus on what might be lost through free trade,
I prefer to point out what can be gained.
Trade frees up capital, stimulate investments and creates more prosperity.
When distributed fairly, everybody wins.
And again, free trade is about more than creating economic value alone.
It is about cooperation and exporting our core values as well.
It is about freedom, liberty, the rule of law.
Therefore, we must ensure that we remain the world’s leading trading block.
Because when Europe leads, our values lead as well.
To protect these values,
we have to provide for our own security needs.
Here as well, we can achieve much more if we work together.
We have the industrial base.
We have the capital.
But we lack the scale.
By joining forces, we get more security with the same resources.
And we strengthen our alliances as well.
The Netherlands therefore takes the lead with the United Kingdom to create a new investment vehicle for common defense investments.
We call it the Multilateral Defense Mechanism.
Which offers a new way of defense cooperation with European partners, and it is open to like-minded Western partners, both inside and outside the EU.
I am convinced that this initiative will lead Europe into a new era as well.
An era of European security,
and a step towards uniting Western countries even more.
Europe has often proven that the smallest initiatives can produce the greatest achievements.
This is true not only for public initiatives.
In the Netherlands for example, we saw the arrival of the first stock exchange.
A private initiative, started in 1602 in Amsterdam.
This marked the beginning of the modern financial markets.
And look where we are today.
With Euronext, Stéphane Boujnah shows how a truly pan-European market infrastructure can be built, strengthening and unifying the capital markets Europe so urgently need.
The recent acquisition of the Athens Stock Exchange in 2025, shows how private initiative and political leadership can strengthen one another.
Kyriakos, the now Eurogroup president and minister of finance of Greece, who will speak after me, has spared no effort for this acquisition.
He knew, that a strong Euronext is not about strengthening just Greece,
But about strengthening Europe as a whole.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This is the leadership Europe needs.
Cooperation on all fronts, in the public and the private sector.
Together we will build a prosperous Europe.
A secure Europe.
An autonomous Europe.
With a Capital Market Union at its core,
We will make Europe the best place in the world for investors.
And the most competitive economy in the world.
With new trade agreements,
We will ensure Europe remains the world’s leading trading block.
Leading the world in stability, growth and freedom.
With stronger defense cooperation,
We will protect the freedoms we cherish.
And thanks to businesses like Euronext and its leaders,
We will empower entrepreneurs, drive innovation and deliver prosperity.
Together, we will make Europe the beacon of economic freedom.
Today I stand here as a politician, as an economist, as a liberal.
But above all: as an optimist.
I believe Europe can once again be the leading force in the world.
A force for good.
Advancing freedom and showing the world what free societies can achieve.
And if there was ever a moment for Europe to lead,
that moment is now.
Thank you very much.