Financing and financial flows

Europe’s competitiveness crucially depends on how effectively savings are channeled into productive investment. 

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) supports the Commission with data and scientific evidence on where money flows across sectors,  technologies, and countries, and how markets can help address the challenge of climate change and nature degradation  while limiting systemic risks. 

Two complementary initiatives — FinFlows and Monitoring Sustainable Financial Flows — provide the analytical foundation for policy and investment decisions through 2026 and beyond.

Efficient, well-functioning integrated and diversified capital markets are essential to channel savings into investment and a key driver of competitiveness. The Savings and Investments Union (SIU) aims to mobilise private finance and deepen the integration of national capital markets. This supports investment in innovation, improves saving opportunities for households, and helps preserve the resilience of the EU financial system, including in a context of rising geopolitical tensions.

To improve the quality and availability of data supporting SIU initiatives, the JRC has developed the FinFlows database, together with the Commission Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN)

Decarbonising our economy is one of the priorities of the EU Competitiveness Compass. Reaching climate neutrality by 2050 calls for significant contributions from private finance. To inform an orderly, competitive and clean transition, EU policymakers require effective tools to track sustainable investments and their financing on a regular basis. The JRC has contributed to the development of a comprehensive framework to monitor sustainable finance.