Papanicolaou: turning savings into investment to boost Europe’s competitiveness

25 September 2026

Europe’s key challenge is to “transform its savings into productive investment,” said Paola Papanicolaou, Chief of Intesa Sanpaolo’s International Banks Division, during her speech at the “Who Pays for Risk? Capital, Competitiveness & Financial Markets” event organized by AmCham Slovenia (American Chamber of Commerce in Slovenia).

The conference provided an opportunity to discuss how Europe can finance its future growth, remain globally competitive and build a financial ecosystem that is innovative, secure and resilient.

Key highlights from her speech:

• Around €10 trillion of European household savings are held in bank deposits, while the Draghi Report estimates an additional investment requirement of at least €750-800 billion per year. “Bridging this gap is essential to strengthen competitiveness, innovation and sustainable growth”
• “The Savings and Investments Union is a key step in this direction” and should therefore be supported through “stronger capital markets and adequate investment capacity for Europe's strategic priorities”
• The financing model of the future is not about choosing between banks and capital markets. Both will be needed. “Banks remain essential in financing SMEs, infrastructure and the transition, while capital markets provide scale, equity financing and risk sharing”
• The role of bankers in this evolving ecosystem “will be not only to lend, but also to act as advisors, distributors, originators and connectors of capital”
• Artificial Intelligence is becoming an increasingly important driver of competitiveness, operational efficiency and customer experience. “Intesa Sanpaolo is targeting a productivity increase of over 20% in the middle and back office by the end of the 2026–2029 Business Plan”
• The true value of AI lies in enhancing human capabilities “through robust governance, human oversight and continued investment in skills”.

Paola Papanicolaou is Chief of Intesa Sanpaolo’s International Banks Division, which serves 7.4 million customers across 12 countries.

The AmCham Business Breakfast “Who Pays for Risk? Capital, Competitiveness & Financial Markets” took place in Ljubljana on 25 September 2026.