Where are you and why?
"I am in Copenhagen at the Eurofi Financial Forum. Eurofi is a kind of think tank that specialises in laws and regulations for the financial sector. They have about a hundred members. These are large financial companies that are based both in Europe and beyond. They organise a meeting twice a year. It takes place at the same time and in the same city as the ECOFIN Council, which brings together the finance ministers of all EU Member States. So all relevant policymakers are already in the city in question and are also invited to Eurofi." Van Stiphout calls Eurofi a good opportunity to bring policymakers and interest groups together to discuss on an informal basis what opportunities and challenges currently lie in Europe. "Eurofi lasts for three days. You have a full program of panel discussions and speeches all those days. These cover all kinds of different themes within the financial sector. There is also a lot of room for bilateral discussions with (inter)national policymakers. I was there from 16 to 19 September."
Who are there too?
"There are all kinds of representatives from the financial sector here. Think of insurers, banks, private equity firms and asset managers. In short, all the major companies that are active in our industry. For example, ING, Deutsche Bank, AXA, Allianz, Generali, MasterCard, PayPal and also AWS and BNP Paribas are represented. From Europe, there are the most important policymakers of the European Commission. Two European commissioners are also present. First of all, there is European Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque of financial services and the Savings and Investment Union (SIU). In addition, Vice-President of the European Commission Valdis Donbrovskis is also present. He is responsible for the European economy in the broad sense and productivity. In total, there are about a thousand attendees."
What is the atmosphere like?
"Well, it's quite intense. The days are very long. The substantive program starts between eight o'clock and half past eight in the morning and runs until eight o'clock, half past eight in the evening. Then there is a drink and around nine o'clock a dinner. You see people who manically go through all kinds of appointments; That seems difficult to maintain. A relaxed approach is better."
What stands out?
"There is a lot of attention for the Savings and Investment Union (SIU). Many conversations are about the various proposals that the European Commission will present as part of its SIU strategy in the coming weeks and months. It is also useful to hear what initiatives are being rolled out in other countries to ensure that people invest more. For example, there is a successful insurance product in Sweden that allows customers to invest easily with money that they would otherwise put in a savings account. These kinds of initiatives could also be interesting for the Dutch market."
"You see people who manically go through all kinds of appointments; That seems difficult to maintain. A relaxed approach is better"
What lesson from this event will you take back to The Hague?
"During a panel on the cyber risk landscape, a European reinsurer said that as many as two thousand successful cyber attacks take place in Europe every day. Such figures show the size of the risk. In the future, this will become an increasingly important topic, which we must take into account."
Do you have a nice detail or anecdote?
"Insurance Europe and Insurance & Pension Denmark had organised an insurance dinner together and that was a nice way to facilitate the dialogue between the sector and policymakers in the field of insurance. The dinner took place near Tivoli in a beautiful restaurant where there was room for about twenty people in an intimate setting. There was an opening speech by Thea Uthoft, Secretary General of Insurance Europe, and the rest of the evening there was plenty of room for conversations. I sat next to the financial services attaché of the Danish Permanent Representation. At the moment, the Danes hold the presidency of the European Council and I talked to her about her role as president and what she encounters in her work. It was nice to get to know her that way."
What do you get the most out of it?
"For three days, you immerse yourself in the topics you work with on a daily basis. From early in the morning until late at night, it is about the challenges, legislation and opportunities for the sector. You are completely up to date with all the developments and ideas that exist on the various topics. That is very valuable, but also very tiring," Van Stiphout concludes with a laugh.
