Open banking and inclusive finance in the European Union:perspectives from the Dutch stakeholder ecosystem

In the European Union(EU),the revised Payment Services Directive(PSD2)aims to provide more convenient and customized financial products through open banking(OB)platforms.However,little attention has been paid to the role of OB in improving the financial well-being of the growing number of the EU’s underserved groups,which currently constitute approximately a quarter of its population.This study examines how the PSD2 and OB impact inclusive finance in the EU based on the perspectives of the Netherlands’ecosystem,one of the leaders in the EU’s financial technology(FinTech)landscape.A fundamental distinction can be drawn between the OB users and the ecosystem’s players.Regarding the impact of financial services on the users’inclusivity,while the PSD2 strengthens the infrastructure necessary for financial inclusion,many challenges remain,mainly because it was not designed for this purpose.This study identifies several areas of improvement that include adjustments to the know your customer and anti-money laundering processes for underserved customers,innovative ways to communicate the PSD2’s potential,and the regulation of technology providers’activities to build trust.Meanwhile,from the ecosystem’s position,there is a need to strengthen and improve microfinance regulation according to the opportunities provided by the PSD2 to support microfinance institutions(MFIs)in scaling up and reaching underserved clients across borders with innovative services.OB improvements can also be achieved by organizations formed by MFIs and FinTechs in collaboration with banks.Such hybrid institutions will combine the best features of each of them:knowledge of the needs of local underserved clients from MFIs,technological innovations from FinTechs,and large and trusted customer bases,infrastructures,and access to institutional investments and governments from banks.Finally,an EU inclusive OB sector depends on the centrality of trusted regulators as coordination bodies.The PSD2 requires adjustments for underserved populations’specific needs.OB improvements can be achieved by organizations formed by MFIs and Fin-Techs in collaboration with banks.Regulated technical service providers(TSPs)are crucial to building trust and customer adoption in OB.The European Banking Authority(EBA)may function as coordination body to design inclusive rules by engaging with OB stakeholders.As inclusive finance moves into open-finance and data eras,an increasing regulatory complexity and scope will require networks of innovative and trusted regulators.

Research on the Regulatory Framework of Advanced Therapies in the European Union and the United States

Objective To study the regulatory framework of advanced therapies in the European Union and the United States,and to provide reference for the regulation of cell-and gene-based therapeutic products in China.Methods The legal and regulatory documents,annual reports,work information and related literature published on the websites of the FDA and European Medicines Agency(EMA)were reviewed to analyze the regulatory models of advanced therapies in the European Union and the United States.Results and Conclusion the United States and the European Union have carried out a lot of work in the classification standards of advanced therapies,policy formulation and accelerated listing procedures.Therefore,they have established a relatively mature regulatory system.China can learn from their experience and continuously improve the regulatory system to help the sustainable development of gene and cell therapy industry.

Air Quality Legislation and Standards in the European Union: Background, Status and Public Participation

In order to improve air quality, the European Union introduced the New Air Quality Directive in 2008 and set its Member States strict targets on air pollution concentrations for the most harmful and challenging substances, such as fine particles. The law enforcement relies on a monitoring and reporting system to inform the European Commission and the public, for it is the citizens' right to be informed about harmful air quality. With sectoral measures, air quality could be improved in the past 20 years, but some emissions concentrations have stagnated in recent years and emissions temporarily exceed thresholds in nearly half of the Member States. The European Emission Inventory allows the commission to identify the substances, areas, and times of exceedances, and to implement sectoral measures leading to air quality improvements, all of which have to be made available publicly. This manuscript introduces the air quality legislation and reviews the quality of European air for recent years.

A European Union Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and Its Implications

The international fight to cut greenhouse gas emissions is entering a new phase as an increasing number of countries have recently announced major commitments to achieve carbon neutrality within the next few decades.Meanwhile,some developed countries are trying to hedge against the losses associated with emissions reduction by devising self-protective mechanisms.One of the most notable examples is the European Union’s(EU’s)plan to introduce a carbon border adjustment mechanism(CBAM)as early as 2023,imposing a charge on imports of certain products from countries deemed not to be seriously tackling climate change.By investigating how the CBAM has evolved in EU policy making and assessing what the potential implications might be,this paper argues that the CBAM reflects the internal demands of EU climate politics,addresses its practical needs to hedge against the pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,and is the inevitable result of transitions in European social and political thought as well as in its party politics.Given the current shift in the public opinion toward carbon border taxes in the United States(US),the policies of developed countries will likely converge on this issue in the foreseeable future,which will jolt the basic framework for global action on climate change and make the situation even grimmer for emerging and developing countries in terms of greenhouse gas emissions reduction.

Determinants of Female Employment Rate in the European Union

The aim of this paper is to provide a clear insight about the determinants of female employment rate in the European Union where we have used panel data analyses of 27 countries members of the European Union from 1995 till 2009. Applying dynamic modeling, i.e, generalized method of moments （GMM） econometrics findings have driven us to system estimated model where the following institutional variables have been tested： maternity leave, child care facilities, college education, fertility rate, GDP growth, female unemployment rate and part-time employment. We expect these variables to have a positive impact on the female employment rate except for the female unemployment rate and maternity leave

A Study of the European Union’s Path for Constructing Digital Governance Rules and the Logical Implications of the Path

The European Union(EU)seeks to build a Europe fit for the digital age.For this purpose,the EU has accelerated the process of catching up with digital technology and issued a number of legal and regulatory documents to establish a digital governance rule regime with EU characteristics.This paper analyzes the EU’s path towards the construction of digital governance rules.This path is composed of three aspects,i.e.,strict digital supervision,differentiation of the free market,and multi-stakeholder governance.This three-step path has intrinsic logical implications.That is,strict digital supervision is applied to defend the EU’s unified market and values;differentiation of the free market takes the principle of adequate protection as the core to make the EU an exporter of rules;multi-stakeholder governance brings multiple stakeholders together in the governance to deal with the ethical anomie that arises during the use of big data.By setting up a series of digital governance rules,the EU seeks to achieve rule dominance to gain regulatory power for global digital governance.However,due to multiple constraints,there is a long way to go,and there are obstacles in the way.

I4EU(Industry 4.0 for European Union)--An European Initiative to Develop Training Activity

This paper presents an on-going European ERASMUS project to develop training programs and tools for Industry 4.0.After an introduction on the background and objective of the project,the paper will give an overview on the structure,partners and organization of the project.Based on the State-of-the-art,the targeted intellectual outputs(IOs)will be presented in detail and the set of planned activities to achieve IOs are outlined.The project progress and preliminary results are shown and the concluding summary will be given at the end of the paper.

Training and Rural Development in Some Countries of the European Union

The aim of this research was to value, using a multiple regression model, the role of knowledge to guarantee the development in rural areas of European Union countries over 10 years. The main question was to find out relationships among some variable, as the percentage of national Gross Domestic Product （GDP） used to improve the high training, and rural development in terms of agricultural labour units. The results underlined in 2001 as an high value of rural development, in terms of working force in agriculture, was identified in some countries of European Union characterised by a low value both in high training investments and also by a low value of Human Development Index, according to the definition of The Economist. The results in 2010 pointed out an inverse correlation among the dependent variable development in rural areas and the independent variables per capita GDP and national expenditure in advanced training, in percentage of national GDP. The learning by doing and by using, the introduction of advanced training in agriculture, using Long Life Learning measures of European Union, are important to improve the development of European rural areas but, sometimes, these actions are not perceived as something of useful.

The Francization of the European Union and Its Implications

In recent years,the European Union(EU)has shown an obvious trend toward French sensibilities in terms of integration,economic development concept,and strategic culture.First,the monetary policies of the eurozone and the fiscal policies of the EU have become more redistributive in nature,reflecting the solidarity ideals of France.Second,France’s deep-rooted“economic patriotism”is translating more into industrial policy and protectionism at the EU level.Third,the French concepts of“European sovereignty”and“strategic autonomy”are becoming the geopolitical direction of the EU.The trend of Francization of the EU is not only the result of direct efforts by the Macron government,but also closely related to the world situation and internal changes of the EU,especially changes to the social and political ecology of the United States and Brexit.In general,the Francization of the EU is a long-term trend,but it is also a nonlinear development,which may be more or less evident coinciding with the changes in the French government,the changes within the EU,and the changes of the world situation at large.The ultimate outcome is also uncertain,leading either to a more federal EU or to fragmentation and backsliding as internal tensions rise.Regardless of the outcome,the Francization of the EU is certain to have profound geopolitical consequences.

Regional analysis and sustainable development： Application of a synthetic sustainability indicator to Galicia and the European Union

In general, investigations carried out to date regarding/measuring systems/systems of measurement of sustainable development present two peculiarities： Either they are of a limited practical nature or they do not allow for comparisons between different areas or economies. Global synthetic indicators are an exception to the above; however they have been scarcely developed. This article designs an index of said characteristics, which is subsequently applied to all the countries within the European Union and to the region of Galicia.

The Security Strategy of the European Union: Origin, Evolution, and Policy Direction

With the deepening development of European integration and the change of international situation, member states of the European Union(EU) have gradually strengthened consultation and coordination in the field of security and established corresponding mechanisms. In this process,the EU has also formed and developed its National Security Strategy and issued four versions of security strategy reports in 2003, 2008, 2016, and 2022. The 2022 version of the EU security strategy(hereafter referred to as the New Security Strategy), for the first time, has identified Russia as a long-term and direct threat. Furthermore, it has paid increased attention to traditional security, especially the upgrading of military capabilities and has become more reliant on the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In the future, the EU will accelerate the militarization process, exert all-out efforts to contain Russia, scrutinize neighborhood security, and increase its swing on China policy.

Implications of a Crisis on Small Businesses in the European Union and Republic of Croatia

Until the early 1990s Croatia has been neglecting, and even underestimating the significance, the role, the needs, and the results of small businesses （small and medium entrepreneurship）. Complete attention was focused on big companies. Relatively late, in 2002, small businesses, within the statutory legislation, have gotten its appropriate legal status and economic relevance. Today it is treated as a ＂basic necessity＂ of every society and a generator of economic development. But, economic crisis that has been present since 2008 has manifested all of its negativities, which has reflected on the present state of the economy, the whole society, and it is also shown from the results and some relevant indicators.

Multidimensional Analysis of Social Convergence Within the European Union Countries

Social convergence is one of the most important objectives for European integration. It is understood as a process of cohesion and assimilation of countries in the area of social development, which is the conditions and standards of living of the citizens of the European countries （EU27）. The aim of the article was to investigate whether there is convergence or divergence in the EU27 area, taking into account multidimensional analysis of social convergence. Methodology used in the article was taxonomic and statistical tool. It allowed applying the synthetic approach to the issue. The time taken into consideration was the period of 2000-2013. The article showed that the area of the EU27 is very diversified in terms of social development. It allows indicating five groups of countries similar to each other due to the level of social development, although the differences among the groups are significant. The analysis of convergence led to the conclusion that the process of ＂catching up＂ occurred until 2007. Then this process has stopped and even divergence trends are visible due to crisis 2008/2009. The period of 2008-2011 revealed the greatest disparities of development among the EU countries.

Representation of Polish Business Groups in the Institutional System of the European Union

This article is an attempt to present and explain the role played by the Polish business groups in the institutional system of the European Union （EU）.This article presents the forms of representing the interests of Polish business groups in the institutional system of the European Union.

The Role of the European Union in Socio-economic Integration of Immigrants Residing in Azerbaijan: Current Problems, Tendencies, and Perspectives

The chosen study mainly concerns on the migration issue,which has become a phenomenon in the European Union’s political economy in the contemporary era,within the recent years,which identifies the role of migrants in Azerbaijani labor market and other areas of economic integration involving the current trends,challenges,and perspectives in the political or socio-economic fields.The long-brewing Civil War in Syria created a large-scale trajectory of migrants,resulting in a massive influx of refugees from Turkey to Greece and then to Germany.Recently,the issue of migration is now transforming into a phenomenon among the member states of the European Union prompting them to take immediate action and make crucial decisions in the country’s political economy.As a result,modern migration can play a pivotal role both for the EU and for Azerbaijan in the direction of flow of people,capital and services,remittances,improving socio-economic well-being and the cheap labor force in the international labor market.The key criterion of the study is to identify specific ways in which persons or migrants who are involved in the migration process can be able to also contribute to the sustainable economic development of the region by positively influencing IDPs on the local population,labor market activities,and overall political and economic activity.The main idea behind the research is to investigate the economic integration of immigrants in Azerbaijan through its original theoretical and empirical study of migration that plays an important role in the EU’s political economy.The research aims to better regulate labor migration processes in Azerbaijan with the help of the European Union and to optimize the impact on labor productivity in the country by providing economic integration of migrants in the local labor market.The main focus of this study is to identify the role of the European Union in the economic integration of immigrants in Azerbaijan,the legal migration and migration process,based on the Joint Declaration on Resettlement Partnership launched between the EU and Azerbaijan.

The Welfare Assessment of Calves in Terms of the European Union Legislation

After entering to the Europe Union, Slovak Republic has implemented the EU legislation into the legislation of the Slovak Republic. The previous legislation of this country was effective in practice. So we were interested in, whether actual legislation is effective in practice too as previous or it will be necessary to make some changes in the legislation. This led us to carry out the assessment of welfare by farmed animal, specifically by calves. Our assessment was based on the Bristol Welfare Assurance Programme protocol developed at the University of Bristol. Very good results were achieved by assessment, and it shows about good level of legislation in the area of protection of animals, it has conditions and requirements, which will not require big changes and the breeder can ensure without bigger problems so to ensure to animals their five freedoms originally established by the Brambell Committee in 1965： （1） Freedom from hunger and thirst; （2） Freedom from discomfort; （3） Freedom fi＇om pain, injury or disease; （4） Freedom to express normal behaviour; （5） Freedom from fear and distress.

The Study of Supply and Demand of Organic Products in the European Union and Serbia

One of the phenomena that marked 20th century is rapid technology progress. This process did not avoid food production and processing. Thanks to rapid development of technology, there has been a development of conventional food production, as well as appearance of genetically modified food. As a consequence of this trend, as well as the concern among some part of human population for their health, we had the return to natural food production in the form of the development of organic food production. One of the characteristics of organic food market in the European Union is the constant growth of demand for this product group, and insufficient quantities of organic products available in this market. These information led to the conclusion that organic food represents an opportunity for less developed countries, i.e., that countries like Serbia can manufacture and sale these products on the market with the highest purchasing power in the world--the European Union market. In this paper, the characteristics of demand for organic foods in the European Union were presented, then it was explained in detail why are these products export chance of Serbia, as well as reasons why is the export of organic food from Serbia to the EU very low at the time being. At the end, some recommendations that could help Serbia to increase export of organic product to EU countries were proposed.

Political Impact of Chinese Foreign Direct Investment （FDI） in the European Union （EU）

This paper explores the political challenges posed by the recent influx of Chinese outward foreign direct investment （OFDI） into the European Union （EU）. Chinese OFDI has increased substantially in recent years. Chinese direct investment is still minute in the EU, but it is growing fast, and the strong upward trajectory is likely to continue in the years to come. This surge represents challenges and opportunities for EU countries. In the current context of economic and debt crisis in Europe, whether China is seen as a saviour or a predator, the question of a Faustian bargain made by European countries by courting and hosting Chinese investment needs to be asked. The benefits of foreign direct investment （FDI） for the host economy are well known, but Chinese OFDI may come with implicit strings attached and could potentially act as a Trojan Horse, affecting European norms and policies. The influx of Chinese OFDI can create an unhealthy transatlantic competition with security ramifications, which should therefore be addressed. It is interesting to find the right balance between ensuring the benefits from Chinese FDI （from job creation to productivity gains） and protecting from its harmful effects.

THE EUROPEAN UNION

For the European Union (EU), 1997 will be a critical year, whether for es-tablishing its Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) or for building its political u-nion, or for its eastward enlargement. First, 1997 is a decisive year for countries applying for founding membershipof the EMU scheduled to be launched in 1999. To be sure, to realize EU’s plan forsingle currency is one of the major objectives of its cross-century strategy and