Brussels, 20/01/2015 (Agence Europe) - The CEO of Euronext Bruxelles, Vincent Van Dessel, said on Tuesday 20 January that a tax on financial speculation would mainly affect small businesses.
Quoted by Belga, Mr van Dessel took the opportunity of the presentation of the annual figures of the Brussels Stock Exchange to hammer home his opposition to a financial transactions tax (FTT). However, he could be persuaded to change his mind if the tax came about “in a European context, but not (for Belgium) alone” (our translation). For its part, the banking industry stepped into the lull in negotiations within the enhanced cooperation on the FTT to reiterate its opposition. The French Banking Federation has repeated its “total opposition” and its “failure to understand this initiative, which runs counter to the interests of the French economy, businesses and the Paris financial centre”. The French minister, Michel Sapin, confirmed that a new French initiative would be taken. (EL)