European Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque has highlighted her focus on improving financial literacy and strengthening consumer protections across the European Union. In a recent interview, she emphasized the importance of creating accessible investment opportunities for small savers and advocated for targeted, temporary measures to support vulnerable households and businesses during the ongoing energy crisis.
Maria Luís Albuquerque is serving as a European Commissioner and in the story she argued for strengthening supplementary pensions to diversify retirement income and increase the role of insurers as institutional investors. She previously served in national government as Portugal's finance minister (2013–2015), so her comments matter for pension policy discussions in Portugal and at EU level.
The Draghi Report's ambitions force Europe to confront uncomfortable realities: it is falling significantly behind global competitors. The analysis argues that the ‘race’ has been underway for years and that closing the gap requires urgent, active policy choices — including structural reforms, targeted investment and a renewed focus on competitiveness across the single market.
I promised to return to the topic I developed last week: the creation of the digital euro, European strategic autonomy, the risks to commercial and cooperative banking, the threats from the US administration, and the presence of a Portuguese unicorn in the revolution launched by Lagarde's ECB. I begin by reaffirming my surprise at the little relevance given by the media to the European Parliament's approval of a European payment system which, if all goes well and receives a similar position from the Council and the Commission, will resolve our dependence on MasterCard, Visa, and other American companies in the European space. Trump has not reacted directly, but behind the diplomatic and economic scenes, the pieces have begun to move. There are veiled threats of tariff increases and cuts in support for those who dare to affront. It is poker time, where each player patiently waits for the revelation of the suits held in each hand. It is necessary, I would say mandatory, to understand that we Europeans are not the only ones moving on this matter. One of the greatest assets of Brazilian diplomacy, led by President Lula, is how he has used the technological success of PIX as a political weapon, a Brazilian payment system being analysed by BRICS members, including China, Russia, and India. BRICS Pay, if realised, would allow for a new payment system that would change, like never before, the assumptions of a financial world anchored in the strength of the dollar. I return to the digital euro. There are many issues to resolve, questions that arise, doubts. Many colleagues are frightened by the possibility that the virtual will change the rules of the game and harm commercial and cooperative banking. They fear 'Big Brother' having all our data available, as if they did not already. I am not in that group. I am optimistic about all processes that streamline and make access more convenient for people. What is seen as a problem can be good news... the need for modernisation will increase security and deepen a relationship of trust and proximity that has defined cooperative members for over a century. We will be what others cannot be, what they have already given up on being; we will have better conditions to execute what distinguishes us. The virtual is not a topic for the future, it is already the present, and tomorrow it will already be the past. Europe is an old place, but the place where one still lives best, the place where Human Rights are most defended. There are dangers on the path, but opportunities to build new hopes, words, and borders. The choice of the Portuguese unicorn Feedzai to lead the fraud protection mechanism for the digital euro is extraordinarily relevant. Nuno Sebastião's company, born in a cubicle in Coimbra and now valued at over two billion dollars, is on the front line of the security of the future of European money, of our money. There is no limit to the dream when it is grounded in knowledge, ambition, and hard work. The greatest pride in so many Portuguese who dare to continue being global sailors and ghost hunters.
European cultural figures, birds, nature, or iconic buildings. There are ten design proposals for the new series of euro banknotes, and Europeans are invited to vote for their favourites on the European Central Bank's website until 21 September.
The German defence company Helsing has raised 1.8 billion dollars (approximately 1.6 billion euros) in a Series E funding round to boost the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into European defence, valuing the company at 18 billion dollars (approximately 15.8 billion euros). The round...
The European Union (EU) has formally adopted the trade agreement with Mexico, following the approval of the text by the Council of the EU, it was announced this Tuesday. This decision concludes the EU's internal process regarding the trade agreement and confirms that it has completed the internal procedures for the document to enter into force. The Interim Trade Agreement between the EU and Mexico was signed on 22 May 2026, during the EU-Mexico summit, and approved by the European Parliament on 8 July. The partnership is expected to benefit more than 45,000 EU companies that export to Mexico, the vast majority of which are small and medium-sized enterprises. The agreement will improve market access by eliminating most remaining customs duties, expanding opportunities for services, investment, and public procurement, and reducing trade barriers. The agreed document also strengthens the protection of European geographical indications and intensifies cooperation on digital trade, intellectual property, customs and trade facilitation, competition, and critical raw materials. It will enter into force on the first day of the second month following the date on which the EU and Mexico have notified each other of the completion of their respective internal procedures. The European Parliament gives the 'green light' to the EU-US trade agreement and Von der Leyen welcomes the decision.
The Portuguese government will participate in the new version of the European Tech Champions Initiative, though no specific amount has been set. The 'fund of funds' aims to provide Europe with the financial capacity to prevent innovative companies from 'fleeing' to the US.
Christine Lagarde does not rule out stepping down as President of the European Central Bank (ECB) before the end of her term in October 2027 to ensure a “European voice” is heard in the French presidential election debate. In an interview with the newspaper Les Echos, cited by AFP, the ECB president, whose potential early departure before the presidential elections...
This year's theme is 'Shaping the future of Europe: innovation, growth and stability' and it begins on June 29th with an opening speech by Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB.
There is no way around it. If we do nothing, the non-compliance with European rules will be paid for in 2028, amounting to 12 billion. Is it understood now? Or are we prepared for a new record high in the tax burden? Opinion by Mário Centeno
Europe could lose up to 1.3 million jobs, particularly in energy-intensive industries, due to the war in Iran. The warning comes from the European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Roxana Mînzatu, who advocated for an urgent strengthening of European workers' skills. The European official's position was conveyed...
This Wednesday there is a general strike against the labour law reform that the Government is promoting. Meanwhile, the European Commission will present the European Semester spring package and the OECD will revise Portugal's growth. Also marking the day is the release of the Beige Book by the Fed and the...
Carlos Tavares, former CEO of Stellantis, states that the common interest of these three countries will provide 'courage and energy for us to accelerate our autonomisation'
In this week's 'Europa Viva', Maria Luís Albuquerque explains that the goal of her mission is for all citizens to have higher pensions at the time of retirement.
The European Central Bank (ECB) argues that Europe must reduce its reliance on non-European payment providers amidst rising e-commerce and geopolitical tensions. ECB executive board member Piero Cipollone stated that a digital euro would provide a sovereign payment infrastructure, allowing citizens to pay digitally with central bank-issued money as they do with physical cash. Currently, two-thirds of card transactions in the eurozone are governed by non-European companies, and the ECB aims to strengthen European autonomy by offering a pan-European digital payment solution that is resilient, cost-effective, and independent of foreign infrastructure.
The European Commission has urged European countries to lower their gas storage targets for the coming winter in order to ease price pressure caused by the war in the Middle East. The United States and Israel launched an offensive on the Shahid Ahmadi Roshan uranium enrichment facility in Natanz this Saturday. We are following the developments of the conflict here, minute by minute.
Vujcic will be appointed for an eight-year term, starting on 1 June 2026. Mário Centeno was among the candidates for this position, but the Portuguese government ultimately withdrew his candidacy.
The European Parliament today approved the nomination of the governor of the Croatian central bank, Boris Vujcic, as vice-president of the ECB, succeeding Luis de Guindos, whose term ends on 31 May.
