Alexandru Petrescu, President of the Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF), highlighted the need to strengthen the competitiveness and integration of capital markets in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), stressing the importance of liquidity, governance, institutional stability and financial infrastructure in attracting investment.

Petrescu made the remarks at BT Investors Day, where he participated in a discussion with Csaba Balint, Member of the Board of the National Bank of Romania, focused on the resilience of Central and Eastern Europe and the region’s capacity to reinvent itself.

“Competition for capital takes place not only between companies, but also between markets, economies and regions,” Petrescu said. “Investors look beyond a company’s profitability: liquidity, governance, institutional stability and financial infrastructure also matter.”

According to Petrescu, while the region’s growth potential represents an important advantage, it needs to be supported by deeper and more integrated financial markets.

“The region’s growth potential is an advantage, but it is not enough, on its own, to attract investment,” he said.

Petrescu also underlined the role of European market integration in providing companies with access to financing beyond their domestic markets.

“Greater integration of European markets can give our companies access to the financing they need to grow and compete internationally,” he said. “A company may start in Bucharest, Warsaw or Prague, but its ambitions, access to capital and growth opportunities should not stop at national borders.”

Turning to Romania, Petrescu noted that the country’s capital market has expanded in recent years, but argued that the next stage should focus on increasing its depth and diversification.

“Romania’s capital market has grown in scale, and the next step is to translate that growth into greater market depth: more listed companies, stronger liquidity, a broader investor base and a more diverse range of financial instruments,” Petrescu said.

He also pointed to the role of pension funds and other institutional investors in directing long-term savings toward the financing of the economy.

“Pension funds and other institutional investors can support this development by channelling long-term savings into financing for the economy,” he said.

Petrescu stressed that a competitive capital market also depends on a regulatory framework that provides predictability for investors and market participants.

“This development requires clear, proportionate and predictable rules, as well as confidence that they are applied consistently,” he said.

He added that financial supervision will increasingly need to rely on technology and data to identify emerging risks while maintaining its core objectives.

“Supervision must increasingly make use of data and technology to anticipate risks, while keeping investor protection and market integrity at its core,” Petrescu said.

Concluding his remarks, the ASF president pointed to the opportunity for Romania and the wider CEE region to position themselves more prominently on the global investment map.

“Romania already has ‘most wanted’ companies. Our ambition for the next decade should be for Romania and the wider Central and Eastern European region to become a ‘most wanted’ destination for global capital,” Petrescu said.