ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the developments of the financial structures in the euro area over the 1995–2002 periods. It provides an overview of the distribution of financial assets and liabilities among euro area resident sectors. The financial assets and liabilities of the euro area residents amounted to almost 7 times the size of the area's Gross Domestic Product by the end of 2002. The chapter describes the financial intermediaries of the euro area. Financial intermediaries have a crucial role in the euro area financial system. The chapter presents the structures and developments of the bond and stock markets. It also describes the financing of the non-financial sectors of the euro area. The private non-financial sectors in the euro area still to a large extent depend on bank intermediation for their financing, even taking into account the increasing use of securities financing for the corporate sector.
