---
title: "Europe Has Turned Innovation Into Paperwork"
date: 2026-10-31T09:00:00+01:00
description: "Regulation is part of my job in banking. I just wish Europe put as much effort into helping people build companies as it puts into writing new rules."
tags: [economics, leadership]
---

I work in mobile banking in France. Regulation is part of my job. I don't want a banking system without it.

But every rule costs time. Someone has to read it, interpret it, change the product and prove compliance. A big company hires another lawyer. A startup can lose months.

The AI Act shows the problem. Some high-risk rules were due in August 2026. The Commission has proposed delaying them until December 2027 because the standards and assessment bodies were not ready.

Europe wrote the law before it could implement it.

Then add fragmented capital markets, expensive industrial energy and 27 national systems of contract law and VAT. The single market is still not single enough.

I don't want a free-for-all. GDPR changed privacy practices well beyond Europe. ASML and Airbus show what Europe can build. I want more of that.

So make building easier.

Give startups one simple EU company structure. Let them test with real customers. Recognize approvals across borders when standards match. Attach a time cost to every new rule. Delete old rules that no longer protect anyone.

Let founders spend their first year on the product. Let them learn from customers before the money runs out.

My son was born last month. I hope he grows up with the protections Europe does well: privacy, safety and fair markets. I also hope he grows up around people who are building things, including things that might fail.

And if he has an idea worth trying one day, I want him to be able to build it here.