Articles by Alexandre Mato

About the Author

Alexandre Mato
Alexandre Mato covers European affairs from Brussels. Former Editor in-chief of Cierre de Mercados, he was the first ever editor on Spanish TV appointed under the age of 30. He has a degree in Journalism and a postgraduate in International Relations, both from Universidad Complutense de Madrid.
Wim Mijs

Wim Mijs: “Mergers will begin at domestic level in markets like Germany or Italy”

Alexandre Mato (Brussels) | Job and office cuts, mergers of different banking cultures, necessary digital transformation, lower profitability because of the interest rate environment … “In a context of profound market changes, banks cannot allow themselves to spend three years looking inwards!” concludes Wim Mijs about the long process of cross-border operations in the sector. The CEO of the European Banking Federation, the sector´s main interlocutor with European institutions, explains the sector´s main challenges just after presenting a project to boost EU capital markets.


prueba fiat panda diesel 57

EU: Euroscepticism To Conceal Italy’s Decline

Alexandre Mato (Brussels) | Protectionism and government interference has buried the corporate operation of the year. Fiat Chrysler withdrew its 33 billion euro offer to merge with Renault Nissan, based on a car which had barely begun its race to third position in the car making world.


Green economy

Green New Deal: Spaniards behind the EU global green struggle (III)

Alexandre Mato (Brussels) | At a time when in the US the young Congress woman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez supports a green New Deal as “an umbrella for a combination of policies and programmes which moves America away from fossil fuels and causes the country to slow the climate crisis”, in the words of Varshini Prakash, co-founder of the Sunrise Movement, an organisation driving this economic policy, the EU is taking firm steps in the ecological transition.



Spain renewables auctions in 2022

EU: The New Green Deal (I)

Alexandre Mato (Bruselas) | Brussels recently announced the creation of the Innovation Funds with 10 billion euros to invest up until 2030 in green technologies to support the European energy transition.


Italy and the bad management of euro funds

Italy And The Bad Management Of Euro Funds

Alexandre Mato | Rome and Brussels are engaged in a permanent dispute over the 2019 budgets, exacerbated by the lies of the populist Italian coalition. The Commission leaders counterattack with the data in hand. Between 2014 and 2020 Italy will receive almos€43 Bn in European structural and investment funds.



Banco Popular crisis

The Eurogroup Dodges Banco Popular’s Problems

Brussels is not concerned about the Spanish banks, even despite the problems of a systemic lender like Popular, in the process of being sold. The Spanish banks have shown that they have done their homework and restructured their balance sheets since receiving a European bail-out in 2012.


spain's anti-brexit machinery

Spain Government Is Greasing Its Anti-Brexit Machinery

The country which tried to invade England in 1588 may become its best ally. After the 28 European partners held their Summit in Malta at the beginning of February, this was the Bloomberg headline regarding the relations between Madrid and London during the Brexit negotiations. But the question of Gibraltar remains a thorny one.