José Maria Méndez, CEO of CECA, confirmed that movements in the European financial system are not yet over. The executive underlined the importance of the consolidation process in Spain, which has transformed the 45 savings banks into 11 banking groups and tripled the average balance sheet of the resulting entities. Looking to the future, the executive assured that 'there is room for new cross-border integrations between eurozone entities'. Méndez also stated that 'mortgage defaults have, in fact, peaked', a scenario that is partly the result of the economic improvement and the downward trend in unemployment. As for the regulatory framework, Méndez described it as 'one of the biggest concerns' for fund managers. 'We have a new capital regulation on the table and this is something that is increasing the costs for banks'.