How Europe regulated itself into American vassalage

Imagine a continent where, to move money between two neighbors, you need permission from two American companies. Or where the data of millions of citizens, from private messages to business strategies, passes through the California-based servers of Google or Apple every day. It sounds like science fiction, but this is today’s Europe: the technological and financial heart of its economy now beats overseas. This argument seems absurd: we grew up believing that Europe, with its strict regulations, protected its citizens from the excesses of large corporations, especially American ones. Instead, it was precisely those rules that created the dependency they sought to avoid. The more the European Union tightened the market with restrictions, the less room was left for the emergence of local giants. The result? In the pockets of everyone from Dublin to Dubrovnik is a smartphone designed in the United States, probably paid for with a Visa or MasterCard, and powered by U.S.-made liquefied gas. Behind this silent colonization are specific individuals. Take Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO, who said at a conference in Brussels: “European regulations are among the most stringent in the world. But we're ready to invest here anyway.” It was a reassuring message, but between the lines, there was a challenge: American companies are the only ones with the broad shoulders needed to navigate the European regulatory jungle. Meanwhile, at a small startup in Tallinn, the founder explains that obtaining a European fintech license takes years and costs hundreds of thousands of euros in legal fees. Meanwhile, in the United States, Stripe was founded in a garage and, after just a few months, was processing payments for millions of users. In 2024, Visa and MasterCard processed over 90% of digital transactions between European citizens, according to industry data. And since the cut-off of Russian gas, 60% of Europe's imported energy needs have come from the United States in the form of liquefied natural gas. This is not just a matter of trade: it means that every strategic decision on privacy, energy, or finance goes through Washington and Silicon Valley. The real paradox is that the rules created to protect Europe have ended up hollowing out the internal market, leaving the field open to American giants. But there is a question that few people ask: What happens if, one day, these companies decide to turn off the taps? The alternative lesson, which is rarely discussed, is this: an obsession with regulation can be an unexpected gift to foreign competitors. For every regulation that makes life difficult for local businesses, there is a multinational corporation that already has the right lawyer and the clout to adapt. More barriers, less European innovation. Europe has not become an American colony out of laziness, but out of excessive regulatory zeal. Closing the market doesn't always protect us: sometimes, it hands over the keys to the house to those who have already won elsewhere. If you want to keep this idea as your own, you can click I'm In on Lara Notes—it's your way of saying that this perspective now concerns you. And if, a week from now, you find yourself telling someone that in Europe, you even need an American card to pay for coffee, you can come back here and tag that person with Shared Offline: because certain conversations need to be stopped, not allowed to spread. This story comes from The Economist and has saved you almost four minutes compared to the original article.