Villain of 2008 Crisis Gets New Life in Europe’s Push for Growth

In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, the role of villain partly fell on securitization, turning it into a long-term pariah in Europe.

Since then, the market of packaging different loans into products to sell to investors has weakened, made so costly by post-crisis rules that outstanding debt has almost halved from the 2009 peak of €2.3 trillion ($2.7 trillion).

Now, it’s being cast as a potential hero for a troubled Europe facing trade tariffs, increased defense spending needs and bloated budget deficits.

“Europe needs growth — and growth needs investment,” the European Union’s finance chief, Maria Luis ...