Elites' fear

France is the next big vote to watch

Though an Italian referendum on changes to the country's constitution is right around the corner, the "risk would probably be containable" if Prime Minister Matteo Renzi loses the referendum come December, according to Schmieding and Pickering. (Although, back in August, Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz told Business Insider the referendum could be the "cataclysmic event" similar to Brexit that could trigger the collapse of the eurozone.)

So, given that France is one of the two pillars of the eurozone along with Germany, there's an argument that what happens in that nation's upcoming presidential election, potentially featuring a showdown between a center-right former president and a far-right-wing leader, could have greater implications for the continent than what happens in Italy.

"Could Front National leader Marine Le Pen win the presidential election on 7 May 2017, possibly even trying to take France out of the EU or euro afterwards? If so, it could spell the end of Europe as we know it," wrote Schmieding and Pickering.