04 September 2012

EMF: Mortgage Info, July/August 2012

EMF Publishes 2012 Edition of its Study on the Valuation of Property for Lending Purposes

European mortgage markets reflect the variety, traditions and cultural diversity present in all aspects of European life. Since 2004, this rich mix has increased as the European Union (EU) has expanded eastwards, bringing a further 13 Member States into the fold. Every Member State has its own system for providing credit for the purposes of homeownership or for financing commercial properties. Every Member State also recognises the importance of an accurate valuation of the underlying asset without which the integrity of the lending system would be undermined…

CRR/CRD IV: Hoping for More Certainty and the Correct Technical Solutions

One of the key files currently in the pipeline is the European Commission’s Proposal in relation to the revised Capital Requirements Package, which consists of the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR) and the Capital Requirements Directive IV (CRD IV). The purpose of this regulatory package is to translate the international standards on bank capital (Basel III rules) agreed at G20 level into European law and to create a Single Rule Book, i.e. a set of rules directly applicable in all EU Member States that will improve both transparency and enforcement in the EU banking sector…

EMF Quarterly Review – Q1 2012: No Recovery in Sight for Mortgage Lending and Housing Markets

The unfavourable macro-economic environment continued to negatively affect mortgage lending in Q1 2012, with a year-on-year decrease in gross residential lending for at least three consecutive quarters in Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. As regards housing markets’ conditions, the picture still varies across the EU. Whilst year-on-year house prices continued to increase in Belgium, France and Germany, decreasing house prices were recorded in Denmark, Hungary, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain and Sweden. In the UK, prices posted their first increase since Q1 2011…

Covered Bonds: A Reliable Funding Mechanism for the Recovery

For two-and-a-half centuries, through many crises, covered bonds have played an increasing role in the financing of real estate and ship assets. The crisis that began in 2007 introduced many significant changes. The G20 post-crisis reform agenda, launched some years ago, continues to reshape the regulatory landscape for banks. Central banks play a highly proactive role in providing liquidity and are now major stakeholders in the development of the covered bond asset class. Investors are asking for more and more information, a demand which is being met by issuers through a major initiative to deliver greater transparency. We are seeing new issuers come to market and new covered bond frameworks being established in many countries…

State of the Covered Bond Union

Admittedly, it is not January when traditionally the “State of the Union” is a big topic. However, being in holiday mode, EMF considers it about time to look back at 2012 prior to the summer break.

Covered Bonds in 2011 - Statistics

The European Covered Bond Council (ECBC) Statistics & Data Working Group has now been collecting statistics on the outstanding volume and annual gross supply of covered bonds at year end for nine years. From the start its aim has been to provide a complete set of numbers that can serve as guidance for interested parties from issuers and investors to regulators. EMF believes that this year’s collection of data continues the yearly improvement of this exercise observed over recent years. The figures also prove the soundness and stability of the covered bond market with increases of 6.5 per cent in the total outstanding and of 13 per cent of issuance. EMF is also very pleased to add two new countries to its database this year – Australia and Cyprus…

Prometheus Unbound: Prospects for German Aircraft Covered Bonds

In July 2012, NORD/LB in Hanover, Germany, successfully launched its inaugural “Flugzeugpfandbrief” (Aircraft Covered Bond) after a preparation period that lasted well over three years and started lobbying efforts to include aviation assets in the eligibility brackets under the German Covered Bond Act (Revision of 2009)…

Belgian Covered Bonds: A First High-Level Overview of the Legislative Framework

The law of the 3rd of August 2012 establishing a legal framework for Belgian covered bonds (the Covered Bonds Law) introduces a legal framework for the issue of covered bonds by Belgian credit institutions implementing the requirements of article 52 of the Directive 2009/65/EC. The law of the 3rd of August 2012 on various measures to facilitate the mobilisation of receivables in the financial sector (the Mobilisation Law) introduces various measures to facilitate the mobilisation of receivables in the financial sector, including measures that mitigate set-off and claw-back risks in the context of Belgian covered bonds transactions. It is expected that the royal decree(s) and the regulations of the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) (the Implementing Regulations), containing further implementation measures for the Covered Bonds Law, will be finalised in September 2012…

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