Articles from 7-13 April 2021
Robert Schuman: The Declaration of 9 May 1950 : World peace cannot be safeguarded without the making of creative efforts proportionate to the dangers which threaten it. View Article
General Financial Policy
Conference on the Future of Europe: inaugural event in Strasbourg : The inaugural event celebrated the launch of the participatory process set up jointly by Parliament, Council and Commission. On Europe Day 2021, the European Parliament in Strasbourg hosted the inaugural event of the Conference on the Future of Europe.
Conference on the Future of Europe: make your voice heard : Their exchanges will be structured thematically around recommendations from the Citizens’ Panels and input gathered from the Multilingual Digital Platform. The Platform is the single place where input from all Conference-related events will be collected, analysed and published.
EU survey highlights support for greater crisis management role at EU level : Two days ahead of the launch of the Conference on the Future of Europe, Parliament today published the results of its Eurobarometer survey on the future of Europe. The survey was commissioned jointly with the European Commission.
Remarks by Commissioner Gentiloni at the press conference on the Spring 2021 Economic Forecast : The EU economy is set to grow robustly this year and next.
EURACTIV: European recovery gains speed as COVID-19 fund kicks in : Europe’s economic recovery from the impact of COVID-19 is gaining momentum, the European Commission concluded in an economic forecast, with the rebound credited to the recovery fund, vaccines, global trade and the lifting of lockdowns.
Eureopean Parliament: Scrutiny begins of EU multi-billion euro recovery funds : MEPs quizzed Commissioners Dombrovskis and Gentiloni on the progress made in executing the Reform and Recovery facility in what will become a regular bimonthly vetting exercise.
Banking Union
Interview with Andrea Enria, Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECB: Restructuring debt : Supervisory relief measures have created capital space for banks to adopt tailor-made debt restructuring measures, says Supervisory Board Chair Andrea Enria. Acting early is good for banks and borrowers. If banks “wait and see” this could lead to bankruptcies at a later stage.
The EBA observes achievements in a number of key areas of the supervisory review across the EU, but also highlights items requiring continue : Overall, the Report finds that supervisors converged in using the key topics of the EBA 2020 Convergence Plan in their supervisory work in 2020 and good progress in supervisors’ efforts could be achieved across the EU.
BIS: How to improve funding of bank resolution in the banking union: the role of deposit insurance : This is a key issue within the ongoing reflection in the European Union on how to improve the current arrangements for bank failure management and, in particular, on how to best adjust the existing funding mechanisms.
Capital Markets Union
European Commission consultation: EU strategy for retail investors : The Commission is preparing a retail investment strategy for the first half of 2022. This public consultation will serve to gather views and evidence which will help the Commission develop its policies.
BDB: Comments of the Association of German Banks on the new capital markets union action plan : The Association of German Banks has warmly welcomed the capital markets union project from the outset. It is a project that needs to be pursued with ambition. The European Commission’s new action plan for capital markets union of 24 September 2020 is an important step forward.
EIOPA launches its 2021 insurance stress test : EIOPA has launched its 2021 insurance stress test for the European insurance market. Insurance stress tests assess the resilience of the European insurance market in case of adverse financial and economic conditions and identify the market’s vulnerabilities.
Invest Europe: European private equity demonstrates resilience and viability with second highest Europe investment total ever : €88 billion of equity invested in over 8,000 European companies in 2020, €101 billion in new capital raised, taking five-year fundraising to €500 billion
Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG)
ACCA: Working together for the planet: audit & assurance of sustainability information : EU and global experts discussed the opportunities and challenges of audit and assurance of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) information, at a joint ACCA, ECIIA, Deloitte and Accountancy Europe event, attended by over 780 participants.
IOSCO sees strong support for its vision for an International Sustainability Standards Board under the IFRS Foundation : Roundtable participants identified some important matters for IOSCO to consider before recommending to its members that ISSB standards be used for cross-border offerings or when setting sustainability reporting requirements at the domestic level.
Project Syndicate Panetta: A Global Accord for Sustainable Finance : With national climate commitments and a renewal of multilateralism both gaining momentum, there is a unique opportunity to forge a global consensus on issues such as carbon pricing, the green transition, and sustainable finance. In each case, the European Union offers a promising model for others.
FBF: The driving force of the Paris financial centre and progress made in the fight against climate change have been underscored by the results: The results speak volumes: the Paris financial centre plays a key role in the climate transition, and concrete progress has been made in combating climate change since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015.
EURACTIV: German 30-year green bond attracts record demand : Investors have been scrambling to purchase Germany’s new 30-year green bond despite the ongoing sell-off in the bond market that usually depresses demand. Previously, green bonds had only been issued with five or 10-year maturities. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Broadening the International Role of the Euro
SUERF: Strengthening the international role of the euro : The euro is the second most important global currency, and the euro area’s economic weight can lay solid foundations for its greater role on financial markets. A stronger international role of the euro would benefit not only the euro area but also the global financial system.
Brexit
IHS Markit: Brexit, Global OTC IRS markets - Q1 review : Following our initial flash analysis in mid-January (available here) and our January review (available here) we have received a great deal of interest for an update of the activity in the global OTC interest rate derivative markets post Brexit throughout Q1 2021.
Reuters: New York wins Brexit swaps shake-up as clearing stays in London : Brexit forced Britain to relinquish 2.3 trillion pounds ($3.25 trillion) in monthly derivatives trading, leaving New York the global winner in a shake-up of that market, consultants Deloitte and data company IHS Markit said in a report on Tuesday.
Bloomberg: The U.K. Deficit That Risks Cutting the Pound’s Rally Short : Current-account gap set to reach widest since World War II, Shortfall could test foreign investor appetite for U.K. assets
FT: Brexit disruption forces German exporters to think again : Costs and red tape push EU companies to seek other markets or relocate production