Beyond the Brexit bubble, the European Parliament approved Croatia’s accession to the euro area and the Czech Presidency’s priorities for the next six months may be re-shaped by the Ukraine war. The ramifications of Big Tech and finance are dawning on the BIS – interdependencies are a blind spot. The risks are crystallising as crypto values plunge amidst bankruptcies of operators – but the EU has enacted the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) proposal to bring regulation to the sector. The Complementary Delegated Taxonomy Act was also approved – triggering a wave of protest about the inclusion of gas and nuclear. ESMA published two handy charts on the interlocking implementation timetable of the sustainable finance measures.
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Articles from 1-7 July 2022
Policy impacting Finance
MEPs approve Croatia’s entry into the eurozone : The report notes that, despite the evaluation of Croatia’s readiness taking place against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, high inflation, and Russia’s war against Ukraine, Croatia continues to be ready to adopt the euro.
BUSINESSEUROPE’S PRIORITIES FOR THE CZECH PRESIDENCY OF THE EUROPEAN UNION : BusinessEurope has developed some detailed priorities for the Czech Presidency
ECB Vice President de Guindos: Challenges for monetary policy - at the Frankfurt Euro Finance Summit : Our commitment to fight fragmentation should thus not interfere with, but rather enable, a greater focus on the monetary policy stance.
FSB Plenary meets in Amsterdam : ..including developments highlighting the importance of policy actions to address the risks that crypto-assets pose and of the FSB’s work to coordinate regulatory initiatives in this area...
Carnegie: Europe’s Geopolitical Turn Needs a Democratic Reboot : After a decade of crises in Europe, historic decisions were taken at the EU and NATO summits to strengthen the continent. To overcome today’s challenges, Brussels must confront the causes of its paralysis in the 2010s
Federal Trust: EU Court abandons Westphalian system : The verdicts of the EU Court of Justice (ECJ) in the cases of Poland and Hungary concerning the rule of law, which have been delivered on 16 February, are not only consequential for the functioning of the EU but also shed new light on the relation between the UK and the EU.[1]
BIS: Big tech interdependencies – a key policy blind spot : The increasingly prominent role of large technology firms (big techs) in the financial sector has raised questions about their inner workings and regulation.
Banking Union
SSM's Enria: Hearing at the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee : ..the safety and stability of the European banking sector remain of paramount importance to us. That is why in my remarks today I will discuss the challenges we currently face and how we are tackling them through our supervisory work.
German Banking Industry Committee calls for more space for innovation in payments services : The German Banking Industry Committee advocates gearing it to the actual needs of customers and giving banks more scope for innovation. In its current form, the directive is hindering progress in these areas and setting the wrong incentives for the market.
Capital Markets Union
ESMA stress test of Central Counterparties finds clearing system resilient : The results confirm the overall resilience of European Union (EU) CCPs, as well as third-country Tier 2 CCPs, to credit, concentration and operational risks under the tested scenarios and implemented framework. .. it identified areas where some CCPs may need to strengthen their risk management..
ESMA publishes latest edition of its Newsletter : Your one-stop-shop in the world of EU financial markets focused in June mostly on developments on the ESG front...
Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG)
EU Taxonomy: Commission welcomes the result of today's vote by the European Parliament on the Complementary Delegated Act : This vote is important recognition of our pragmatic and realistic approach in helping many Member States on their transition path towards climate neutrality.
Commissioner McGuinness at the European Parliament plenary debate on the EU Taxonomy Complementary Climate Delegated Act : ..I also appreciate the pragmatism and realism in this House that allowed the climate delegated act move from proposal to legislation...
POLITICO: Brussels faces lawsuits, investor pushback over green label for gas and nuclear : New rules undermine EU efforts to set a gold standard for sustainable investments, opponents say.
EURACTIV: The ECB greens its monetary policy : The European Central Bank (ECB) has decided to pay more attention to both its effect on climate change and the effect of climate change on financial stability.
EBF position on the latest developments concerning the Commission proposal for a European Green Bond Standard : The EBF welcomes the proposal for a voluntary EU Green Bond Standard and encourages co-legislators to consider the EBF’s recommendations ...
PCS Responds to the Joint-Committee’s Consultation on Sustainable Disclosure for STS : ...Through no fault of the committee, this feels like another siloed regulatory endeavour that risks again punishing unnecessarily securitisation and tilting yet further an already unlevel playing field away from allowing securitisation to recover...
ESMA: SUSTAINABLE FINANCE - Implementation timeline for SFDR | TR | CSRD | MiFID | IDD | UCITS | AIFMD : Two charts setting out the interlocking timetables.
Fin Tech Regulation
Cryptocurrencies in the EU: deal struck between Parliament and Council : Uniform legal framework for crypto-assets in the EU; Consumer protection and safeguards against market manipulation and financial crime; Significant crypto-assets service providers (CASPs) to disclose their energy consumption
Digital Services Package: Commission welcomes the adoption by the European Parliament of the EU's new rulebook for digital services : The Digital Services Package sets out a first comprehensive rulebook for the online platforms that we all depend on in our daily lives. These new rules will be applicable across the whole of the EU and will create a safer and more open digital space, grounded in respect for fundamental rights.
AFME welcomes agreement on the Markets in Crypto Assets Proposal(MiCA) : MiCA is an ambitious legislative proposal to create EU-wide minimum requirements for all crypto-assets issuers and service providers. This will bring regulatory certainty, reduce fragmentation and underpin the development of a robust and well-functioning market.
Bruegel: Is MiCA the end of the crypto wild-west? : As the process of digitalisation makes ideas around decentralised finance more relevant, there will be an increasing need for monitoring and supervision.
Finextra: Crypto brokerage Voyager files for bankruptcy protection : Voyager filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, listing assets of between $1 billion and $10 billion and liabilities in the same range.
Brexit and the City
Reuters: UK City minister resigns, raising questions over pace of reform : Britain's financial services minister John Glen resigned on Wednesday in protest against Prime Minister Boris Johnson, just days before the government is due to unveil a draft law to "reset" a post-Brexit financial sector.
Bloomberg: Government Chaos Sparks City of London Fears of Yet More Limbo : Leaders driving Brexit finance reform exit in quick succession; Financial Services and Markets Bill due later this month
Brexit
Federal Trust's Blick: Getting Brexit Undone : Acceptance is growing that Brexit is a source of considerable harm to the UK. Even among supporters of leaving who remain committed to their cause, there is recognition of serious problems connected to this project.
CER: Brexit: No case for UK returning to EU, Labour leader Starmer says in a speech at pro-EU think tank the Centre for European Reform, : ..." you cannot move forward or grow the country or deliver change or win back the trust of those who have lost faith in politics if you're constantly focused on the arguments of the past."
UKandEU: Does `make Brexit work' work? : As a strapline for Labour’s EU policy, ‘make Brexit work’ has a lot going for it.