EAPB response on Green Paper on Mortgage Credit

19 July 2005

The European Association of Public Banks (EAPB) issued its response to the Commission Green Paper on Mortgage Credit opposing a possible comprehensive regulation of the mortgage credit market. The EAPB criticises that the Green Paper mainly focuses on consumer protection and, therefore, is worried that the Commission intends to achieve better integration of mortgage markets by product-specific regulation. EAPB rejects any comprehensive mortgage credit legislation that would result in harmonisation of products. It is not the Commission’s task to regulate the content of banking products and to interfere with efficient markets.

EAPB demands the maintenance of the code of conduct on home loans and supports the recommendations of the Forum Group on a more flexible link between the principal debt and the collateral, the introduction of an optional Euromortgage, better cross-border access to national data bases for foreign lenders and the development for a liquid and dynamic secondary market.

Press release

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