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 My take on events of the week to 25 June:

 EUCO fails to agree on the Recovery Package – as expected… but then pledges to agree at its 17/18 July special meeting! But will this collide with growing splits on what the Conference on the Future of Europe should achieve?

• CRR “quick fix” completes all legislative stages in just 9 weeks from conception – the EU can act quickly when necessary.
• Banks’ potential loan losses are widely discussed but the insurance industry is also wrestling with vast problems – now and in the future.
• The last chance to extend the Brexit transition expires in five days and the UK is already proposing new laws that do not import the EU’s precise rules.

  Graham Bishop

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Banking Union

COVID-19: Council adopts exceptional rules to facilitate bank lending in the EU : The banking package adopted today provides targeted and exceptional legislative changes to the capital requirements regulation (CRR 2). These will allow credit institutions to fully play their role in managing the economic shock that stems from the COVID-19 pandemic by fostering credit flows.

Financial Institutions

POLITICO: Insurers wrestle with pandemic problem: How to pay the bill : EU could be left out as national industries propose separate solutions. Europe’s insurers are trying to solve a complex math problem set by politicians during the coronavirus outbreak.

Capital Markets Union

Financial Services Update:Written statement by Chancellor Sunak : The Government believes that comprehensive mutual findings of equivalence between the UK and the EU are in the best interests of both parties and we remain open and committed to continuing dialogue with the EU about their intentions ...

FCA seeks industry views on a new prudential regime for UK investment firms : The FCA has today published a discussion paper on a prudential regime for UK investment firms. This marks the first step in introducing a set of prudential rules for investment firms to better reflect their business models and the risk of harm they pose to consumers and markets.

Protecting Customers

New rules allow EU consumers to defend their rights collectively : Consumers to be better protected in “mass harm” situations Organisations or public bodies to launch actions on behalf of consumers “Loser pays principle” as safeguard against abusive lawsuits. 

Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG)

Sustainable Finance: Commission welcomes the adoption by the European Parliament of the Taxonomy Regulation : The European Commission has today welcomed the adoption by the European Parliament of the Taxonomy Regulation – a key piece of legislation that will contribute to the European Green Deal by boosting private sector investment in green and sustainable projects.

EFAMA: 7 recommendations for the upcoming Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD) : ACCA, Accountancy Europe, Association of German Banks (BdB), CDSB, EFAMA, Frank Bold, IIGCC, Schroders, ShareAction, WWF have decided to form an informal group on Sustainable Finance. The group is used as a platform for collaboration and coordination - for interactions with the EU institutions.

IOSCO encourages issuers’ fair disclosure about COVID-19 related impacts : The Board of IOSCO issued a public statement highlighting the importance to investors and other stakeholders of having timely and high-quality information about the impact of COVID-19 on issuers´ operating performance, financial position and prospects.

Fin Tech Regulation

EURACTIV: Commission to present ‘strong’ rules for Facebook’s Libra : The European Commission will present later this year new rules to develop a “sound” crypto-asset market in the EU, including for stablecoins such as Facebook’s digital currency Libra, financial services commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis, said on Tuesday.

Economic Policies Impacting EU Finance

EURACTIV: Europe to push ahead with digital tax despite US ‘threats’ : The European Commission plans to put forward a proposal for a digital tax if international efforts fail this year after the withdrawal of the US, ignoring Washington’s threats if Europe moves ahead.

Brexit

Spiegel: The UK Steers Towards a No-Deal Brexit in the Middle of the Pandemic : British Prime Minister Boris Johnson seems to be planning to take his country out of the European Union at the end of the year, even without a deal. The Continent is trying to limit the damage, but it would spell disaster for the British. 

EPC: The UK’s decision to leave the EU poses a long-term threat to the European project. : This seems counterintuitive at this moment in time: whatever the outcome of the current negotiations, it is already clear that the fears that were raised in the aftermath of the Brexit referendum in June 2016 – that other countries will immediately replicate the UK’s example – were unfounded.