Banking Package 2021

European Commission's Banking Package 2021 needs to find a proper balance for better reflecting the specificities of the EU economy and banks

https://twitter.com/EESC_PRESS/

The EESC

• advocates a sound, balanced and forward-looking capital policy with risk weightings based on actual stability risks, while also considering the need to boost the competitiveness of EU banks and to increase the financing of sustainable growth;

• welcomes the implementation of the remaining elements of the international standards agreed by the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision, from the perspective of both timing and substance, as they are meant to enhance the stability of the financial market in the EU, and thus not to expose European citizens to increased financial market risks;

• stresses that financial market stability is a crucial prerequisite for overall economic stability, whereas the sound regulation and surveillance of the banking sector is essential in order to prevent the threat of turbulences and crisis;

• considers the prudential capital requirements instrumental in reaching the abovementioned prerequisites, and calls on legislators to make sure that the proposals envisage a proper balance between two complementary objectives, namely (i) ensuring that EU banks become more resilient and (ii) the need to ensure financial soundness and competitiveness in the sector, to support the role of banks in financing the real economy;

• calls on the Commission to perform periodical assessments of the actual impact of the banking reforms, in order to evaluate whether their implementation contributes to more financial market stability and resilience in the banking sector, while also taking into account the competitiveness of EU banks;

• highly appreciates the endeavours of the Commission to transform the EU's economy into a greener and more resilient one, and therefore welcomes the Commission's approach of strengthening the focus on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risks in the prudential framework;

• also welcomes the ESG disclosure work from the European Banking Authority (EBA) aimed at properly assessing banks' environmental risks and their finance strategy for the transition to a net-zero carbon economy;

• calls on the EBA to strengthen its endeavours to address the shortcomings in the current ESG disclosures at EU level, including on fossil fuels-related assets and assets subject to chronic and acute climate change events.