EBF MORNING BRIEF Tuesday 27 February 2024 Good morning. Here are the top news stories and events in European banking, financial regulation and EU policy, brought to you by the European Banking Federation.
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FROM THE MEDIA
Reuters: EU adopts euro instant payments rules
The European Union Council adopted rules to make instant payments in the euro currency fully available round-the-clock in a move it expected to help European payments companies compete against U.S. firms Visa, and Mastercard, Reuters reports. The Council added that the new rule would factor in countries outside of the euro-zone economic bloc. Read more
Bloomberg: ECB faces bigger problems than the Fed does
The European Central Bank (ECB) is facing tougher challenges than the US Federal Reserve, according to Governing Council member Yannis Stournaras, who sees a first rate cut in June. “The ECB has to deal with more difficult problems than the Fed,” he said, citing eurozone banking system fragmentation and the region's sovereign debt crisis legacy. Read more
S&P Global Market Intelligence: Italian banks' loan loss provisions in focus amid higher borrowing costs
Italy's biggest banks are expected to set aside higher reserves in 2024 to guard against potential emerging loan losses as concerns over elevated interest rates and a slowdown in economic growth persist. UniCredit SpA is forecast to nearly double its loan loss provisions to €1.04 billion, while rival Intesa Sanpaolo SpA is projected to boost provisions 10.5% to €1.69 billion, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. Read more |
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MAIN EVENTS Council Working Party on Tax Questions (Direct Taxation) Council Working Party on the Environment |
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THE FIRST 2024 BANKING ESSENTIALS WEBINAR
Navigating the Green Asset Ratio: What can it tell us about the sustainability performance of banks?
Thursday 14 March 2024 | 3:00 - 4:00 PM (CET)
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Investors are demanding more sustainability related disclosure, and regulators are also closely monitoring the impact of climate change on companies and financial institutions. In principle, the GAR is a simple ratio quantifying EU Taxonomy-aligned assets as a percentage of total covered assets. As banks disclose their GAR alignment for the first time, what does it tell us about their sustainability performance and efforts to finance the green transition? Can GAR be considered an indicator of progress on meeting institutions’ sustainability commitments? In this upcoming webinar you can learn how to navigate GAR and also what to expect from the upcoming revision to improve its usability. |
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FROM EBF MEMBERS
Febelfin: Businesses are returning to asking for more credit
In the fourth quarter of 2023, companies requested 5.6 per cent more credit than in the same period of 2022, while the amount of credit requested increased by 12.4 per cent, according to data published by Febelfin. The amount of credit granted increased by 13.5% in Q4 2023, while the number of new loans decreased by 11.4 per cent. The increase in loan production has not yet translated into particularly strong growth in lending. Read more (FR) Finance Norway: New job positions: a turning point Finance Norway's job creation figures for the fourth quarter of 2023 show that 19,400 more people have been employed compared with the same quarter last year. "After nine quarters of strongest growth in the private sector, the trend has now reversed," says Kari Olrud Moen, CEO of Finance Norway. Read more (NO)
UK Finance: Assessing the proposals for the UK’s stablecoin regulation
The British government still has aspirations for the United Kingdom to be a global crypto hub, therefore, as UK Finance points out, building a regulatory regime for the use of a GBP-backed stablecoin as a mode of payment is integral to integrating digital assets into the domestic payments ecosystem. Read more |
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FROM THE INSTITUTIONS
ECB: European Parliament plenary debate on the Annual Report
Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank (ECB) spoke at the European Parliament during the debate on the ECB Anual Report. Among other things, she outlined the current state of the euro area economy and the ECB's monetary policy stance, and addressed the need for a common European response to strengthen the euro area's resilience and competitiveness. Read more
EIOPA: Seeking new members to join stakeholder groups
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) is launching a call for expression of interest today to select new members of the Insurance and Reinsurance Stakeholder Group and the Occupational Pensions Stakeholder Group. EIOPA establishes these stakeholder groups to encourage feedback and foster constructive cooperation with a diverse range of relevant stakeholders in a structured approach. Read more
European Council: Adoption of Instant Payments Regulation
The Council adopted today a regulation that will make instant payments fully available in euro to consumers and businesses in the EU and in EEA countries. The new rules will improve the strategic autonomy of the European economic and financial sector as they will help reduce any excessive reliance on third-country financial institutions and infrastructures. Improving the possibilities to mobilize cash-flows will bring benefits for citizens and companies and allow for innovative added value services. Read more |
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FROM THE EBF
EBF: Joint financial industry submission on the Proposal for a Directive on Faster and Safer Relief of Excess Withholding Taxes (FASTER)
This response complements the joint financial industry submission on the FASTER proposal made by the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME), the Association of Global Custodians (AGC), and the European Banking Federation (EBF). Read more
New EBF Vacancies! Work with us!
Visit our Vacancies page to learn more about the opening positions at the EBF. Read more |
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ABOUT THE EUROPEAN BANKING FEDERATION
The European Banking Federation is the voice of the European banking sector, bringing together national banking associations from across Europe. The federation is committed to a thriving European economy that is underpinned by a stable, secure and inclusive financial ecosystem, and to a flourishing society where financing is available to fund the dreams of citizens, businesses and innovators everywhere. Website: www.ebf.eu |
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This newsletter is published by the EBF Mediacentre.
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