Elke König of SRB on Liquidation Rules for Small and Medium-Size Banks
SRB published an article that advocates developing a common set of rules for liquidation of small and medium-size banks in EU. The article was written by the SRB Chair Elke König and was originally published in Views, the magazine of the Eurofi Forum held in Helsinki in September 2019. The article notes that building the capital buffers may be challenging for smaller fully deposit-funded banks. Therefore, a common set of rules for winding down such banks—for some SRB banks and all less significant banks—could be beneficial.
The article highlights that the decision to put a failing institution into resolution depends on the outcome of a “public interest assessment,” determining if the preservation of a bank’s critical functions is required to maintain financial stability. If outcome of the public interest assessment is negative, a failing bank will be sent into national insolvency. To increase transparency, SRB recently published a paper on public interest assessment, presenting the methodology and how SRB assesses the criteria set out by the EU law.
In due consideration of proportionality in resolution planning, the loss-absorption requirements for each institution are carefully adjusted to the choice of resolution tools. The banks, for which (in case of failure) no resolution is foreseen, do not have to build the Minimum Requirement for own funds and Eligible Liabilities (MREL) on top of their supervisory capital requirements for going concern. In contrast, for banks, whose preferred strategy is resolution, the MREL policy of SRB and its expectations for resolvability provide for certain adjustments to allow for proportionality as well. SRB can also grant transitional periods for banks to allow for a gradual build-up of MREL requirements. SRB must strike a careful balance between feasibility of the build-up of MREL and the credibility of the resolution strategy.
While there is one common European resolution scheme in the Banking Union, there are 19 national insolvency laws when winding-down a (cross-border) bank. A set of common standards, practices, and harmonized rules for the liquidation of banks would considerably facilitate resolution planning, increase predictability, and prevent diverging outcomes in different member states. Needless to say that administrative procedures might be preferable to judicial procedures. At the end of this process might stand the creation of a European bank liquidation regime—a European FDIC. Not only would this ensure centralized decision-making but also the application of a harmonized and effective toolbox supported by a European deposit insurance.
Related Link: Article
Keywords: Europe, EU, Banking Union, MREL, Resolution Planning, Proportionality, Capital Buffers, Deposit Insurance, Capital Requirements, SRB
Featured Experts
María Cañamero
Skilled market researcher; growth strategist; successful go-to-market campaign developer
Pierre-Etienne Chabanel
Brings expertise in technology and software solutions around banking regulation, whether deployed on-premises or in the cloud.
Nicolas Degruson
Works with financial institutions, regulatory experts, business analysts, product managers, and software engineers to drive regulatory solutions across the globe.
Related Articles
MAS Concludes Blockchain Payments Prototype Shows Commercial Potential
MAS and Temasek jointly released a report to mark the successful conclusion of the fifth and final phase of Project Ubin, which focused on building a blockchain-based multi-currency payments network prototype.
EBA Publishes Phase 2 of Technical Package on Reporting Framework 2.10
EBA published phase 2 of the technical package on the reporting framework 2.10, providing the technical tools and specifications for implementation of EBA reporting requirements.
APRA Updates Reporting Validation Rules in July 2020
APRA updated the lists of the Direct to APRA (D2A) validation rules for authorized deposit-taking institutions, insurers, and superannuation entities.
PRA to Partly Apply EBA Guidelines on Disclosures for COVID Measures
PRA updated the statement that provides guidance to regulated firms on implementation of the EBA guidelines on reporting and disclosure of exposures subject to measures applied in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
EBA Updates List of Correlated Currencies Under CRR
EBA updated the 2019 list of closely correlated currencies that was originally published in December 2013.
FASB Proposes to Delay Implementation of Insurance Contracts Standard
FASB issued a proposed Accounting Standards Update that would grant insurance companies, adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, an additional year to implement the Accounting Standards Update No. 2018-12 on targeted improvements to accounting for long-duration insurance contracts, or LDTI (Topic 944).
APRA Updates Regulatory Approach to Loan Deferrals Amid COVID Crisis
APRA updated the regulatory approach for loans subject to repayment deferrals amid the COVID-19 crisis.
BCBS and FSB Set Out Recommendations for Benchmark Transition
BCBS and FSB published a report on supervisory issues associated with benchmark transition.
IAIS Sets Out Recommendations for Benchmark Transition for Insurers
IAIS published a report on supervisory issues associated with benchmark transition from an insurance perspective.
ESMA Updates Reporting Manual on European Single Electronic Format
ESMA updated the reporting manual on the European Single Electronic Format (ESEF).
