| EBF MORNING BRIEF Tuesday 14 April 2020 Good morning. Here the top news stories and events in European banking, financial regulation and EU policy, brought to you by the European Banking Federation.
Recommend the EBF newsletters to a colleague. Click here to sign up!
|
|
|
FROM THE MEDIA
Handelsblatt: EU could finance €1,5 trillion with bonds - Dombrovskis The European Union could finance a recovery fund worth up to €1.5 trillion with bonds guaranteed by member states, European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis told German newspaper Handelsblatt. In an interview, EU Vice-President Dombrovskis explains how the Commission intends to finance this package. The Commission is planning a reconstruction fund for this, which will be financed with bonds "backed by a guarantee from the Member States," said EU Commission Vice President for Financial & Economic Affairs Valdis Dombrovskis said in the interview. Read more (DE) Euractiv
Bloomberg: Europe’s economy to slump more than 10% Europe is heading for a double-digit slump in the first half of 2020 amid widespread lockdowns to stem the spread of the coronavirus, according to economists. Bloomberg’s monthly survey puts the contraction in the euro area at more than 10% in the January-June period, with most of the hit -- 8.3% -- in the second quarter. Even with an expected rebound later in the year, the bloc’s output will still decline more than 5% in 2020. Read more Politico: EU leaders to discuss recovery package next week EU leaders will convene by videoconference on April 23 to push ahead with economic recovery programs, says Politico. Michel hailed an agreement reached late Thursday among eurozone finance ministers on a package of programs totaling some €540 million in aid for countries, businesses and citizens suffering as a result of the coronavirus. Eurogroup chief Mario Centeno said on Monday the half-a-trillion euros of support for coronavirus-battered economies approved last week by the bloc’s finance ministers was only the beginning and more must be done to tackle the impact of the outbreak, according to Reuters. Read more Reuters FT(€) France24
S&P Global: US banks to give read on credit cycles Although banks do not have to record coronavirus-related breaks they give to borrowers as delinquencies or troubled debt restructurings, analysts widely expect sharp increases in credit loss expenses, says S&P Global. Front-loaded provisions required under new accounting rules could combine with revenues compressed by low interest rates to hammer first-quarter results, and some analysts are projecting losses at large banks for the full year. According to Bloomberg, US biggest banks will report earnings this week, as will investment banks Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley. Smaller regional lenders follow next week. Shareholders will be paying close attention to how the companies are managing their balance sheets, given the pain Covid-19 is causing for households, businesses, markets and the overall economy. Read more Bloomberg
FT: Brexit talks set to resume
The EU and UK will return to the Brexit fray on Wednesday to figure out how to salvage negotiations on London’s future relationship with the Brussels in the face of disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, says the FT. Michel Barnier and David Frost, the two chief negotiators, will have their first official contact since Mr Barnier, leading the EU team, announced on March 19 that he had tested positive for Covid-19. Mr Frost, his UK counterpart, went into self-isolation soon afterwards after displaying symptoms. Read more (€) |
|
EBF IN THE NEWS
EBF supports 12-month delay on implementation of SRD II
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak and its severe impacts on banks, market participants and infrastructures, on 9 April the EBF and 10 other trade associations and expert groups wrote to the European Commission to ask them to consider a delay in the implementation date of the Shareholder Rights Directive II and of the IR by twelve months, to 3 September 2021, or other equivalent measures providing for a synchronous postponement across EEA and EU Member States. Read more |
|
EBF MEMBERS IN THE NEWS
Germany: Peters calls for Agenda 2030 to strengthen economy
In his last interview as Bankenverband president Hans-Walter Peters spoke out in favour of an Agenda 2030 to strengthen the economy after the Covid-19 crisis. "We have completely halted the economy. We now need an Agenda 2030. We must work on our competitiveness for the post-Covid-19 period, we must become a strong economy and a strong Europe again," Peters said in an interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung. Read more (DE)
Belgium: Payment deferral of one billion euros
The Covid-19 crisis is not only a humanitarian crisis, but also an economic blow to citizens and businesses. The banks are sparing no effort to help, according to Febelfin. They are working hard to meet the most pressing needs, while ensuring their own long-term strength and resilience. After one week, Belgian banks have already granted a deferment of payment for more than 46,000 business loans. Read more (FR)
Netherlands: NVB answers SME questions in webinar
What questions do entrepreneurs have about the various schemes of government and banks to help them through the corona crisis? In the webinar ‘Financing measures Covid-19’ organised by VNO NCW and MKB-Nederland for members on 8 April, Michiel Kuiper of the Dutch Banking Association (NVB), together with colleagues from banks, answered the most pressing questions from SME entrepreneurs. Read more
Finland: Finnish banks offer extra flexibility to clients
To help businesses and households struggling in the coronavirus crisis, Finnish banks offer extra flexibility for loan repayments. As many as 63,000 private customers and 12,000 companies have already sent banks applications for extra grace periods. The figures are based on a survey sent to Finnish banks by the FFI on 6 April 2020. Read more
Croatia: Banks in Croatia apply highest standards economic measures Banks in Croatia proactively put forward a series of proposals for economic measures, thus responding in a timely manner before it was the case in most European countries. In coordination with the Croatian National Bank and in accordance with the recommendations of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, banks have started implementing the agreed measures in order to assist citizens and companies. Read more (HR) |
|
FROM THE INSTITUTIONS
Eurogroup: Main results - Video conference 7-9 April 2020
The Eurogroup met via video conference to draw up a package of response measures to present to EU leaders. The report proposes three immediate safety nets for workers, businesses and member states. It also prepares the ground for a recovery fund to relaunch the economy and ensure EU solidarity with the member states most affected by Covid-19. Read more
Commission: Covid-19: EU global response in fighting the pandemic
The Commission and the High Representative of the EU set out plans for a targeted EU response called the “Team Europe” package to support partner countries' efforts in tackling the coronavirus pandemic. It addresses the immediate health crisis and resulting humanitarian needs, strengthening partner countries' health, water and sanitation systems and their research and preparedness capacities to deal with the pandemic, as well as mitigating the socio-economic impact. Read more
ESMA: MiFID II/MiFIR transparency review report consultation The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets regulator, has decided, in view of the effects of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic on stakeholders and market participants, to further extend the response date for the consultation on the MiFID II/MiFIR review report on the transparency regime for non-equity instruments and the trading obligation for derivatives to 14 June 2020. Read more Covid-19 crisis: SRB's approach to MREL targets The SRB has published a blog post by its Chair on its approach to MREL targets. She states that they are committed to ensuring that short-term MREL constraints do not prevent banks from lending to business and the real economy. Read more
FSB: Roadmap to enhance global cross-border payments
The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has published the Stage 1 report of its project to develop a roadmap to enhance cross-border payments. This report, which is being delivered to the G20, provides an assessment of existing arrangements and challenges for global cross-border payments. Read more Commission calendar for this week Find out more about the Commission's engagement and activities for the upcoming week. Read more
European Central Bank weekly schedule Find out more about the ECB's engagements and activities for the upcoming week. Read more
European Parliament agenda Find out more about the Parliament's engagements and activities for the upcoming week. Read more |
|
Banking in a Digital World: Drivers and Trends
BANKING ESSENTIALS WEBINAR
TUESDAY 19 MAY 15:30 
|
|
The European Banking Federation and fTLD Registry Services (fTLD) are partnering to educate the European banking sector about the cybersecurity role .BANK plays in protecting banks against Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams, phishing and spoofing attacks that lead to breaches, identity theft and financial fraud. fTLD administers the .BANK domain and the EBF has served on its Advisory Council since 2013. To learn more about the security benefits of .BANK, visit https://www.register.bank/ebf/ or contact fTLD at EBF@fTLD.com. |
|
|
|
ABOUT THE EUROPEAN BANKING FEDERATION
The European Banking Federation is the voice of the European banking sector, bringing together national banking associations. The EBF 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. |
|
This newsletter is published by the EBF Mediacentre.
For questions or suggestions contact mediacentre@ebf.eu
Recommend the EBF newsletters to a colleague. Click here to sign up!
|
European Banking Federation
Avenue des Arts 56, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium |
|
|
|
