EC examines structural policy in banking

Vincent O’Sullivan, Member of the FS Regulatory Centre of Excellence at PricewaterhouseCoopers, UK. Stephen Kinsella, Lecturer in Economics at the Kemmy Business School, the University of Limerick, Ireland.

Proposals to structurally reform the EU banking sector could be here as early as June, as the European Commission (EC) moves to establish its anticipated high-level expert group to examine the structural aspects of the EU banking sector. Michel Barnier ¹,EU commissioner responsible for internal markets and services, outlined that the group will investigate whether the current regulatory reform agenda needs to be supported by future structural reforms in the interest of financial stability and customer protection. Speaking to reporters, Barnier indicated that there would be ‘no taboo’ subjects for the group, which starts its work next month ². The Commission intends to examine, in detail, both the US and UK structural reform proposals and how they might work in the context of the European banking system.