Seminar on banking supervision – EACB Brussels , April 27 and 28 2016
On April 27 and 28, the MGCF Chair participated to the seminar on banking supervision held by the EACB (European Association of Cooperative Banks) in Brussels. Participants gathered from various financial cooperative groups and associations across Europe as well as from the academics. Besides presentations on specific themes, part of the schedule was also dedicated to exchanging with representatives of EU institutions such as DG FISMA.
The European banking regulatory framework has significantly evolved over the last years. Besides Basel III-related regulations, it also extended in matters pertaining to retail banking and payments. The on-going implementation of single European mechanisms for bank supervision and resolution also creates shifts in bank internal risk management and supervisory practices. Also, the current European regulation still provides with a number of national discretions but some of them may be reviewed in the future.
All banks therefore face challenges and cooperative banks in a large extent. As a consequence of the focus on retail services and the proximity with customers, many cooperative banks are of limited size. In this regard, principles of proportionality considered in regulation and supervision are central. Also, the European cooperative banking sector accounts for around 70% of the total number of banks of the EU. Despite many commonalities among cooperative banks, there is however no unique cooperative banking model. Hence, specificities of the sector but also of individual cooperative banks require a close cooperation with Authorities.
For more information on the EACB, please visit their web site (http://www.eacb.coop/)