FROM THE MEDIA

EUObserver: Eight EU states warned over money-laundering delay

The European Commission said on Wednesday that it has sent legal warnings to eight member states - Cyprus, Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain - over their delay in applying new anti-money laundering rules, adopted two years ago. The "formal notice" is the first step of a legal procedure that could end up in fines if EU rules are not quickly implemented into national law. Read more EC press release

European banks in the news: ABN Amro, Rabobank, Credit Suisse, RBS

Dutch bank ABN Amro is to review its corporate and investment banking activities for the second time in two years after a sharp increase in bad loans, report the FT and other media. ABN Amro released disappointing results that highlighted the strains on European retail banks because of negative interest rates. Second biggest Dutch bank Rabobank also saw profit being pushed down 27% due to low interest rates and increase in provisions, reports the Dutch financial daily FD. Swiss lender Credit Suisse posted a 69% jump in annual net profit despite spying scandal and recent ousting of its former CEO, says CNBC. in another story the FT says that Royal Bank of Scotland is beefing up its investment banking operations in Poland as part of an effort to cut costs, but will stop short of exiting one of its big business lines. ABN AMRO (€) Rabobank Credit Suisse RBS (€)

Law360: EBA pushes deposit guaranteee plan

Europe’s banking watchdog has set out recommendations for how the bloc should fund its proposed regime to protect cash deposits and insure depositors when lenders collapse, says Law360. The proposals set out by the European Banking Authority on Tuesday include a suggestion that failed banks should be forced to use their assets to pay back consumers. Read more (€)

FT: City groups set out vision for post-Brexit market access

City of London institutions are urging the UK and EU to adopt a new system for assessing regulatory “equivalence” post-Brexit that could prevent either side withdrawing access to the other’s financial markets with just 30 days notice, says the FT. Meanwhile, the next governor of the Bank of England has warned the EU against allowing politics to trump technical assessments that would permit the City of London to tap European markets after Brexit. Read more (€)

FROM THE INSTITUTIONS

EC: Urging 8 Member States to transpose AMLD5

The Commission has sent letters of formal notice to Cyprus, Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain for not having notified any  implementation measures for the 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive. Anti-money laundering rules are instrumental in the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing. Read more

EBA puts forward concrete proposals to improve current DGSD in EU

The European Banking Authority (EBA) published its third and final Opinion addressed to the European Commission on the implementation of the Deposit Guarantee Schemes Directive (DGSD) in the EU. The Opinion focuses on deposit guarantee schemes (DGSs) funding and uses of DGS funds and proposes a number of changes to the EU legal framework, aimed at strengthening depositor protection, enhancing financial stability and reinforcing financial resilience of DGSs. Read more

BIS: On fintech and financial inclusion

The Bank for International Settlement (BIS) has published a Working Paper on “fintech and financial inclusion”. The paper shows that the unit cost of financial intermediation has fallen since the Great Financial Crisis, concluding that fintech has made the financial sector more efficient. Read more

IOSCO publishes key considerations for regulating CTPs

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) has published a report that describes the issues and risks associated with crypto-asset trading platforms (CTPs) and sets out key considerations to assist regulatory authorities in addressing these issues. The report sets out key considerations intended to assist regulatory authorities in evaluating CTPs within the context of their regulatory frameworks. Read more

EBF MEMBERS IN THE NEWS

Cyprus: ACB Press announcement on MONEYVAL’s report for Cyprus

The Association of Cyprus Banks (ACB) is very pleased with MONEYVAL’s positive recognition of the progress achieved by Cypriot authorities, the ACB and our member banks in the fight against money laundering. In particular, the report acknowledges the sector has become more effective at mitigating risk and that the mechanisms that have been developed have led to greater cooperation between competent authorities. Read more
 

The Netherlands: From bank to class programme

Jeroen van Diem helps his ABN AMRO colleagues every day, as a management consultant. But soon, Van Diem will help children with maths and language - as a side enroller in primary education. Employer ABN AMRO helped him with the switch. Because this bank participates in 'Aan de slag voor de klas' - the programme in which banks, insurers, and educational parties have been working together for a year to support employees who want to make the switch to education.Read more (NL)

UK: Hyper-Casual Banking

If you own a smartphone, the chances are you have at least one gaming app installed. You know, for those rare moments when you have a few minutes to spare and just need to switch your mental focus. However, with the ever-increasing power of smartphones’ processing capabilities, mobile games have become much more sophisticated, with so many features that many users give them up after a few minutes. This increasing complexity negatively impacts the customer engagement level and consequently the mobile gaming company’s revenues.  Read more

MAIN EVENTS today

• European Commission Winter 2020 Economic Forecast

• EBA: Consultation paper on draft ITS amending the benchmarking regulation, Paris

• EBA: End of consultation on the amendment of standards on benchmarking of internal models, Paris

• EBA: Consultation paper on the RTS and ITS on passport notification, Paris

• EESC: Public hearing on the collaborative economy — Data exchange with tax authorities, Tallinn

• EESC: Conference on the Financing the Transition to a Low-Carbon Economy and the Challenges in Financing Climate Change Adaptation

• EBF-ECB Workshop on On-Site Inspections (OSIs), Frankfurt

• EBF Secondary Market Working Group meeting

• EBF Financial Education Project Group meeting

*All events take place in Brussels unless stated otherwise

Breakfast event
Wednesday 19 February, 8:00am to 9:30am
European Parliament 

Money laundering and financial crime 
Better addressing the threats to European security

The new European Commission, European Parliament and Council have put combating money laundering high on their agendas. While the Commission reports released in July give some indicative hints, it remains to be seen which reforms the Commission will finally propose. Therefore we would like to present and discuss the respective proposals of:

• Sebastian Fiedler, Chair of the Federation of German Police Officers (BDK),

• Wim Mijs, Chief Executive Officer, European Banking Federation (EBF)

• Sven Giegold, Economic and Financial Spokesperson of Greens/EFA

Registration: If you want to participate in the breakfast event at the European Parliament in Brussels, please register by 17 February indicating your name, organisation and contact details at sven.giegold@ep.europa.eu

Link: https://sven-giegold.de/aml-breakfast-event-ep/

ABOUT THE EUROPEAN BANKING FEDERATION
 

The European Banking Federation is the voice of the European banking sector, bringing together national banking associations from 45 countries. 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.