A EUROPEAN Central Bank (ECB) push to make it easier for the region’s chronically unprofitable banks to merge is facing opposition from some national regulators, with one top official warning it could backfire and damage the integration of the financial system. “Banking union is essential, but we can’t put the cart before the horse,” Mr Dechaene, who is also a member of Mr Enria’s supervisory board, said in an interview last week. Banking supervision has improved since the ECB took on direct oversight of big lenders in 2014, but Europe’s financial architecture still isn’t complete, said Mr Dechaene. While Mr Dechaene didn’t name any banks, firms such as France’s BNP Paribas and Italy’s UniCredit already have large foreign units and run sizable investment banking operations. He also pushed back against a suggestion by Mr Enria that national regulators could be assuaged if banks pledge to assist foreign units.

Source: Irish Independent December 30, 2020 02:03 UTC