Brussels opens proceedings against Spain for failing to complete transposition of European rules on bank restructuring and resolution

In addition, the European Commission has also given Spain a two-month ultimatum to transpose the directive on receivables managers and purchasers into national law.

In two separate proceedings, Brussels has, on the one hand, opened a sanctioning file against Spain for failing to fully transpose the amendments to the directive on bank rescue and resolution, which relate to the prudential treatment of global systemically important institutions and the loss-absorbing and recapitalization capacity of banking groups.

The Commission has stressed that the changes introduced by the regulation are important to ensure full alignment in the EU with the Financial Stability Board’s rules on the full loss-absorbing capacity of systemically important global institutions. In particular, the changes are necessary to adequately reflect the exposure of these EU entities to their subsidiaries located in third countries and to further improve the ability of the largest EU banking groups to withstand financial shocks.

In addition, the changes should achieve full harmonization of the prudential treatment of internal resources for loss absorption and recapitalization of intermediate entities of a banking group. In the absence of transposition of these technical but important measures, it will not be possible to achieve the level of harmonization required in the unified EU framework for the banking sector.

The Spanish authorities now have two months to remedy the defects and shortcomings pointed out by the EU executive, which, in the absence of a satisfactory response, may give a two-month ultimatum for implementation before appealing to the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU).

The Commission has already activated this two-month ultimatum for Spain for the incomplete transposition of the directive on credit managers and buyers, which requires, among other things, that they act in good faith, in a fair and professional manner with borrowers and communicate with them in a way that does not constitute harassment, coercion or undue influence.
Spain and eleven other warned Member States have two months to respond and take the necessary measures or else the Commission may refer the matter to the CJEU.