It has just been announced that Roberto Gualtieri (PD), the current Chairman of the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee in the European Parliament, is to become Minister of Economy and Finance of the new Italian government. Gualtieri is not only a convinced European, but also a committed supporter for a deepening of the Eurozone and […]
New Banking Subsidies in Italy: Circumvention of EU Law is a dangerous precedent
Last night, the European Commission approved new subsidies for Banca Populare di Vicenza and Veneto Banca. The support comes in the form of 4.8 billion euros of cash plus 12 billion of state guarantees to protect senior creditors and depositors from losses. After the Commission rejected a so-called „precautionary bank recapitalization“ favoured by the Italian […]
Stress test for banks: Taxpayers‘ money should not be used for bank bailouts
The European Banking Authority (EBA) will tonight publish the results of the 2016 stress test for banks. The EBA carries out the test to assess whether banks hold enough capital to see them through a further worsening of the banking crisis. The stress test results play a crucial role in possible bank rescues using state […]
Background information on possible state aid for Italy’s banks
Since the Brexit vote, Italian banks’ shares have slumped dramatically: Italy’s third-biggest bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena has lost half its value. In response, big banks and the Italian government are suggesting to recapitalize the weakest banks with public money. But recapitalization has a price: under EU rules, bank bonds have to be written off […]