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Financial services: additional legislative proposal to complete the framework for financial supervision in Europe
January 19, 2011--Following the launch of the three new European Supervisory Authorities on 1 January 2011 (MEMO/11/1), the Commission now proposes to make targeted changes to legislation in the area of insurance and securities regulation to ensure that the new Authorities can work effectively. In particular, the proposal sets out in detail the scope for the Authorities to exercise their powers, which include the possibility to develop draft technical standards and to settle disagreements between national supervisors. The proposed directive will now be sent to the Council and the European Parliament for consideration.
Internal Market and Services Commissioner Michel Barnier said: "The financial crisis in Europe exposed weaknesses in the supervision of financial markets, which the new EU financial supervisory structure intends to correct. Today's proposal is an important building block to ensure that the new supervisory bodies will run smoothly. By giving the new supervisors a clearly defined mandate and bringing existing legislation in line with that mandate, the Commission further delivers on the promise of creating more solid and stable markets and mitigating future crises."
Today's proposal complements a package of legislative acts on financial supervision which were agreed on 22 September 2010 and which entered into force on 1 January 2011, creating a new architecture for supervision at European level with three new European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs). The ESAs, which replace the former European Committees for the banking, securities and insurance and occupational pensions sectors1, are the European Banking Authority (EBA), the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). In cooperation and coordination with nationally-based supervisors, the ESAs are in place to ensure that rules are applied in a rigorous and consistent fashion throughout the European Union, to monitor developments within the financial system as well as to detect potential risks to financial stability.
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Source: Europa
iShares lists first currency hedged equity ETFs on NYSE Euronext
January 19, 2011--– NYSE Euronext is pleased to announce that iShares, the Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) platform of BlackRock, Inc. today has listed three Currency Hedged Equity ETFs on its Amsterdam market. These currency hedged ETFs enable investors to invest internationally and hedge currency exposure in one trade, without having to monitor and maintain a currency hedge. These ETFs are the first of its kind on NYSE Euronext.
In addition, iShares listed the iShares MSCI USA, which invests in the MSCI USA Index, one of the most popular benchmarks for institutional investors seeking exposure to the U.S. equity market.
The funds track some of iShares most popular and traded global indices offered by MSCI and Standard and Poor’s:
• iShares MSCI Japan Monthly EUR Hedged
iShares MSCI World Monthly EUR Hedged
iShares SP500 Monthly EUR Hedged
iShares MSCI USA
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Source: NYSE Euronext
Sweden economy: recovery on track but long-term unemployment a key challenge
January 19, 2011-- Sweden is expected to continue to recover strongly from the recession as high saving, low interest rates and an improving jobs market encourage consumers to step up spending, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Survey of the country.
Investment is set to expand on the back of export growth and consumer price inflation is expected to be subdued as wage pressures remain moderate. But as a small open market economy, Sweden is still exposed to conditions in external markets.
The OECD says Sweden’s relatively low public debt and sizeable budget surplus helped the authorities tackle the crisis without storing up long-term problems for government finances. Looking ahead, stimulus measures and support to the financial system need to be scaled back as economic recovery unfolds.
view Economic Survey of Sweden 2011
Source: OECD
Europe securities face downgrades
January 18, 2011--Nearly half of all European securitisations could be downgraded following changes in the criteria Standard & Poor’s uses to measure the creditworthiness of deals.
The criteria, which cover how third parties involved in deals are evaluated, are global but the new changes will more heavily affect European deals because of their higher use of counterparties to provide interest rate and currency swaps.
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Source: FT.com
Renewables 'could supply 99.5% of power by 2050'
January 18, 2011--Renewable energies could furnish 99.5 percent of European Union electricity needs by 2050 if nuclear loses its priority access to distribution networks, Greenpeace said in a report released Tuesday.
The environmental campaigners said that windfarms are "often stopped in peak production periods to give priority access" to electricity generated by nuclear reactors and coal-fired power stations.
Greenpeace researchers said that solar energy in Europe's south and wind energy from the north could supply 68 percent of the 27-nation EU's electricity needs in 2030 and 99.5 percent by the middle of the century.
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Source: EUbusiness
ESMA finds diversity across Europe in regulators’ contingency measures for financial crisis situations
January 18, 2011--ESMA publishes today a summary of a pan-European mapping on contingency measures (Ref. ESMA/11-
26). In December 2009, a mapping exercise was launched under CESR in order to provide a better
understanding on how national authorities in the financial sector across Europe, are equipped to deal with
emerging crisis situations and apply contingency measures available to them at national level, in times of
financial crisis. This work will help to ensure better co-ordination in future crisis situations under ESMA.
The mapping carried out by the Review Panel, ESMA’s peer pressure group, contributes to achieving
increased supervisory convergence amongst national authorities.
Jean Guill, Member of the Management Board of ESMA, Chair of the Luxembourg Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF), and Chair of ESMA’s Review Panel that conducted the mapping, stated:
“Today’s publication shows the importance of creating a common legal basis in order to enable national supervisors to act in a co-ordinated way in times of financial crisis and also in order for ESMA to succeed in effectively facilitating and co-ordinating the response in a crisis situation. To enable both ESMA and national supervisors to effectively fulfil their functions and roles, should a crisis arise, further steps seem to be necessary in order to vest competent authorities with suitable tools to address in a common way future situations that constitute or might lead to a crisis. This work therefore provides a useful foundation for consideration by Member States and EU Institutions.”
read Summary of the report on the mapping of contingency measures
Source: ESMA
Investors avoiding real estate, equities due to Solvency II uncertainty – Invesco
January 18, 2011--– The uncertainty surrounding the ongoing Solvency II debate is putting many investors off real estate and equities, according to Invesco
The new solvency regulations, which are to come into effect for insurers across the European Union from 2013, are still under discussion, and some details – such as the buffer requirement for certain investments deemed risky – are not yet fully clear.
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Source: IP&E
EU bank tests to assess liquidity and debt exposure
January 18, 2011--European Union economic leaders said Tuesday they will shortly launch new transparent, uniform stress tests on banks that will aim to check liquidity levels after Ireland's banks needed bailing out.
EU financial services commissioner Michel Barnier said the tests, still being designed by the European Central Bank and the new European Banking Authority which holds its first board meeting in Frankfurt on Thursday, would also assess the risk of exposure to sovereign debt losses.
The tests are set to begin in February or March with results to be published mid-year, an EU official said.
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Source: EUbusiness
Clearstream increases collateral range by adding the asset class investment funds
New asset class for Clearstream’s Global Liquidity Hub
First provider to offer the leverage of funds to secure money market transactions
Approximately 700 billion euros of additional collateral to improve liquidity management activities
January 18, 2011--Clearstream, the international central securities depository (ICSD) within Deutsche Börse Group, has added investments funds to its portfolio of asset classes eligible for collateral use. Clearstream customers can now leverage investment funds shares that are settled via and held by Clearstream to collateralise money market transactions in line with the product range offered through the company’s Global Liquidity Hub.
Clearstream estimates that around 700 billion euros will be made available as collateral based on the most liquid money market funds managed in Luxembourg and Dublin. With this new asset class, Clearstream has added an additional element to its Global Liquidity Hub strategy which reaches across continents, timezones and a wide coverage of collateral types. This goes hand-in-hand with Clearstream’s ongoing extension towards a global exposure coverage service steered out of the company’s collateral management facility which allows customers to further optimise their use of accessible collateral.
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Source: Clearstream
Deutsche Börse launches ShortTecDAX index
January 17, 2011--Deutsche Börse is expanding its offering in the area of short indices. As of today, the company calculates ShortTecDAX which is offered to investors as a hedge against falling prices.
The daily performance of ShortTecDAX is directly opposed to that of TecDAX, i.e. if TecDAX rises by 5 percent ShortTecDAX falls by 5 percent, and vice versa.
TecDAX comprises the 30 largest companies from the technology sector below DAX according to market capitalization and stock exchange turnover
Source: Deutsche Börse
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