Sedanji predpisi niso dovolj za zagotovitev finančne stabilnosti bank v Evropski uniji, v svoji študiji ugotavlja izvedenec bruseljskega inštituta Bruegel Nicolas Véron. V zadnjih letih so se banke začele širiti čez nacionalne meje, nastale so panevropske banke, predpisi za njihov nadzor pa so ostali omejeni na nacionalne države. Prostovoljno sodelovanje nadzornikov iz držav članic ni zagotovilo, da bodo v primeru krize sprejete odločitve, ki bodo v dobro prebivalcev EU oziroma komitentov bank, ugotavlja Véron.

Recent turmoil in credit markets underscores the importance of proper management of financial crises. The emergence of pan-European banks requires a reform of Europe’s financial stability arrangements, in which the guiding principle should be the minimisation of potential collective crisis costs to Europeans. Important elements of the financial stability framework can no longer best be organised through voluntary coordination among national authorities. A two-tier framework, including new EU-level arrangements and institutions focused on pan-European banks, would address this situation while being consistent with the subsidiarity principle. Given the significant technical and political obstacles, strong commitment at the highest level will be required to make meaningful progress.

Banke so v Evropi eden največjih sektorjev, saj predstavljajo četrtino celotne tržne kapitalizacije 100 največjih podjetij, in so hrbtenica finančnega sektorja, ki je povezava med tistimi, ki kapital zagotavljajo, in njegovimi uporabniki. Banke so ključne pri širjenju, prestrukturiranju in investiranju podjetij, pomembno vplivajo tudi na potrošnjo prebivalstva. Razmere na finančnem trgu pomembno vplivajo tudi na gospodarsko rast, pravi Nicholas Véron.

Financial integration can be a major driver of financial development and offers direct economic benefits, permitting economies of scale and greater risk-sharing between countries, and allowing capital to be allocated across borders to the most productive uses.

Banke so močno regulirane, glavni razlog, da je tako, je tveganje, ki ga predstavljajo za finančni sistem. Če ena velika banka zaide v težave, lahko to vpliva na celoten sektor, poleg tega je zaupanje v finančni sektor ena od ključnih javnih dobrin, kar opravičuje javno intervencijo, vključno z regulativo in nadzorom, pa tudi s kolektivnim zavorovanjem bančnih depozitov. Pretekle sistemske bančne krize, najhujše so bile v 30. letih prejšnjega stoletja, so povzročile veliko zmanjšanje zaupanja javnosti v sistem. Zaradi tega imajo vlade, centralne banke in specializirane agencije mandat, da jih smejo nadzirati in morajo poskrbeti za čim večje zmanjšanje tveganja v finančnem sistemu vključno s preventivnimi ukrepi in uporabo davkoplačevalskega denarja, zagotoviti morajo tudi, da so stranke bank ustrezno zaščitene, razlaga izvedenec inštituta Bruegel.

European financial services firms represent a respectable 36 percent of the aggregate value of companies in the FT global 500 ranking of the world’s largest listed corporations. But the only European player in the financial sector’s worldwide top 10 is HSBC – which, incidentally, was incorporated in Hong Kong until 1994, and whose activity is mostly outside the EU. In no other broad sector are so few European companies represented at the top. Furthermore, as Table 2 illustrates, Europe’s banks are more concentrated on their ‘home’ market than any other industry save telecoms and media – a segment in which most companies (eight out of eleven) were national monopolies only a few years ago but are now internationalising rapidly. These features may exact a high price on the performance of the financial system and the economy as a whole. Financial services (excluding insurance) accounted for half the gap in productivity growth between the euro area and the US between 1996 and 2003. Europe’s banks also seem to be both less profitable than their US counterparts, and less prone to take risk in lending to certain types of local borrowers, with the possible consequence of more difficult funding for highgrowth, capital-hungry innovative companies.

Razmere v evropskem bančnem sektorju se naglo spreminjajo, ugotavlja Véron. V prvem valu, konec 90. let prejšnjega stoletja in okrog leta 2000 so se banke povezovale znotraj držav in v sosednjih državah, temu je zelo hitro sledilo širše povezovanje, med katerimi izvedenec Bruegla izpostavlja prevzem banke Abbey v Veliki Britaniji s strani skupine Santander, Unicreditov nakup HVB in bitko za nakup ABN Amro. Ovire za čezmejne prevzeme bank po izvedenčevih ugotovitvah padajo, tudi na podlagi odločitev Evropske komisije, ki zagovarja in brani konkurenco na trgu, kar je dokazala z nekaj odločitvami proti oblastem, ki so to skušale prevzeme zavreti (Portugalska 1999, Nemčija 2004, Italija 2005 in Poljska 2006). Povezovanje pa so pospešili tudi novi produkti.

Cross-border banking integration could bring important economic benefits. Pan-European banks provide a link between national financial systems and the highly efficient wholesale capital markets of London and smaller European hubs, as well as global capital markets. This has the potential to bring more dynamic financial development and a quicker spread of financial innovation, facilitate access to credit for consumers and entrepreneurial firms, and ultimately improve the ability of Europe’s financial system to foster growth.

Evropki nadzorniki bank in pristojne agencije so od leta 2004 povezani v Odbor evropskih nadzornikov bank (CEBS), ki pa je le posvetovalno telo in nima pristojnosti za odločanje. Tudi evropska centralna banka nima nadzorstvenih pristojnosti. Okvir za nadzor panevropskih bank je labirint, sestavljen iz nacionalnih nadzornih organov (kar 51 jih je včlanjenih v CEBS), različnih evropskih odborov (teh je vsaj 9) in bilateralnih dogovorov, ki jih je po ugotovitvah evropskega komisarja za notranji trg Charlieja McCreevyja okrog 80. To povzroča dodatne stroške za finančni sistem. Ena od zadnjih študij je pokazala, da ti stroški predstavljajo 15 odstotkov vseh stroškov za nadzor bank. Dodatni stroški nastajajo, ker morajo banke izpolnjevati različne zahteve v državah članicah in oddajati različna poročila zaradi različnih sistemov poročanja v posameznih državah članicah. Ampak ti stroški so manj pomembni v primerjavi s tveganji, ki so posledica neustrezne ureditve za sprejemanje odgovornosti, preventivnih ukrepov in odločitev na področju nadzora v primeru krize, saj nobena institucija ali nadzornik v Evropi nima podatkov za nadzor panevropskih bank in podatkov o njihovem razvoju.

EU countries’ existing tools are no longer adequate to contain the impact of financial crises in ways that minimise collective costs and avoid ‘moral hazard’ (ie precedents that encourage imprudent behaviour by financial players, including banks). The effects of financial integration are most advanced in the countries that joined the EU in 2004 and 2007, in which the banking system is dominated by foreign-headquartered institutions (Figure 2). Elsewhere, the influence of nondomestic banks is also increasing as cross-border activity gathers pace. As banks increasingly centralise key business functions such as risk, liquidity and assetliability management, local branches or subsidiaries become less independent from the rest of the group. As a consequence, national authorities increasingly lose leverage over the main banks in their jurisdictions, and their ability to deal with financial crisis situations on a national basis is diminished.

Če bi katera od panevropskih bank zabredla v težave, na ravni EU ni dogovorjenih pravil, kako ukrepati, zaradi različnih interesov, različne ocene rizikov, različni nacionalni nadzorniki utegnejo imeti različne prioritete, v tem času kriza lahko postane akutna. Hiter odziv lahko zavre zamudno usklajevanje med različnimi organi in nadzorniki. Nekatere članice morda ne bodo pripravljene uporabiti davkoplačevalskega denarja za zavarovanje komitentov bank v drugih državah članicah ali pa nazorniki za ukrepanje zunaj nacionalne meje nimajo dovolj ljudi in zmogljivosti.

If a major banking crisis, triggered by events inside or outside the EU, catches Europe unprepared, the risk would be an extraordinarily costly outcome, possible regulatory overreaction and the rushed adoption of poorly prepared reforms. Seen in its wider context, swift and proactive adaptation of financial stability arrangements in response to the emergence of pan-European banks is in the interest of all market participants.

Tujih prevzemov bank je največ v novih članicah EU, tam večinoma prevladujejo banke v tuji lasti, ki imajo centrale v drugih državah, ugotavlja Nicholas Véron.

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