Verbatim report of proceedings

Wednesday, 15 February 2012 - Strasbourg

Deposit guarantee schemes (debate)

  Iliana Ivanova (PPE), in writing. – (BG) As a consequence of the considerable gaps in the existing legal framework for deposit guarantee schemes that have became evident during the financial crisis, my colleagues and I worked diligently on reforming the European directive currently in place. We were able to achieve a balanced text that protects citizens’ savings better and, at the same time, does not pose an excessive risk to the banks. Our proposals cover the stability of the deposit insurance funds, compensation payout period and recognition of multiple risk levels. I would like to emphasise that guaranteeing assets of up to EUR 100 000 is not a sufficient condition for providing reliable protection. Therefore, we proposed preliminary (ex ante) financing schemes and the implementation of a risk assessment system. This allows riskier banks to allocate more assets to the fund, guaranteeing their clients’ savings. Our key proposal concerns the compensation payout period – we are proposing this period be decreased from the current 20 business days down to seven. Unfortunately, our proposals are not being accepted by Member States at this stage. I would like to appeal to the Danish Presidency to make every possible effort to motivate Member States to show the ambition we need to achieve a result. This result is in the interest of all European citizens and will improve the stability of the financial sector within the EU as a whole.