All Notes from Brussels articles – Page 3

  • Opinion Pieces

    Letter from Brussels: Awaking a sleep-walking economy

    June 2015 (Magazine)

    A few more European cross-border lending opportunities have started to emerge. This follows anticipation of the European Investment Plan launched by Jean-Claude Juncker

  • Opinion Pieces

    Letter from Brussels: Bond market scrutiny

    May 2015 (Magazine)

    There has been a flurry of activity and comment from industry groups on the subject of bond market liquidity

  • Opinion Pieces

    Letter from Brussels: Uphill battle for CMU

    April 2015 (Magazine)

    There is enthusiasm for the EU’s capital market union (CMU) project. However, it faces prodigious obstacles in achieving its 2019 deadline.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Letter from Brussels: Bumpy road ahead

    March 2015 (Magazine)

    As far as investment is concerned, the EU faces a turbulent 2015. The efforts of Jean-Claude Juncker are central to arresting the EU economy from its zombie state.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Letter from Brussels: Pensions in their sights

    February 2015 (Magazine)

    EU big shots working on how to release capital flows from funds into SMEs under the new Capital Market Union (CMU) programme should look at an existing scheme with similar aims. 

  • Opinion Pieces

    Letter from Brussels: Capital market union

    November 2014 (Magazine)

    The capital market union (CMU) is a new emphasis in Brussels and Jonathan Hill, the new Commissioner for financial services, mentioned the subject repeatedly at his initial vetting by MEPs.

  • Opinion Pieces

    A stinging rebuke

    October 2014 (Magazine)

    The private pension product sector is “persistently the worst-performing retail services market of all throughout the European Union”, according to the European Commission, as cited in a new report.

  • Opinion Pieces

    What's outstanding

    July 2014 (Magazine)

    The EU’s institutional world is starting a new term. Now that the parliamentary elections are over, the commissioners have only until the end of October before their replacements take up office. With the increasing presence of euro-sceptic MEPs, it could be a stressful five years ahead.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Lighting dark corners

    June 2014 (Magazine)

    The European Commission’s planned revisions to rules on shareholder rights aim to encourage a culture of long-term equity investment across the EU.

  • Opinion Pieces

    The countdown begins

    May 2014 (Magazine)

    The countdown has started. By the end of May, 751 members of the European Parliament will have been selected by as many of the 400m electors who care enough to vote.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Towards a 29th regime

    April 2014 (Magazine)

    A single-market regime for third-pillar pensions has moved closer with a paper entitled Towards an EU-Single Market for Personal Pensions from the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA).

  • Opinion Pieces

    Brussels to develop rules for social funds

    March 2014 (Magazine)

    Brussels looks set to flesh out the existing EU regulation for European Social Entrepreneurship Funds (EuSEFs), which lays down broad principles as to how funds should be governed.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Long-term critics

    February 2014 (Magazine)

    The European Commission’s report on responses to its consultation paper on long-term investing looks to be at least six months late. But don’t imagine the debate has gone away. The issue is likely to re-ignite in Brussels in the coming months after the Commission produces its assessment this quarter.

  • Opinion Pieces

    A phoney war for KID

    December 2013 (Magazine)

    A phoney war is in operation. No guns are being fired. No bombs falling. But there a number of indications of an arms race over the matter of a simple two page information document known as KID – and its possible extension to cover the occupational pension sector.

  • Opinion Pieces

    A Lithuanian bottleneck

    November 2013 (Magazine)

    Yet another Brussels go-slow on IORP II legislative revisions? Yes, but it’s not just rules for occupational pensions. A let’s-put-off-until-tomorrow syndrome is hammering swathes of financial legislation and the Brussels machine is now close to deadlock.

  • If IORP ain’t broke, don’t fix it - EFRP
    Opinion Pieces

    IORP governance

    September 2013 (Magazine)

    Suggestions to make the basis for a systematic set of codified rules to cover the governance of occupational pension schemes across the entire EU have emerged from a working group of pension stakeholders.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Happy in the hot seat

    July 2013 (Magazine)

    Jeremy Woolfe asks Gabriel Bernardino, the chairman of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, about the challenges he faces stuck in the crossfire of the conflicting interests of the European pensions industry

  • Opinion Pieces

    A long-term dream

    June 2013 (Magazine)

    Philippe Maystadt, former Belgian finance minister and European Investment Bank (EIB) president, recently fleshed out the European Commission’s policy paper to promote long-term investment.

  • Opinion Pieces

    The growth agenda

    May 2013 (Magazine)

    The European Commission’s green paper, Long-term Financing of the European Economy, is a rarity– it gets applause from all quarters.

  • Opinion Pieces

    Anti-SII bloc victory?

    April 2013 (Magazine)

    The bloc of EU member states opposed to the inclusion of Solvency II-inspired provisions in the planned IORP II Directive, appear to be on the road to victory.