Overview
- The Bundesverband deutscher Banken publicly urged faster EU action on July 9, ahead of a European Commission report due on July 17, saying the Commission’s plan to start legislation in spring 2027 would mean 2025–2026 is largely lost.
- The BdB supplied illustrative bank‑level figures to show competitive gaps, saying recent supervisory loosening abroad would cut capital needs for firms such as Goldman Sachs by about 324 basis points and Barclays by about 100 basis points while lifting requirements for Deutsche Bank by about 276 basis points.
- The association rejects broad cuts to capital rules and instead calls for targeted, quickly implementable fixes, notably harmonising how software investments are treated so they are not fully deducted from core capital in the EU.
- The BdB warned against tying competitiveness measures to the politically contested European Deposit Insurance Scheme, arguing that linking the two would delay urgent regulatory adjustments.
- As background, supervisors in the United States and the United Kingdom have eased some post‑crisis rules under President Trump’s administration and a study for the European Banking Federation estimates Europe needs roughly €1.4 trillion a year in mid‑term investment, which the BdB says makes a competitive banking sector critical to finance digitalisation, energy and defence projects.