Brussels, 14/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - Vice-president of the European Central Bank (ECB) Vítor Constancio says that Banking Union in the eurozone could lead to a new round of bank mergers and acquisitions.
“The new framework may lead down the road to a period of consolidation in a not very concentrated European banking sector. In fact, there is scope for further con consolidation without reinforcing the so-called 'too-big-to-fail' problem. (…) The present weak profitability in the banking sector and the existence of over-capacity in certain areas of the European market suggest that some efficiency gains could be achieved,' said Constâncio on Monday 12 May at a conference in Vienna organised by the Austrian Central Bank.
AQR. Talking of the asset quality review (AQR) being carried out by the ECB, Costancio gave figures for the measures taken by eurozone banks ahead of publication of the AQR results and the stress tests to be carried out by the European Banking Authority. The 128 banks that come under the AQR boosted their balance sheets to the tune of €104 billion between July 2013 and April 2014, he explained; €34 billion from the issuance of quoted shares, €15 billion from the issuance of continent capital hybrids and €19 billion from additional provisioning. (MB)