On Monday 8 November at the end of the Eurogroup meeting the chief economist of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), Rolf Strauch, estimated that all the elements were in place for the euro area’s permanent rescue fund to start “at the beginning of 2022” to play its role as a safety net for the Single Resolution Fund (SRF), the financial arm of the ‘resolution’ component of the banking union.
By the end of 2021, all euro area countries must have ratified the ESM reform agreed at the end of 2020 (see EUROPE 12613/4), including Germany, despite an appeal to the German Constitutional Court. According to one source, the Karlsruhe court judgment could come before the end of 2021.
“Early 2022 will be an important day on the Banking Union project, and I'm confident that it will spark momentum for further progress” on this issue, said Eurogroup president Paschal Donohoe.
The Nineteen will discuss the issue again “in December”. But it is not certain that they will be able to put together an ambitious work programme to complete the banking union in the euro area, including the creation of a European Deposit Insurance Scheme (EDIS), not least because the German government may not be in place in time (see EUROPE 12743/8). (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)