European Banking Union and the impact on banks

The financial and sovereign debt crisis of 2011-2012 has shown the fragility of the European banking framework, focused on national authorities. The project of Banking Union was launched in the summer of 2012 to break the link between sovereign an corporate risks and to restore the confidence in European banks. The first part of the article examines the new regulatory and supervisory architecture, based on closer harmonization of banking regulation (Single Rule-Book) and new systems of banking supervision (Single Supervisor Mechanism) and banking resolution (Single Resolution Mechanism). The second part examines the possible impact of Banking Union on financial and strategic landscape of European banks.