The European Central Bank (ECB) has confirmed that, from 2 July 2025, 24 additional banks will be incorporated into the euro short-term rate (€STR) reporting population, increasing the total from 45 banks. This measure follows the inclusion of the new banks in the Money Market Statistics Reporting (MMSR) on 1 July 2024, after they met quality requirements for data submission. The ECB stated that this expansion will enhance the robustness and representativeness of the €STR benchmark by providing higher transaction volumes from a broader range of institutions, with the impact on the benchmark rate estimated at a negligible -0.2 basis points during the testing period.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is consulting on its new guide on outsourcing cloud services, which sets out supervisory expectations and best practices for banks’ outsourcing to cloud services providers. Responses are sought by 15 July 2024.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is consulting on the planned recast of Regulation (EU) 795/2014 laying down oversight requirements for systemically important payment systems (the SIPS Regulation). The proposed amendments to the SIPS Regulation include those resulting from a general review of the Regulation in addition to targeted updates. Responses are sought by 29 November 2024.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is consulting on a new draft guide on governance and risk culture, which replaces the 2016 Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) supervisory statement on governance and risk appetite, and aims to provide banks with a roadmap to a more effective internal governance and risk culture. Responses are sought by 16 October 2024.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has announced an expansion of its initiative to settle distributed ledger technology (DLT) transactions using central bank money. This will be done through a two-track approach: first, by developing a platform for settlements via an interoperability link with TARGET Services, and second, by exploring a more integrated, long-term solution for DLT-based transactions, including international operation. This initiative relates to the ECB's goal of creating a harmonised and integrated European financial ecosystem and establishing a digital capital markets union. The initiative also builds on previous exploratory work conducted in 2024 involving trials and experiments with central banks, financial market participants, and DLT platform operators.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has published its final guide on outsourcing cloud services, setting out its supervisory expectations under the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA). The guide does not introduce new legal obligations but clarifies how existing DORA requirements apply to banks using third-party cloud service providers. It includes examples of good practices for managing outsourcing risks, particularly in relation to IT and cyber resilience and aims to support consistent supervision across institutions. The ECB highlights the importance of a risk-based approach and transparency in cloud outsourcing, particularly given the concentration of services among a limited number of providers. A feedback statement summarising the consultation responses and the ECB’s assessment has also been published.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has announced that it has imposed administrative penalties of €420,000 on Allied Irish Banks plc and €195,000 on its subsidiary EBS dac after the banks miscalculated their risk-weighted assets for intragroup equity exposures between 2014 and 2016.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has imposed an administrative penalty of €10.4m on BNP Paribas Fortis SA/NV for reporting miscalculated risk-weighted assets for credit risk. The bank may challenge the ECB’s decision before the Court of Justice of the European Union.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has imposed three separate administrative penalties totalling €1.24m on AS SEB Pank, AS ‘SEB banka’ and AB SEB bankas (together SEB Baltics) for failing to incorporate sufficiently conservative margins into their internal-rating-based models in line with ECB requirements. The failures impacted a considerable portion of SEB Baltics’ risk weighted assets, potentially compromising the bank’s capital ratios. Despite being granted additional time by the ECB to address these deficiencies, SEB Baltics did not remediate them. Consequently, the ECB deemed the breach 'moderately severe' under Council Regulation (EU) 1024/2013, the EU Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) Regulation.

Law360, Expert analysis: The financial sector faces a constantly evolving landscape of cyber threats, further amplified by the rapid advancement of technologies like artificial intelligence (AI). Simon Onyons, managing director, and Nebu Varghese, senior director, at FTI Consulting Inc explore implications for financial sector institutions, analyse key changes introduced by the updated TIBER-EU framework, provide practical guidance on navigating the complexities of DORA compliance, and highlight the importance of a unified approach to cybersecurity testing in the face of evolving threats.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has launched a new risk appetite indicator to track shifts in market sentiment across the euro area. Published on 10 June 2025, the indicator analyses 10 financial variables including equity indices, volatility measures, bond spreads and exchange rates. The tool enables comparison between euro area and US market sentiment, with recent data showing increased euro area risk appetite in early 2025 followed by volatility due to trade-related uncertainty. The indicator aims to help central banks monitor real-time changes in investor sentiment affecting financial markets.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has launched a public consultation on a draft guideline setting out a harmonised supervisory approach to the coverage of legacy non-performing exposures (NPEs) held by less significant institutions (LSIs). The draft guideline introduces calendar-based supervisory coverage expectations and outlines exemptions for LSIs with low non-performing loan (NPL) ratios, negligible amounts of legacy NPEs or those subject to restructuring. It provides for a gradual phase-in of the approach from 31 December 2025 to 31 December 2028, with reporting requirements based on a concise template aligned with common reporting (COREP) submissions. The ECB expects the approach to contribute to consistent supervisory outcomes across the Single Supervisory Mechanism. In a supporting blog post, Sharon Donnery, Member of the Supervisory Board of the ECB, explained that while most banks have reduced their NPEs, some smaller institutions continue to face challenges due to structural constraints and persistent stocks of high-vintage NPEs. Responses are sought by 27 October 2025.