Germany’s Scholz pushes for united EU banking

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz advocated on Tuesday for the completion of a European banking union, emphasising it as a ‘priority’ and calling for greater consistency in the region’s financial markets, according to Reuters.

The banking union, a project conceived in the aftermath of the financial crisis, aims to centralise the supervision of major lenders under the European Central Bank.

However, a key component of the plan, a joint deposit protection scheme, has yet to gain consensus due to opposition from Germany.

German Finance Minister Christian Lindner called for advancements in the capital markets union to enhance financing opportunities for businesses, with a particular emphasis on securitisation—the process of pooling assets to be repackaged and sold to investors.

Lindner noted that securitisation is significantly underutilised in their daily economic activities, despite its potential and necessity. He added that the capital markets union will be focusing on this instrument in the upcoming weeks and months.