More favourable treatment of certain assets under bank capital and liquidity rules could help restore long-term financing to small and medium enterprises according to a global regulatory body.

Gabriel Bernardino, chairman of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, told a hearing of the European Parliament Economic and Monetary Affairs committee that the regulator plans to step up its scrutiny of national regulatory conditions.

Michel Barnier, soon to depart as European commissioner for the internal market and services, indicated a possible concession to the banking sector in the final version of the liquidity coverage ratio under the Capital Requirements Directive.

Andrea Enria, the chairman of the European Banking Authority, warned that stronger controls on financial conglomerates were needed to prevent a repeat of the recent crisis at Banco Espírito Santo.

Steven Maijoor, the chairman of the European Securities and Markets Authority has called on European policymakers to provide the agency with a healthier budget and more explicit powers to ensure the effective implementation of key EU legislation.

The International Organisation of Securities Commissions has published a set of proposed standards to mitigate the risks involved in over-the-counter swap transactions that are not cleared through central counterparties.

Even as the stress test process nears completion, asset quality is still a major concern for financial stability in the EU, according to a report by the three European supervisory agencies.

The Financial Stability Board has published a consultation on the path to achieve cross-border recognition of resolution actions by different jurisdictions.

New consultation on Basic Capital Requirement suggests it is far from a binding constraint, but the industry frets about how it will fit with other proposals.

Responses to the consultation and discussion papers on the EU’s Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) show alarm among market participants about obligations designed to tackle high-frequency trading (HFT).