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Leino, Päivi --- "Accountability dilemmas of regulating financial markets through the European Supervisory Agencies" [2017] ELECD 421; in Harlow, Carol; Leino, Päivi; della Cananea, Giacinto (eds), "Research Handbook on EU Administrative Law" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2017) 209

Book Title: Research Handbook on EU Administrative Law

Editor(s): Harlow, Carol; Leino, Päivi; della Cananea, Giacinto

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781784710675

Section: Chapter 9

Section Title: Accountability dilemmas of regulating financial markets through the European Supervisory Agencies

Author(s): Leino, Päivi

Number of pages: 30

Abstract/Description:

The hectic development of financial regulation and supervision of recent years has its background in a dissatisfaction with nationally based financial supervision models in preventing the crisis. The March 2009 European Council stressed how strengthened regulation and supervision of financial institutions would be needed to prevent future crises, help restore confidence in the financial system, and facilitate the recovery of the European economy. For this purpose, the European Council recommended the establishment of a European System of Financial Supervisors (ESFS), comprising three new European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) with a three-fold task: First, upgrading the quality and consistency of national supervision; second, strengthening oversight of cross-border groups; and third, establishing a European single rule book applicable to all financial institutions in the Single Market. It is the first and last of these tasks that have been particularly topical during the last few years. There is very little to say about the ESAs’ record in the area of supervisory activities. Instead, their focus has been clearly on rule-setting and preparing legislation, which raises significant questions concerning the exercise of their powers and their control. While the functions of the new agencies have been thoroughly analysed in literature, there has been limited discussion on how the accountability structures of these agencies have operated in practice. This is what this chapter intends to do. The European Council guided and scheduled the establishment of the three new Agencies.