The COVID-19 pandemic is challenging the European Union and the principles and instruments of its recently established Banking Union. Fortunately, great strides have been made towards financial stability in the last 12 years. European policymakers have created and shaped a de facto macroeconomic financial stability objective, in which the resolution pillar plays an important role. Financial stability and bank resolution are currently striding along the road, and their relationship remains debated. Some have argued that bank resolution fosters financial stability, by preventing unexpected and disorderly bank exits from the sector. Others have contended that the potential enforcement of some resolution tools, such as bail-in, may represent a risk for the stability of the system.

During its four years of existence and well before the COVID-19 emergency, some building blocks of the crisis management framework have been challenged. It has been argued that the consistency of the resolution regime with other instruments, such as the European Stability Mechanism facilities, and with national legal orders (e.g. domestic insolvency regimes, safeguard of creditor’s property rights, national central bank resources) could be further improved, also to ensure more legal certainty. The firepower of the Single Resolution Fund depends also on the introduction of the Common Backstop, potentially provided by the European Stability Mechanism.

The event is jointly organised by the Single Resolution Board and the Florence School of Banking and Finance.