Finance & Trade

EU Commissioner Stresses Corporate Tax Proposals

January 20, 2016

In a recent session with European Parliament committees, European Commissioner for tax Pierre Moscovici said that 2016 would be a year of ambitious EU tax proposals that will seek to increase corporate taxes paid to EU member states and make payments to each country more transparent.
EU Committee Chairperson Details Wasted Aid

January 19, 2016

The Daily Mail reports that the Chairperson of the European Parliament's committee on budget control Ingeborg Graessle indicates that an upcoming report from her committee will show approximately half of EU spending on foreign aid goes to projects that are either ineffective or have been significantly delayed.
ECB Questions Banks on "Non-performing" Loans

January 19, 2016

Reuters reports that the European Central Bank ("ECB") has sent a questionnaire to banks across Europe seeking to scrutinize institutions that have taken on high numbers of "bad" loans that are unlikely to be repaid, particularly in countries with underperforming economies.
German Court Revisits ECB Bond-buying Cases

January 15, 2016

Bloomberg reports that the German Federal Constitutional Court will rehear five lawsuits asserting that the European Central Bank's ("ECB") 2012 bond-buying program is inconsistent with the German Constitution after the Court of Justice of the EU determined that the program was valid under EU law.
EU Commission Declines to Measure Potential "Brexit" Impact

January 14, 2016

Reuters reports that the office of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has issued an order to Commission economists not to study the potential impact of an exit of Britain from the EU following a referendum that may take place later this year.
EU Investigates UK Subsidy Plan for Renewable Energy

January 06, 2016

Partially acknowledging the potential conflict between its restrictions on "state aid" and its policy requiring EU members to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, the European Commission has issued a press release announcing that it is investigating whether the UK's subsidization of the conversion of part of a coal-fired power plant to run on "biomass" is unlawful.
EU "Resolution Mechanism" Becomes Operational

January 06, 2016

The European Commission has announced that, as of the first day of 2016, the eurozone's Single Resolution Mechanism, which requires banks to contribute to a fund to settle the debts of insolvent institutions and provides for a supervisor that determines when a financial institution is in danger of collapse, has become fully operational.
Finland Official Blames Euro, EU Border Policies for Woes

December 28, 2015

In recent comments, Finnish Foreign Minister Timo Soini placed partial blame for Finland's economic problems on the country's accession to the euro currency and warned that the Schengen passport-free travel area is at risk as a result of the neglect of EU external border security.
EU Council Approves Financial Disclosure Deal

December 18, 2015

The European Council has approved an agreement with Liechtenstein and Switzerland requiring the countries to disclose information on private financial accounts to prevent citizens from avoiding payment of taxes by "hiding" funds in these accounts.
EU Committee Calls for Common Corporate Tax Base

December 16, 2015

An opinion from local and regional leaders from the EU Committee of the Regions calls for the EU to create a "common consolidated corporate tax base" that would standardize how companies calculate the taxes they owe and seek to prevent "profit-shifting" and corporate tax avoidance in EU jurisdictions.