Finance & Trade

Court Holds ECB Exceeded Powers on Clearing Houses

March 04, 2015

The Court of Justice of the EU has upheld a U.K. legal challenge to a policy of the European Central Bank ("ECB") that large euro transactions should take place within the eurozone, finding that the ECB had exceeded its mandate in producing the policy.
EU Pushes Federalization of Energy Regulation

February 25, 2015

The Guardian reports that the European Commission is set to announce plans to centralize authority over energy policy in the EU at the expense of national energy regulators in the bloc's member states.
EU Seeks Move Toward Centralized "Energy Union"

February 20, 2015

In a recent speech, European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete called for directives requiring energy efficiency in EU member states and for a binding international treaty limiting greenhouse gas emissions around the world to counter global warming.
EU Investigates U.K. for "State Aid" to Power Plant

February 20, 2015

The European Commission has launched an investigation into whether measures in Britain to support the conversion of a coal power plant to operate only on "biomass" constitutes state aid in contravention of EU rules.
EU Proposes Harmonized "Capital Markets Union"

February 19, 2015

The European Commission has launched a consultation on how to build a Capital Markets Union across the EU, easing investment barriers across national borders, and requiring harmonization of tax and insolvency regulations in EU member states.
EU Begins Talks on Monitoring Corporate Tax Policies

February 18, 2015

The European Commission has launched talks on a comprehensive Tax Transparency Package proposal, to be released in March, that will seek to require the automatic transfer of information on tax rulings among EU member states and to reduce tax avoidance by companies operating in Europe.
Proposal Grants EU Authority over Energy Agreements

February 18, 2015

EurActiv reports that a new European Commission proposal seeking to establish an EU "Energy Union" would give Commission officials the authority to scrutinize member states' energy deals with non-EU countries before they are signed.
Proposed Body Would Seek "Coherent" EU-U.S. Regulatory Approach

February 18, 2015

EurActiv reports that a "regulatory cooperation body" proposed in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership ("TTIP") negotiations between the U.S. and the EU would monitor new regulatory proposals relating to TTIP provisions and seek to "ensure a coherent approach to rule-making" in the U.S. and Europe.
IEA Considers Post-EU Britain

February 18, 2015

British think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs ("IEA") has published an article exploring potential outcomes of the U.K.'s possible exit from the EU, including the advantages and disadvantages associated with maintaining a free trade deal with the bloc and striking trade arrangements with outside countries.
EU Parliament Approves Tax Inquiry

February 13, 2015

After declining to vote on an inquiry on alleged corporate tax deals struck by Luxembourg while current Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was the country's Prime Minister, the European Parliament has approved a more general investigation of tax rulings across EU member states.