LONDON/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Spain’s EU bank bailout has catalyzed growing German and French support for the European Central Bank to take over responsibility from the European Banking Authority for monitoring Europe’s biggest lenders.

France is calling for a banking union to help draw a line under the euro zone sovereign debt crisis and try to break the link between fragile banks and indebted governments. Paris wants the ECB to be the critical overseer of the region’s banking sector, a position Berlin increasingly supports.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Spain may need to wind down one of its bailed-out savings banks, the European Union’s competition chief said on Wednesday, warning liquidation of a bank may be preferable if the costs of rescuing it are too high for taxpayers.

Under state-aid rules, the European Commission is allowed to refuse a request to rescue a bank if it considers the lender too costly to save – effectively forcing it to be wound up.

BRUSSELS, June 13 (Reuters) – The EU executive could make
proposals this autumn to integrate supervision of banks, the
head of the bloc’s executive said on Wednesday, outlining a key
step towards a banking union to underpin the euro zone’s
financial system.

Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission,
said that it could present legislative proposals to integrate
European supervision.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission is pressing Greece to wind down certain banks, possibly including its fifth-largest lender ATEbank, EU sources said.

Although it is the responsibility of Greece’s central bank to close a struggling lender, the EU’s executive also has a say under state-aid rules, which allow it to refuse a request to rescue a bank if the Commission considers it too costly to save – effectively forcing the bank to be wound up.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission is pressing Greece to wind down certain banks, possibly including its fifth-largest lender ATEbank, EU sources said.

Although it is the responsibility of Greece’s central bank to close a struggling lender, the EU’s executive also has a say under state-aid rules, which allow it to refuse a request to rescue a bank if the Commission considers it too costly to save – effectively forcing the bank to be wound up.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission proposed far-reaching powers for regulators to take control of failing banks on Wednesday, a step towards the banking union wanted by the European Central Bank, which will come too late to help Spain.

The plans, which spell out an insolvency regime for banks and empower regulators to intervene to prevent a collapse from triggering panic, first need to be approved by EU countries and the European Parliament and may not take effect until 2015.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission will propose far-reaching powers for regulators to deal with failing banks on Wednesday, a step towards the banking union the European Central Bank has demanded to secure the euro’s future.

The proposal will suggest closer coordination between countries and powers to force losses on the bondholders of failing banks to prevent a repeat of the chaos following the 2008 collapse of U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission will propose far-reaching powers for regulators to deal with failing banks on Wednesday, a step towards the banking union the European Central Bank has demanded to secure the euro’s future.

But the proposal, which suggests closer coordination between countries and increased powers to force losses onto bondholders, is unlikely to take effect before 2014, too late for Spain, which could be forced to seek a Greek-style bailout if it cannot refinance its indebted lenders.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Europe’s leaders must clarify their vision for the euro quickly to dispel doubts about the currency’s future, ECB President Mario Draghi said on Thursday, warning that the Central Bank could not fill the policy vacuum.

Adding to growing pressure for dramatic policy action at next month’s EU leaders’ summit, Draghi said the bloc should break away from the incremental approach that has failed to get ahead of the euro zone debt crisis for more than two years.

BRUSSELS, May 31 (Reuters) – Europe’s leaders must clarify
their vision for the euro quickly or risk disaster as the
European Central Bank cannot fill the policy vacuum, ECB
President Mario Draghi said on Thursday.

Adding to growing pressure for dramatic policy action at
next month’s EU summit, Draghi said the bloc should err on the
side of doing too much rather than too little, breaking away
from the incremental approach that has failed to get ahead of
the euro zone debt crisis for more than two years.