BANKING : POLITICAL AGREEMENT ON DEPOSIT GUARANTEE SCHEMES.

• Position: Brief article

The European Parliament and the member states reached a political agreement, on 18 December, on new rules on deposit guarantee schemes (DGS). The negotiations started in earnest in 2010, and the agreement will now have to be confirmed by the European Parliament and the Council.

Lithuanian Finance Minister Rimantas Sadzius said that "the aim of the deposit guarantee schemes is to strengthen the protection of depositors. In case of bank insolvency or resolution it is very important that people would get their money as soon as possible. This political agreement also brings us nearer to the banking union. This fact gives additional motivation before the Ecofin Council meeting, where we will strive for agreement on the Single Resolution Mechanism".

The draft directive contains certain elements designed to better protect the savings of EU citizens, and entails higher levels of transparency for depositors. A universal guarantee of deposits up to 100,000 has been agreed, along with...