| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Title | COM |
| Series Details | (2016) 388 final (15.6.16) |
| Publication Date | 15/06/2016 |
| Content Type | Policy-making |
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In 2007, the confidence of financial services end-users, and in particular that of consumers in the field of financial services, was shaken by the financial and economic crisis. Therefore, the European legislators considered that the concerns of consumers and other financial services end-users should be systematically and adequately taken into account to restore citizens' confidence in the soundness of the financial sector. Financial services consumers cover a wide range of natural persons using or requesting financial services, including retail investors, savers, insurance holders, pension fund participants and borrowers. While consumers represent the main focus of the present proposal, its objectives might be also relevant for other end-users of financial services, who are using or requesting financial services for purposes which are not outside their trade, business or profession. Several actions have been undertaken by the European Commission to ensure that the views of consumers and other end-users of financial services are heard, notably with (i) the establishment in 2010 of the Financial Services Users Group (FSUG) which acts as a forum where non-industry stakeholders’ representatives are regularly kept informed about the financial services policy issues under development and are invited to give their views and express their concerns and suggestions on intended legislative initiatives and (ii) the systematic inclusion of consumers and civil society organisations’ representatives in the various expert groups set up to assist the Commission or the ESAs in their work in the financial services area. The Commission had also identified the scarcity of resources and specialised expertise among organisations representing these stakeholders as an obstacle to their active participation in the discussions on the Union policy making in the financial services area. Consumer bodies as well as civil society organisations did not have adequate resources to properly cover a wide range of often highly technical topics and contribute relevant input in the Union financial services policy making. This was unsatisfactory because the Commission could not benefit from the widest possible range of views and inputs and was perceived by some civil society organisations as being unduly influenced by industry contributions. In that context, the Commission launched at the end of 2011 a pilot project aiming to provide grants to support the development of a financial expertise centre to the benefit of end-users and non-industry stakeholders and enhance their capacity to participate in Union policy making in the field of financial services. Following successive open calls for proposals, the Commission awarded operating grants to two non-profit organisations based in Brussels, Finance Watch and Better Finance between 2012 and 2015. The two non-profit organisations mainly conducted research work, policy analysis, advocacy and communication activities during that period. In 2015, an evaluation of the pilot project and the subsequent preparatory action was conducted in order to decide on potential further steps in this area. The evaluation concluded that the policy objectives of the pilot project and the preparatory action had generally been met. However, the evaluation underlined that both organisations were not financially sustainable without Union funding, despite efforts to diversify their resources during these three years. Stopping funding as of 2017 would lead the organisations to reduce dramatically or even cease their activities, which would have meant that the policy objectives could no longer be achieved. In the same vein, reducing the level of co-funding would be risky since both organisations would have to cut staff immediately, already limiting their activities in 2017, and likely stop them quite rapidly. Co-funding these beneficiaries along the same line as of 2017 is the only option which can ensure that all the results and effects that have materialised since 2012 according to the evaluation results are likely to continue. This will enable to further increase the involvement of consumers, other end-users of financial services and stakeholders representing their interests in Union policy-making in the financial sector. |
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| Source Link | http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2016:388:FIN |
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| Subject Categories | Business and Industry |
| Countries / Regions | Europe |
