Subject matter and purpose
1. This Regulation lays down rules on all of the following:
(a)
the framework referred to in Article 6(7) of the SSM Regulation, namely a framework to organise the practical arrangements for implementing Article 6 of the SSM Regulation concerning cooperation within the SSM, to include:
(i)
the specific methodology for the assessment and review of whether a supervised entity is classified as significant or less significant pursuant to the criteria laid down in Article 6(4) of the SSM Regulation, and the arrangements resulting from this assessment;
(ii)
the definition of procedures, including time limits, also in relation to the possibility for NCAs to prepare draft decisions for the ECB’s consideration, concerning the relation between the ECB and the NCAs regarding the supervision of significant supervised entities;
(iii)
the definition of procedures, including time limits, concerning the relation between the ECB and the NCAs regarding the supervision of less significant supervised entities. In particular, such procedures shall require the NCAs, depending on the cases defined in this Regulation, to:
—
notify the ECB of any material supervisory procedure,
—
further assess, on the ECB’s request, specific aspects of the procedure,
—
transmit to the ECB material draft supervisory decisions, on which the ECB may express its views;
(b)
cooperation and exchange of information between the ECB and the NCAs within the SSM with regard to the procedures relating to significant supervised entities and less significant supervised entities, including common procedures applying to authorisations to take up the business of a credit institution, withdrawals of such authorisations and the assessment of acquisitions and disposals of qualifying holdings;
(c)
the procedures relating to cooperation between the ECB, the NCAs and the NDAs regarding macro-prudential tasks and tools within the meaning of Article 5 of the SSM Regulation;
(d)
the procedures relating to the operation of close cooperation within the meaning of Article 7 of the SSM Regulation and applicable between the ECB, the NCAs and the NDAs;
(e)
the procedures relating to cooperation between the ECB and the NCAs with regard to Articles 10 to 13 of the SSM Regulation, including on certain aspects relating to supervisory reporting;
(f)
the procedures relating to the adoption of supervisory decisions addressed to supervised entities and other persons;
(g)
the linguistic arrangements between the ECB and the NCAs and between the ECB and supervised entities and other persons;
(h)
the procedures applicable to the ECB’s and the NCAs’ sanctioning powers within the SSM in relation to the tasks conferred on the ECB by the SSM Regulation;
(i)
transitional provisions.
2. This Regulation does not affect the supervisory tasks that have not been conferred on the ECB by the SSM Regulation and that therefore remain with national authorities.
3. This Regulation shall be read in particular in conjunction with Decision ECB/2004/2 ( 3 ) and the Rules of Procedure of the Supervisory Board of the European Central Bank ( 4 ) , in particular with regard to decision-making within the SSM, including the procedure applying between the Supervisory Board and the Governing Council as regards the non-objection by the Governing Council referred to in Article 26(8) of the SSM Regulation and other relevant ECB legal acts, including Decision ECB/2014/16 ( 5 ) .
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation, the definitions contained in the SSM Regulation shall apply, unless otherwise provided for, together with the following definitions:
(1)
‘authorisation’ means an authorisation as defined in point (42) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 6 ) ;
(2)
‘branch’ means a branch as defined in point (17) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013;
(3)
‘common procedures’ means the procedures provided for in Part V with respect to an authorisation to take up the business of a credit institution, withdrawal of an authorisation to pursue such business and decisions with regard to qualifying holdings;
(4)
‘euro area Member State’ means a Member State whose currency is the euro;
(5)
‘group’ means a group of undertakings of which at least one is a credit institution and which consists of a parent undertaking and its subsidiaries, or undertakings linked to each other by a relationship within the meaning of Article 22 of Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 7 ) , including any sub-group thereof;
(6)
‘joint supervisory team’ means a team of supervisors in charge of the supervision of a significant supervised entity or a significant supervised group;
(7)
‘less significant supervised entity’ means both (a) a less significant supervised entity in a euro area Member State; and (b) a less significant supervised entity in a non-euro area Member State that is a participating Member State;
(8)
‘less significant supervised entity in a euro area Member State’ means a supervised entity established in a euro area Member State and which does not have the status of a significant supervised entity within the meaning of Article 6(4) of the SSM Regulation;
(9)
‘national competent authority’ (NCA) means a national competent authority as defined in point (2) of Article 2 of the SSM Regulation. This definition is without prejudice to arrangements under national law which assign certain supervisory tasks to a national central bank (NCB) not designated as an NCA. In this case, the NCB shall carry out these tasks within the framework set out in national law and this Regulation. A reference to an NCA in this Regulation shall in this case apply as appropriate to the NCB for the tasks assigned to it by national law;
(10)
‘NCA in close cooperation’ means an NCA designated by a participating Member State in close cooperation in accordance with Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 8 ) ;
(11)
‘national designated authority’ (NDA) means a national designated authority as defined in point (7) of Article 2 of the SSM Regulation;
(12)
‘NDA in close cooperation’ means a non-euro area NDA designated by a participating Member State in close cooperation for the purposes of the tasks related to Article 5 of the SSM Regulation;
(13)
‘non-euro area Member State’ means a Member State whose currency is not the euro;
(14)
‘parent undertaking’ means a parent undertaking as defined in point (15) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013;
(15)
‘participating Member State in close cooperation’ means a non-euro area Member State that has entered into close cooperation with the ECB in accordance with Article 7 of the SSM Regulation;
(16)
‘significant supervised entity’ means both (a) a significant supervised entity in a euro area Member State; and (b) a significant supervised entity in a participating non-euro area Member State;
(17)
‘significant supervised entity in a euro area Member State’ means a supervised entity established in a euro area Member State which has the status of a significant supervised entity pursuant to an ECB decision based on Article 6(4) or Article 6(5)(b) of the SSM Regulation;
(18)
‘significant supervised entity in a participating non-euro area Member State’ means a supervised entity established in a participating non-euro area Member State which has the status of a significant supervised entity pursuant to an ECB decision based on Article 6(4) or Article 6(5)(b) of the SSM Regulation;
(19)
‘subsidiary’ means a subsidiary as defined in point (16) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013;
(20)
‘supervised entity’ means any of the following: (a) a credit institution established in a participating Member State; (b) a financial holding company established in a participating Member State; (c) a mixed financial holding company established in a participating Member State, provided that it fulfils the conditions laid down in point (21)(b); (d) a branch established in a participating Member State by a credit institution which is established in a non-participating Member State.
A central counterparty (CCP), as defined in Article 2(1) of Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 9 ) , which qualifies as a credit institution within the meaning of Directive 2013/36/EU, shall be considered a supervised entity in accordance with the SSM Regulation, this Regulation and relevant Union law without prejudice to the supervision of CCPs by relevant NCAs as laid down under Regulation (EU) No 648/2012;
(21)
‘supervised group’ means any of the following:
(a)
a group whose parent undertaking is a credit institution or financial holding company that has its head office in a participating Member State;
(b)
a group whose parent undertaking is a mixed financial holding company that has its head office in a participating Member State, provided that the coordinator of the financial conglomerate, within the meaning of Directive 2002/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 10 ) , is an authority competent for the supervision of credit institutions and is also the coordinator in its function as supervisor of credit institutions;
(c)
supervised entities each having their head office in the same participating Member State provided that they are permanently affiliated to a central body which supervises them under the conditions laid down in Article 10 of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 and which is established in the same participating Member State;
(22)
‘significant supervised group’ means a supervised group which has the status of significant supervised group pursuant to an ECB decision based on Article 6(4) or Article 6(5)(b) of the SSM Regulation;
(23)
‘less significant supervised group’ means a supervised group which does not have the status of a significant supervised group within the meaning of Article 6(4) of the SSM Regulation;
(24)
‘ECB supervisory procedure’ means any ECB activity directed towards preparing the issue of an ECB supervisory decision, including common procedures and the imposition of administrative pecuniary penalties. All ECB supervisory procedures are subject to Part III. Part III also applies to the imposition of administrative pecuniary penalties, unless Part X provides otherwise;
(25)
‘NCA supervisory procedure’ means any NCA activity directed towards preparing the issue of a supervisory decision by the NCA, which is addressed to one or more supervised entities or supervised groups or one or more other persons, including the imposition of administrative penalties;
(26)
‘ECB supervisory decision’ means a legal act adopted by the ECB in the exercise of the tasks and powers conferred on it by the SSM Regulation, which takes the form of an ECB decision, is addressed to one or more supervised entities or supervised groups or one or more other persons and is not a legal act of general application;
(27)
‘third country’ means a country which is neither a Member State nor a European Economic Area Member State;
(28)
‘working day’ means a day which is not a Saturday, Sunday or an ECB public holiday in accordance with the calendar applicable to the ECB ( 11 ) .
