Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy said: “"The FISCO Group will have an important role to play in helping to tackle the fiscal barriers. This is an area that was highlighted by the group of financial experts chaired by Alberto Giovannini, as one of the obstacles to more efficient pan-European cross border clearing and settlement in securities. This is important in the context of deepening financial market integration.”
Clearing and settlement takes place after two parties have agreed a
securities transaction, in order to allow the transfer of ownership and of the
corresponding payment. Systems in the EU have developed nationally, as
cross-border trading activity has been limited. Cross-border clearing and
settlement in the EU is therefore still much more costly and complex than within
a single Member State or in the United States, to the detriment of the EU's
financial markets.
Different fiscal regulations in Member States are a
factor in this fragmentation and the group will advise on ways to remove these
barriers, identified in the Giovannini reports (http://europa.eu.int/comm/economy_finance/giovannini/clearing_settlement_en.htm)
and by respondents to the Commission’s April 2004 Communication on Clearing and Settlement (IP/05/346). The Communication includes an action plan outlining various initiatives to achieve an integrated, safe and efficient clearing and settlement environment for securities trading in the EU, based on a level playing field for the different providers of services.
The group will look at alternative ways for Member States to secure their tax receipts, while permitting all financial institutions across the European Union to compete on an equal footing. It will produce a study assessing whether national fiscal compliance procedures could be more closely aligned and whether the multiplicity of rules which raise the cost of cross-border settlement could be eliminated or substantially reduced. The group may also identify other relevant issues.
It will liaise with two other expert groups - the CESAME group on market-led initiatives to bring down barriers to integration and the Legal Certainty Group, which tackles legal barriers - as well as with the “Group of 30” and other international bodies.
The group will conduct its work openly (up to date information will be available through its website) and in line with the Commission’s work in the area to date. The work is expected to take about two years.
The Commission will use the findings as a basis for discussion with the Member States in accordance with the established policy of prior consultation on tax issues. If subsequent action at EU level is considered appropriate, the Commission will bring forward proposals.
For more details of Commission policy on clearing and settlement:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/internal_market/financial-markets/clearing/compliance_en.htm
Annex
List FISCO Group
Mr. Francis BARRIER
SEGL/FIS
Mr. Joseph DE WOLF
Banque Nationale de Belgique
Dr. Daniel DEAK
Corvinus University Budapest,
Faculty of Business Administration
Mr. Gabriele ESCALAR
Studio Associato Legale Tributario
Mr. Charles HELLIER
Linklaters
Mr. Philip KERFS
Euroclear
Mr. Erkki KONTKANEN
The Finnish Bankers Association
Mr. Koen MARSOUL
Ernst&Young
Mr. Steven MCGRADY
Stamp Taxes Group
KPMG LLP
Mr. Jeffrey NASLUND
Deutsche Börse Group/Clearstream
International
Dr. Martine PETERS
Clifford Chance
Mr. Jan ROELS
Deloitte & Touche Belastingconsulenten CVBA
Ms. Anne RUTBERG
Mannheimer Swartling
Mr. Francisco URIA
Asociación Española de Banca
Mr. Klaus ZINKEISEN
Deutsche Bank AG
