Opinion of the European Central Bank of 16 February 2011 on including credit unions in the State Treasury support to financial institutions (CON/2011/11)
Date: 2011-02-16
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: Poland, State aid, financial institution, financial stability, guarantee, national law

EN 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 16 February 2011 

on including credit unions in the State Treasury support to financial institutions 

(CON/2011/11) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On 21 January 2011, the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the Polish Minister for 

Finance for an opinion on a draft law  amending the Law on the  provision of State Treasury support to 

financial institutions (hereinafter the ‘draft law’). 

The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 

Functioning  of 

the  European  and 

the 

third  and  sixth 

indents  of  Article  2(1)  of  Council 

Decision 98/415/EC  of  29  June  1998  on  the  consultation  of  the  European  Central  Bank  by  national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions1, as the draft law relates to Narodowy Bank Polski and to 

rules  applicable  to  financial  institutions  insofar  as  they  materially  influence  the  stability  of  financial 

institutions and markets. 

In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of Procedure of the European Central 

Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 

1.  

Purpose of the draft law 

1.1  The draft law amends the Law of 12 February 2009 on the provision of State Treasury support to 
financial institutions2 (hereinafter the ‘Law on State support’), on which the ECB was consulted in 
November  20083.  The  Law  on  State  support  introduced  a  scheme  whereby  various  support 
measures were offered to  eligible financial institutions4. The ECB was subsequently consulted in 
October  20095  and  December  20106  with  a  view  to  extending  the  deadline  by  which  eligible 

financial institutions may apply for support. 

1 
2 
3 
4 

5  
6  

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42. 
Dz. U. of 2009 No 39, Item 308. 
See Opinion CON/2008/80; all ECB opinions are published on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.europa.eu. 
Six categories of financial institutions established in Poland were eligible for the support scheme: banks, credit unions, 
investment funds, brokerage houses, insurance companies and pension funds (see Article 2 of the Law on State support). 
See Opinion CON/2009/82. 
See Opinion CON/2010/95. 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
1.2  The draft law extends the list of institutions eligible for support in the form of State guarantees to: 

(i)  credit  unions  active  in  Poland  (spółdzielcze  kasy  oszczędnościowo-kredytowe,  hereinafter  the 

‘SKOK  credit  unions’);  and  (ii)  the  National  Savings  and  Credit  Union,  a  statutory  central 

association  of  individual  credit  unions  (hereinafter  the  ‘National  SKOK’).  This  extension  is 

proposed because the credit unions: (i) provide services similar to banks, and may be exposed to 

similar  liquidity  risks;  and  (ii)  they  currently  manage  significant  assets  and  provide  services  to  a 
large number of mostly retail customers7. The draft law does not change the conditions of support 

or the criteria by which the eligibility of financial institutions is assessed under the Law on State 

support. 

1.3  Under the current Law on credit unions8, they operate under their own supervisory framework and 

are  not  supervised  by  the  Financial  Supervision  Commission  (FSC),  the  Polish  financial 

supervisory  authority.  In  2009  the  ECB  was  consulted  on  a  draft  law  introducing  substantial 

changes regarding the regulation and supervision of SKOK credit unions, including the imposition 
on  them  of  the  FSC  supervision  and  the  obligation  to  hold  minimum  reserves9  with  Narodowy 

Bank  Polski.  The  ECB  understands  that  this  law  was  adopted  by  the  Parliament  but  did  not  yet 

enter into force, pending its review by the Constitutional Court. 

2.   General observation 

2.1   The ECB reiterates its observations in Opinion CON/2009/60, as well as in its previous opinions on 

the Law on State support. Without precluding the outcome of the constitutional review, the ECB 

considers it essential for the legal reform of the regulation and supervision of SKOK credit unions 

to  enter  into  force  as  soon  as  possible.  Key  elements  are  the  imposition  of  a  supervisory  regime 

equivalent  to  that  applying  to  credit  institutions,  the  obligation  to  hold  minimum  reserves  and 

enhanced  legal  certainty  and  transparency  of  credit  union  operations.  These  measures  should 

accompany the proposed inclusion of the SKOK credit unions in the list of institutions eligible for 

support in the form of State guarantees.   

This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website. 

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 16 February 2011. 

7  
8  
9  

See the explanatory memorandum to the draft law, p. 1. 
The Law on credit unions of 4 January 1996, Dz. U. of 1996 No 1, Item 2. 
See Opinion CON/2009/60. 

2 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Jean-Claude TRICHET