Opinion of the European Central Bank of 19 November 2012 on a stabilisation fund for banks (CON/2012/91)
Date: 2012-11-19
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: Poland, bank deposit, credit institution, financial stability, guarantee, national law, public institution

EN 

ECB-PUBLIC 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 19 November 2012 

on a stabilisation fund for banks 

(CON/2012/91) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On 23 October 2012, 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 Bank Guarantee Fund and certain other 

laws (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  Union  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 the 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 is an updated version of a draft law on which the ECB has previously been consulted2 
(hereinafter the ‘earlier draft law’). The overall purpose of the draft law remains unchanged, that is 

to enhance the Polish framework for crisis management in the financial sector by establishing an 

industry-funded  stabilisation  fund  for  credit  institutions,  formed  as  a  sub-fund  under  the 

management  of  the  Bank  Guarantee  Fund  (BFG),  the  operator  of  the  Polish  deposit  guarantee 

scheme.  To  that  end,  the  draft  law  amends:  (a)  the  Law  of  14 December  1994  on  the  Bank 
Guarantee  Fund3  (hereinafter  the  ‘Law  on  BFG’);  and  (b)  the  Law  of  12 February  2010  on  the 
recapitalisation of certain financial institutions4 (hereinafter ‘the Law on recapitalisation’). 

1.2  As  compared  to  the  earlier  draft  law,  the  draft  law  redefines  the  sources  of  financing  of  the 

stabilisation fund to include, in addition to a one-off payment to be made in the year of the law’s 

entry into force, a prudential fee to be paid on an annual basis by the institutions covered by the 

obligatory deposit guarantee scheme. 

1 
2 

3 
4 

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42. 
See  the  draft  law  amending  the  Law  on  Bank  Guarantee  Fund  and  certain  other  laws,  version  dated  30  May  2012,  as 
opined on in Opinion CON/2012/58. All ECB opinions are published on the ECB's website at www.ecb.europa.eu. 
Consolidated text published in Dziennik Ustaw (Dz. U.) of 2009 No 84, item 711.  
Dz. U. of 2010 No 40, item 226. 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
ECB-PUBLIC 

1.3  The earlier draft law allowed the transfer of resources from the newly established stabilisation fund 

to the existing assistance fund, both managed by the BFG. This is supplemented in the draft law, 

which allows temporary transfers from the assistance fund to the stabilisation fund, subject to the 
approval  of  the  Minister  for  Finance5.  At  the  same  time,  the  draft  law  lays  down  appropriate 
safeguards  to  ensure  that,  following  such  a  transfer,  sufficient  funds  are  made  available  to  the 
assistance fund by the Minister for Finance for the pay-out of guaranteed deposits, if necessary6. 

2.   General observations 

The  ECB’s  observations  are  in  principle  limited  to  the  relevant  provisions  of  the  draft  law  which  have 

been changed as compared with the earlier draft law. 

3.  

Specific observations 

Financing of the stabilisation fund 

3.1   The ECB welcomes the introduction of an independent financing mechanism for the stabilisation 

fund  in  the  form  of  a  self-standing  annual  prudential  fee  as  it  will  enhance  the  clarity  and 

transparency  of  the  system.  It  will  also  allow  more  flexibility  in  setting  the  appropriate  level  of 

industry  participation  in  the  costs  of  providing  support  to  distressed  financial  institutions  and  in 

adjusting  it  to  the  changing  market  conditions  to  achieve  the  expected  anti-cyclical  effect  of  the 
new prudential fee7. 

3.2  The proposed arrangements, allowing the temporary transfer of resources from the assistance fund 

to the stabilisation fund, will further increase flexibility in the application of the measures available 

under the Law on BFG and the Law on recapitalisation. In this respect, the ECB notes the need to 

ensure  that  the  financial  resources  of  funds  used  for  the  resolution  or  stabilisation  of  credit 

institutions are adequate and that the contributions to such funds raised from credit institutions are 

set at a level which is appropriately calibrated to ensure financial stability. 

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

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 19 November 2012. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Mario DRAGHI 

5  
6  
7 

See proposed Articles 20c(2) and 20c(3) of the Law on BFG as inserted by Article 1(10) of the draft law. 
See proposed Article 16b of the Law on BFG as inserted by Article 1(8) of the draft law. 
See the explanatory memorandum to the draft law, p. 11. 

2