Is a Single Bank Supervisor Inevitable throughout the European Union?

Abstract

Nineteen Member States (out of 27) of the European Union have currently adopted the euro as their common currency and joined the banking union of the EU. By treaty provision all Member States except Denmark are required to adopt the euro. Eight Member States (including Denmark) have yet to adopt the euro. Two of these eight Member States (Bulgaria and Croatia) have recently joined the banking union. This article analyzes the likelihood of the remaining six Member States (Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Sweden) of joining the banking union and adopting the euro as their common currency. While they have a legal obligation to join the euro, various factors, both economic and political, may delay that adoption.

Keywords: banking union, Single Supervisory Mechanism, euro adoption, European Central Bank, European Union

JEL Classification: K23,G18,G21,G28,N24