Based on a wider-ranging set of pertinent legal provisions in the financial regulatory domain, the banking union in Europe is about to take off, barely two years after this important decision was taken by the European Council. One of the elements in preparation of the banking union has been the so-called Comprehensive Assessment of all significant banks in the euro area by the ECB.
It has been a challenging undertaking, involving almost 85% of the total balance sheet of euro area banks, More than 6,000 supervisors and auditors were involved in the execution of the Asset Quality Review. An EU-wide bank stress test was added on to it.