10  There are exceptions to this division of responsibilities between the plenary and executive sessions. First, whenever a resolution scheme would require the use of the Fund above certain thresholds, which levels depend on what the Fund’s means will be used for, a member of the plenary can within a strict deadline request the plenary session to decide. In such a case, the decision will be taken by a simple majority of the plenary members, but the majority must also represent certain levels of contributions to the Fund. Second, any decision which would involve the raising of ex post contributions from the banks or voluntary borrowing between financing arrangements, among other things, will also be taken by the plenary session. During the transitional period, such decisions require a majority of 2/3 of the plenary members, representing at least 50% of contributions to the Fund. In the steady state, after eight years, the same majority share of the plenary only need to represent at least 30% of contributions to the Fund to take such decisions. 11  This would be the case when the Commission does not agree with the scheme adopted by the Board. In such case, within 12 hours from receiving the resolution scheme from the Board, the Commission may propose to the Council to either: (i) object to the resolution scheme on grounds that there is no public interest of resolution, or (ii) approve or object to a material modification of how much the Fund is used in the resolution scheme.
As I recalled recently7, since the onset of the global financial crisis, the top 20 European banks have increased capital, net of share buy-backs, by higher amounts than the corresponding top 20 American banks: USD 289 billion by EU banks against USD 179 billion by U.S. banks. And according to the FDIC, the leverage ratios of the biggest European banks, calculated according to the same accounting standards, are very close to their American peers8. Furthermore, since midlast year in particular, European banks have implemented write-offs and increased provisions and capital, partly anticipating the Comprehensive balance-sheet Assessment that the ECB is conducting this year. Our estimates based on public information indicate that SSM banks (comprising 128 institutions) have, from July 2013 to April 2014, strengthened their balancesheet by EUR 104 billion. Measures taken include: EUR 34 billion through issuance of quoted shares (implemented and publicly announced), EUR 15 billion through the issuance of contingent capital hybrids or EUR 19 billion relating to additional provisioning. As a result, confidence in the euro area banking sector has improved and since the first quarter of last year, banks’ stock prices have risen at almost double the rate of the market average growth. But even if we were to agree that completing the strengthening of European banks is a necessary condition to consolidate the recovery, it is far from being a sufficient condition for jump starting growth in Europe.