The European Commission has published a report on the resilience of the EU financial sector against potential disruptions. The assessment, which is part of the EU’s overall preparedness union strategy, confirms that Europe’s financial system is well equipped to continue providing critical services under a wide range of adverse scenarios, including geopolitical tensions, cyber incidents, natural hazards and other major disruptions.
The report shows that the EU financial sector benefits from a solid, multi‑layered preparedness framework, based on a combination of robust EU legislation, strong governance requirements, and effective coordination across Member States, authorities and sectors.
The report highlights the role of EU financial services legislation, including banking, insurance, market infrastructure and asset management frameworks, in ensuring that financial institutions and infrastructures can withstand severe shocks and continue operating. In particular, the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) provides a harmonised EU‑wide framework to manage ICT and cyber risks across the financial sector, including oversight of critical ICT third‑party providers.
The report also highlights the importance of maintaining the continuity of payments and access to money as a core element of preparedness. The availability of both cash and electronic payment services is supported by Eurosystem arrangements as well as EU legislation on cash access and acceptance. The digital euro would, once implemented, complement cash and private payment solutions.
The EU has significantly reinforced its preparedness since the global financial crisis. In recent years, the framework has been tested – successfully – by a number of events, including the COVID‑19 pandemic, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, financial stress in the US and Switzerland, cyberattacks and other hybrid incidents. During these crises, the EU financial sector demonstrated robustness and resilience, and authorities – both at EU and national levels – acted swiftly and effectively.
The EU will keep on assessing financial sector preparedness. Where needed, the EU stands ready to swiftly trigger coordinated and proportionate EU and Member State‑level adjustments to ensure continuity in the EU financial sector’s critical functions.
Report on the resilience of the EU financial sector
Related links
Preparedness union strategy
Financial services
Cyber resilience
Critical infrastructure resilience at EU‑level
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