Luxembourg and Ireland oppose EU plan to centralise financial supervision
Mar 10th 2026
France and Germany want an agreement by June to expand ESMA’s powers and deepen the single market, but Luxembourg and Ireland have publicly rejected centralising financial supervision, citing risks to their finance industries.
- France and Germany urged the 27 EU member states to reach an agreement by June to strengthen the single market by expanding ESMA powers.
- The European Commission proposed in December to give the European Securities and Markets Authority a stronger supervisory role over national regulators to reduce fragmentation.
- Supporters say a single supervisory mechanism would help build a Savings and Investment Union by mobilising savings for investment across the bloc.
- Luxembourg and Ireland oppose transforming ESMA into a centralised supervisor, saying it would add complexity, costs and risk to their financial services sectors.
- Ireland plans to work toward concluding the file by the end of the year while holding the EU rotating presidency in the second half of the year.