31 October 2005

CEIOPS recommended changes to Insurance Groups Directive

The Committee of European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Supervisors (CEIOPS) assessed the Insurance Groups Directive (IGD) on the potential need for changes to reach further harmonisation in supervisory methods and released its recommendation on possible need for amendments to the Directive.

In a survey conducted among the coordination committees (Co-Cos) involved in supervising insurance groups operating in more than one EEA country it appears that more efficiency in the exercise of the supplementary supervision is needed. One suggestion to promote Co-Cos to appoint a Lead Supervisor would be to make the process more transparent, e.g. by introducing a yearly reporting to CEIOPS by those Co-Cos that have not yet appointed such a Lead Supervisor and requiring them to state the reasons why no such Lead Supervisor has been appointed.

CEIOPS recommends that the IGD is amended to introduce an option for supervisors involved in a Co-Co to ask for a reorganisation of third country groups e.g. by introducing a holding company situated within the EEA. A requirement from the supervisory authorities to establish one holding company situated within the EEA should only be required after other possible ways of addressing the challenges of supervising the group have been exhausted. The further details on the decision-making process should be dealt with at Level 3.

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