EU Banking and Insurance Insolvency

Following the chaotic effects of the global financial crisis on European financial markets, the legislative regime introduced by the European Union (EU) represents a dramatic new approach to bank insolvency law, and will have a profound effect on the way banks function. The second edition of EU Banking and Insurance Insolvency evaluates these important developments and their implications for the Eurozone countries. A comprehensive general introduction sets out the EU insolvency law framework and the principles which govern financial institutions. The book provides detailed commentary on the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) and Single Resolution Mechanism Regulation (SRMR), the legislative instruments central to the EU's response to the crisis, intended to harmonize Member States law. It considers the new powers given to government authorities under the BRRD to write down shares and debt instruments issued by banks, and the function of the newly created 'Single Resolution Board'. Commentary on the Winding-Up Directive (2001/24/EC) and the Insurance Insolvency Directive (2001/17/EC) discusses the significant changes these statutes have undergone as a consequence of the adoption of the BRRD and SRMR, as well as several high-profile court cases decided on the interpretation of these two statutes, including the Landsbanki and Kaupthing cases, and the Lehman Brothers, Isis Investments, and Heritable Bank cases. This is an invaluable practitioner guide to the new European banking insolvency regime, written by experts in the field.

Commentary on Title IV of Directive 2009/138/EC on the Taking up and Pursuit of the Business of Insurance and Reinsurance (Solvency II)

Until 2009, the European law of insurance was set out in a plethora of different Directives. The key legislation dealing with insurance insolvency was Directive 2001/17/EC on the reorganisation and winding-up of insurance undertakings (IWUD).

HMO and Insurance Insolvency: The Benefits and Detriments of a Federal System

Accompanying its expansive growth over the last fifteen years, the health maintenance organization (HMO) industry transformed from collections of HMOs in local markets into an increasingly national system under the control of centralized corporations. During that time, HMOs established national chains in an effort to capture market share. The move toward nationalization of the HMO industry suggests the need for a critical analysis of the current HMO regulatory structure to determine whether it effectively safeguards the proper functioning of HMOs. As national and regional HMOs compete among themselves and with local HMOs, the need for unified, consistent financial protections with respect to HMOs and similar entities becomes acute. Competition from national HMOs creates increased financial risk for the smaller HMOs whose regional markets were previously insulated from broad-based competition. The need for preventative rules to offset this added risk, as well as a means by which to adjudicate consistently cases of HMO and insurance insolvency, became sufficiently acute that in March 1993 the U.S. House of Representatives sought to regulate federally the solvency of insurance companies by proposing a Federal Insurance Solvency Commission. In addition, to deal effectively with these problems, various industry participants and regulatory entities currently seek other remedies and attempt action of varying degrees.