Speech by Commissioner Albuquerque (by video message) for the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) 15th Anniversary Conference: Supervision with Impact

Good morning.

Let me begin by warmly thanking Petra and all colleagues at EIOPA for the invitation to speak at todays conference.

While I regret not being able to join you in person as originally planned, I am pleased to be able to contribute- even if only virtually – to marking EIOPAs fifteenth anniversary, which is truly an occasion to celebrate.

Over the past fifteen years, EIOPA has moved with remarkable speed and purpose.  Your work is deeply valued by me and my services at the Commission, and - from all the feedback I receive - also by the wider supervisory community and the insurance and pensions sector.

Today I want to pay tribute to your success and also speak to you about Europes ambitions related to our competitiveness, and how your work has been and will remain instrumental in achieving them.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The case for a more competitive Europe is being reinforced constantly, and a strong, resilient financial system is an essential prerequisite for achieving that goal.

In these times of geopolitical structural changes, when the European Union is increasingly exposed to external pressures, the case for a more integrated, resilient and stronger Union has never been clearer.

Creating a true single market for financial services is instrumental to the competitiveness of Europes economy. And we can only achieve it together - by committing to this common objective and by overcoming our differences.

The cost of not completing this single market is rising by the day.

Our Savings and Investments Union strategy has set our clear vision for a more competitive and resilient European financial market.

Our mission is to put peoples financial well-being at the centre – by creating real opportunities for citizens to build financial security, particularly in view of their retirement needs.

At the same time, this requires supporting economic growth and mobilising private capital into Europes economy, including into strategic sectors, that will define our future – from space and defence to digital an clean industry.

The insurance sector plays a key role in the SIU, acting as a powerhouse for long-term, patient investment, while also providing essential risk protection for citizens and businesses.

A strong Europe needs a strong insurance sector, and EIOPA plays a key role in safeguarding its stability and resilience.

Of course, none of our European ambitions are possible without the right prudential foundations, and here is where EIOPA has rightly and successfully put much of its efforts since its creation.

We are celebrating 15 years of EIOPA and also 10 years of Solvency II.

Much of the credit for Solvency II being recognised globally as a “golden standard” is due to EIOPAs commitment to providing its expertise to keep the framework fit for purpose, and to the constant engagement in ensuring consistent and convergent implementation across the Union.  

Your timely, high-quality advice, often delivered under demanding timelines, was instrumental in shaping the recently concluded Solvency II review.

This review will make Solvency II more proportionate and better aligned with Europes long-term investment needs.

I am aware that throughout the negotiations of the review, EIOPA and policymakers did not always see eye to eye on every aspect of the reform. I view this not as a weakness, but as a sign of a healthy debate and a careful balancing of financial stability and competitiveness. I fully expect EIOPA to continue engaging in policy discussions with the same openness.

We are also counting on your expertise to monitor how insurers make use of the enhanced investment capacity.

Our objective continues to be a framework that enables insurers to invest in strategic and sustainable projects, while fully preserving the soundness of the system.

I remain convinced that within these boundaries, there is space for responsible risk-taking, because ultimately, without taking some risks, we cant expect growth.

You have also played a key role in developing our common resolution framework, which is particularly valuable in reinforcing trust within the single market.

For many Member States, resolution in the insurance sector is a new area, and I am aware of calls to slow down the implementation of the Insurance Recovery and Resolution Directive. We should use the flexibility built into the agreed framework to ensure implementation is done rightly. In this context, I commend EIOPA for the efforts it is making and for the clear prioritisation of its work across the various mandates.

Looking ahead, we count on EIOPAs advice regarding insurance guarantee schemes, which will be instrumental for the Commission in preparing the report that co-legislators requested on this issue.

Supplementary pensions are a crucial part of the puzzle in building a stronger and more resilient Europe.

In the face of shifting demographics, supplementary pensions help narrow the pension gap and provide additional retirement income for European citizens.

We owe it to all Europeans, but particularly the younger generations, to find the right solutions and create real opportunities so that people have the tools they need to face retirement with quality and dignity.

This is no small task. It requires sustained work across Member States, EU institutions, and the private sector to ensure both the sustainability and the adequacy of pensions systems.

EIOPA and the supervisory community have been key partners in this mission.  Your excellent work on pension tracking systems and dashboards, your advice and technical input on IORP and PEPP provided a solid foundation for the Supplementary Pensions Package we adopted in November.

EIOPAs inputs have been key in some of the European Unions landmark projects, including sustainable finance, digital finance, and retail investment.

On sustainable finance, EIOPAs work has been essential to improve the management of sustainability risks by the insurance and supplementary pensions sectors and contributes to fostering more sustainable behaviour.

Let me especially commend your impressive efforts on catastrophe risks.  Your dashboard on the insurance protection gap for natural catastrophes has become the reference point for everyone concerned.

On digital finance, EIOPA contributed substantially to our work on Financial Data Access, or “FiDA” , exploring how an “open insurance” environment could serve citizens.

We will continue to engage actively to bring this file over the line. We acknowledge that some insurers have raised concerns, but we see here an opportunity to step up innovation which would benefit both financial services users and the financial entities.

Whether we want it or not, innovation happens and embracing it consciously is a better strategy than trying to stop it.

On retail investment, I was pleased to see the co-legislators reach an agreement on our Retail Investment Strategy that upholds the core objective of empowering retail investors.

EIOPA has provided valuable input on cost and performance and on value‑for‑money benchmarks and will continue to be essential in the implementation phase, where we want to ensure that the new rules translate into tangible benefits for EU savers.

I would also like to highlight EIOPAs work on strengthening supervision and supervisory convergence. This is crucial work and its not always easy.

Strong supervisory action is key in an internal market where cross-border movements are encouraged.

I commend EIOPA for making extensive and effective use of its convergence powers to ensure that our common rulebook is applied consistently.

I want to recognise your efforts to solve concrete cases. EIOPA has demonstrated that tools such as collaboration platforms, joint on-site inspections, technical advice and, where necessary, the breach of Union law procedure, can be effective in addressing cross-border issues.

We count on you to continue this excellent work.

On the international stage, EIOPA continues to safeguard Europes interests and efficiently monitor our equivalence agreements.

EIOPA has been particularly influential in negotiating the new Global Insurance Capital Standard, based on our “golden” Solvency 2 standard. We know we can rely on EIOPA to continue defending our European interests in the implementation phase.

Together, we have achieved a great deal over the past fifteen years. EIOPA has helped shape an insurance sector that is better capitalised, more efficient, leaner, and better equipped to close the protection gaps that matter most to our societies.

EIOPA will continue to play a key role in ensuring the resilience of our insurance sector and in developing our supplementary pensions.

I look forward to maintaining our excellent collaboration.

Thank you for these outstanding fifteen years, and I wish you a great and festive day ahead.