European Banking Authority's Strategic Priorities for 2025

Additionally, the EBA will take on new responsibilities, including overseeing ICT third-party service providers and supervising issuers of significant asset-referenced and e-money tokens. With various evolving risks on the horizon, the following five strategic priorities have been set for 2025:

Priority 1 – Implementing the EU Banking Package and enhancing the Single Rulebook

• The EBA will prioritise the timely implementation of outstanding Basel III reforms in the EU, ensuring that banks are better prepared for future crises and maintaining the stability of both the European and global financial systems. This will include strengthening the regulatory framework through more risk-sensitive approaches to determining capital requirements for credit, market and operational risk.
• The negotiations for the CRR/CRD package, concluded in 2023, include over 140 mandates to develop regulatory standards, guidelines and reports. The EBA’s regulatory products will help create a robust framework and level the playing field across the EU single market.
• In the first half of 2025, the EBA will respond to two calls for advice from the Commission: one concerning the role of non-EU institutions in the EU banking market and another on insolvency benchmarking.

Priority 2 – Enhancing Risk-Based and Forward-Looking Financial Stability for a Sustainable Economy

• The EBA will focus on the impact of changing interest rates on both the real economy and the banking sector, particularly in light of high inflation and potential credit tightening due to risk-averse behaviour.
• The EBA will also monitor financial and ESG risks, with plans to develop a regular climate stress test and guidelines for institutions’ climate stress testing.

Priority 3 – Enhancing Data Infrastructure and Launching the Data Portal

• The EBA’s Data Strategy will improve the acquisition, compilation, utilisation, and dissemination of regulatory data, strengthening analytical capabilities. It will also integrate entities under the scope of DORA and MiCAR into the EBA’s reporting framework.
•  In 2025, the EBA will finalise its implementation of the Data Point Model (DPM) standard 2.0, ensuring the data dictionary is aligned with future reporting and digital processing challenges. The EBA will also use Digital Regulatory Reporting tools to produce reporting frameworks, developed jointly with EIOPA.

Priority 4 – Oversight and Supervisory Activities for DORA and MiCAR

• The EBA, alongside other European Supervisory Authorities, expects to deliver policy mandates related to the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCAR) by 2025. These efforts will address the digital risk aspect of the Single Rulebook and provide a regulatory framework for crypto-assets.
• For DORA, the ESAs will, for the first time, determine the scope of ICT third-party providers (TTPs) by designating Critical TTPs.
• Under MiCAR, the EBA will enhance its readiness to supervise issuers of significant Asset Reference Tokens and Electronic Money Tokens by extending staff training and organising workshops with National Competent Authorities (NCAs).

Priority 5 – Developing Consumer-Oriented Mandates and Ensuring a Smooth Transition to the New AML/CFT Framework

• By the end of 2025, the EBA will retain its Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) mandate and continue its transition plans to the new EU AML authority, AMLA.
• Protecting consumers in the financial sector remains a top priority for the EBA, which will continue focusing on consumer protection mandates and further developing its approach to the conduct of financial institutions.
• The EBA will also monitor financial innovation in areas such as crypto-assets, tokenisation, and new financial products, identifying areas where additional regulatory responses may be needed. It will support the Commission on digital finance topics, including the digital euro and BigTech in finance.
• In 2025, the EBA will collaborate with ESMA, EIOPA, and the European Commission to finalise the activities of the EU Supervisory Digital Finance Academy (SDFA).
• The EBA will also begin developing mandates on payment services and depositor protection, with over forty-five such mandates expected to be developed.

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This is the first in a four-part series of articles outlining the strategic priorities of European Supervisory Authorities for the financial sector. Read article two on "EIOPA's Strategic Priorities for 2025."