The Council's Working Party on Financial Services and the Banking Union (Financial Services) – Market Integration and Supervision Package is scheduled to meet on 17 July 2026 at 09:30 in Brussels to advance three legislative proposals on capital market integration and supervision. The meeting, which will be held in Attachés-only format (1+0) at the Justus Lipsius Building, will examine a Master Regulation, a Master Directive, and a Settlement Finality Regulation.
The Master Regulation (Doc. ST 16345/25 + ADD 1) proposes amendments to 14 existing EU regulations, including those on European Supervisory Authorities (No 1095/2010), over-the-counter derivatives (No 648/2012), and markets in financial instruments (No 600/2014), with the aim of deepening capital market integration and enhancing supervision. The Master Directive (Doc. ST 16347/25 + ADD 1) would amend Directives 2009/65/EC (UCITS), 2011/61/EU (AIFMD), and 2014/65/EU (MiFID II) on the same topic. The Settlement Finality Regulation (Doc. ST 16348/25 + ADD 1) seeks to replace Directive 98/26/EC on settlement finality in payment and securities settlement systems and amend Directive 2002/47/EC on financial collateral arrangements, modernising the framework for cross-border settlement.
The meeting is a technical-level discussion among attachés from EU member states, preparing the ground for subsequent negotiations at higher Council levels. The documents are available on the Delegates Portal, and the agenda is expected to be published shortly. No prior coverage of these specific files exists in the available record.
Stakeholder impact The proposals, if adopted, would affect several stakeholder groups. EU financial market participants, including investment firms, trading venues, and central counterparties, would face updated compliance requirements under the amended regulations and directives, potentially increasing operational costs but also benefiting from greater harmonisation across member states. National competent authorities would see changes in supervisory coordination and reporting obligations, with a possible shift towards more centralised oversight. EU consumers and investors could gain from improved market transparency and investor protection, though the impact may be moderate. The settlement finality reform would particularly affect payment and securities settlement systems, offering legal clarity for cross-border transactions but requiring adjustments to existing infrastructure.
Institutional follow-up Following the Working Party's discussion, the proposals will likely be forwarded to the Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper) and then to the Council for political agreement. The European Parliament will also need to adopt its position under the ordinary legislative procedure before the files can be finalised.