Capital Markets Union

Capital Markets Union (CMU)

The Capital Markets Union (CMU) will create deeper and more integrated capital markets across the EU by reducing fragmentation in financial markets, diversifying financing sources, strengthening cross border capital flows and improving access to finance for businesses.

The European Commission published its first CMU Action Plan in 2015, setting out a list of over 30 actions and related measures to establish the building blocks of a single market for capital. While progress has been made, the Commission published a new CMU Action Plan in 2020, highlighting 16 legislative and non-legislative actions still needed to effectively deliver on the promise of the CMU.

On 25 November 2021, the Commission published its CMU legislative package that includes legislative amendments to the AIFMD, UCITS Directive, ELTIF Regulation, MiFIR, as well as proposals to create a European Single Access Point for company financial and sustainability-related data.The CMU project is subject to ongoing monitoring review. Further information can be found on the European Commission’s website.

Our View on CMU

Irish Funds is fully committed to achieving the ambition of the CMU project and, on behalf of our members, actively contributes to policy debate by engaging with EU and Member State officials and through responses to public consultations.

We believe that the CMU represents an opportunity to create more investment choices for savers and investors and greater opportunities for diversification, all of which will act to increase the size and depth of capital markets. Irish Funds supports EU legislative and regulatory approaches that will promote the growth of investment fund products that are firmly aligned with CMU objectives and promote the development of a significantly larger retail investor base across the EU.

Our key areas of focus include:

  • removal of remaining barriers to cross-border fund distribution within the EU.

  • ability of EU investors to access the best expertise and investment opportunities at the most cost-effective price across the EU and at a global level.

  • harmonisation of regulatory reporting and elimination of duplicative reporting requirements.

  • development of an appropriate EU framework for loan origination and addressing barriers to lending for non-bank entities.

  • encouraging the take-up of European Long-term Investment Funds (ELTIFs).

  • ensuring alignment with CMU across all EU policy initiatives.

We engage on behalf of our members in this critical policy debate, as well as important legislative and regulatory developments related to the CMU project.