EU plans bank ‘resolution’ fund

THE first step towards setting up a Europe-wide multi -billion euro fund to rescue or liquidate failing banks was taken by EU finance ministers as part of a major crisis-management package.

But whether the Irish Government could retrospectively recoup some of the billions used to bail out Irish banks from such a fund is unclear.

Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier put forward the ideas for the so-called Resolution Fund to the ministers, who were meeting informally in Madrid and discussed them briefly.