[Authored by: Emily Yung]
On October 1, 2015, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published its first report analyzing asset encumbrance in EU banks.
The aim of the report is to monitor the extent of and the changes in the levels of asset encumbrance at an EU level and the sources for asset encumbrance. The report is based on data reported in December 2014 and March 2015 in accordance with the implementing technical standards on asset encumbrance reporting contained in European Commission Implementing Regulation 2015/79.
The EBA found there was no indication of a general increase in the level of asset encumbrance across EU banks in recent years, based on a comparison with a similar analysis performed by the European Systemic Risk Board in 2011. In March 2015, the overall weighted average encumbrance ratio was 27%, with a wide dispersion across institutions and countries.
