Banking resolution in Europe
Banking resolution is the set of legal powers that lets an authority manage the failure of a bank without ordinary insolvency, keeping its critical functions running while losses fall on shareholders and creditors instead of taxpayers. This site documents the law, the authorities, the loss-absorbing debt and the cases where the framework has actually been used — a glossary, entity profiles and an MREL-eligible issuance database compiled from ESMA FIRDS, GLEIF and official publications, with every figure carrying its source.
What is on this site
Nine sections, two kinds of content: data compiled by automated pipelines from official registers, and editorial explanations reviewed by hand before publication. Nothing here is investment advice.
How a bank failure is handled
Resolution replaces a disorderly insolvency with a sequence of legal decisions. Four steps, each a defined term.
- 01Failing or likely to failThe supervisor judges that a bank cannot survive without intervention.
- 02Public interest assessmentThe resolution authority decides whether resolution beats ordinary insolvency.
- 03Resolution toolsBail-in, sale of business, bridge bank or asset separation — chosen and executed.
- 04Bail-in waterfallLosses fall on shareholders, then creditors, in a fixed statutory order.
Legal basis: Directive 2014/59/EU (BRRD) and Regulation 806/2014 (SRMR). Read the texts.
Latest issuances
All instruments| First trade | Issuer | Seniority | Coupon | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-24 | Bankinter | COV | Not disclosed | EUR 1,000m |
| 2026-07-24 | Crédit Agricole | SP | 1.375% | EUR 1,500m |
| 2026-07-24 | Banco Santander | SP | 2.95% | SGD 250m |
| 2026-07-24 | ING Group | SP | 4.875% | EUR 1,250m |
| 2026-07-24 | DZ Bank | SP | 3.81% | EUR 50m |
| 2026-07-24 | Helaba | SP | 2.95% | EUR 100m |
| 2026-07-24 | Helaba | SP | 3.2% | EUR 100m |
Regulatory updates
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The vocabulary, by theme
Full glossaryThe framework, applied
All casesCommon questions
What is banking resolution?
Banking resolution is the set of legal powers that lets an authority manage the failure of a bank without ordinary insolvency: keeping critical functions running while losses fall on shareholders and creditors instead of taxpayers. In the EU it is governed by the BRRD and, in the banking union, the SRMR.
Read moreWhat is MREL, and why does it matter to bondholders?
MREL is the minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities: the stock of capital and bail-inable debt every EU bank must hold so that a resolution can be financed by investors. It determines which of a bank's bonds are expected to absorb losses first.
Read moreIn what order are a bank's creditors bailed in?
Equity absorbs losses first, then Additional Tier 1, Tier 2, senior non-preferred and finally senior preferred debt. Covered bonds, secured liabilities and deposits under EUR 100,000 are excluded from bail-in.
Read moreWhat is the Liability Data Report, and does it still exist?
The Liability Data Report is the annual return through which banks in the banking union report the composition of their liabilities to the resolution authority. As a template it is gone: since the reference date of 31 December 2025 the same data is collected through the RESOL 1 templates of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2303, and the name survives as industry shorthand.
Read moreWhere does the data on this site come from?
Instrument data is built from ESMA FIRDS reference data, entity data from GLEIF and the ECB list of significant institutions, and disclosed ratios from the EBA transparency exercise. Every figure renders its source and the date it was last updated.
Read moreData is compiled by deterministic pipelines from ESMA FIRDS, GLEIF, the ECB, the SRB and the EBA — never generated. Editorial content is drafted against the legal texts and reviewed before publication.