KBC Bank has joined the panel of banks that help set Euribor, a widely used interest rate benchmark in Europe.
Euribor — short for the Euro Interbank Offered Rate — is a set of benchmark interest rates intended to reflect the cost of unsecured borrowing between banks in the euro area.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and Belgium’s Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) said they welcomed KBC Bank’s addition to the Euribor panel in a joint statement released on Thursday.
“The addition of KBC Bank to the Euribor panel reflects the interest of financial institutions active in the money market to contribute to the calculation of Euribor, as well as continued market confidence in this key benchmark,” ESMA chair Verena Ross said.
“We welcome the addition of KBC Bank to the Euribor panel, which further strengthens the robustness and representativeness of this critical benchmark,” FSMA chairman Jean-Paul Servais stated.
How Euribor is supervised
ESMA is responsible for supervising EMMI as the administrator of Euribor under the EU Benchmarks Regulation, according to ESMA and the FSMA.
National regulators supervise the banks that contribute data to Euribor, and the FSMA will oversee KBC Bank’s participation when it contributes to Euribor’s calculation.
ESMA and national regulators work together on Euribor-related matters through the Euribor College of Supervisors, where ESMA acts as chair and national authorities are members.
