European Covered Bond Council

Logo of the European Covered Bond Council

The European Covered Bond Council (ECBC) is the platform that brings together covered bond market participants including issuers, analysts, investment bankers, rating agencies and a wide range of interested stakeholders.

History


The ECBC was established by the European Mortgage Federation (EMF) in 2004 to represent and promote the interests of covered bond market participants at the international level. The ECBC's main objective is to be the point of reference for matters regarding the covered bond industry and operate as a think-tank, as well as a lobbying and networking platform for covered bond market participants.


As of January 2016, the ECBC has over 100 members across 25 active covered bond jurisdictions. ECBC members represent over 95% of covered bonds outstanding, which were worth over €2.5 trillion at the end of 2014.

Structure


The ECBC Plenary meeting is a bi-annual discussion forum where all ECBC members gather around the table to discuss topical industry issues and to establish strong network links.


The Steering Committee, headed by the ECBC Chairman, and composed of representatives from the major covered bond issuing jurisdictions and industry experts, is responsible for the day-to-day activities of the ECBC. The Steering Committee convenes once every quarter and addresses strategy related questions and coordinates the agendas of the various ECBC working groups (see below).


The Secretariat of the ECBC is based in Brussels, Belgium. It coordinates the various ECBC bodies on a day-to-day basis.

Working Groups








Membership of the ECBC continues to grow and its agenda for the coming year is already filled with numerous activities. The ECBC’s objective now is to press ahead in its work with a view to further strengthening its role in facilitating the communication among the different covered bonds stakeholders, working as a catalyst in defining the common features that characterise the asset class and in facilitating improvements in market practices, transparency and liquidity.

Covered Bond Label Foundation


The Covered Bond Label Foundation (CBLF) grants quality labels and is a response to a market-wide request for improved standards and increased transparency in the European covered bond market. The Label was established by the European Covered Bond Council (ECBC) in 2012 and developed by the European issuer community, working in close cooperation with investors and regulators, as well as in consultation with all major stakeholders.


The Covered Bond Label is intended to result in multiple benefits with an enhancement of the overall recognition of and trust in the asset class. The Label facilitates access to relevant and comprehensive information for investors, regulators and other market participants, and demonstrates the determination of the covered bond community to tackle the challenges arising from the crisis. It also underlines the Industry’s active engagement in the maintenance of the high quality of the collateral assets, the improvement of transparency, and eventually, the promotion of liquidity and the strengthening of secondary market activity.


The Covered Bond Label opened for registrations in mid-2012. Following on from an initial test phase run in 2012, the website became fully operational on the 1st of January 2013, with the first Labels being effective since then. As of January 2016, the Covered Bond Label website features 14 National Transparency Templates, 76 issuer Profiles and information on 88 labelled cover pools. The Covered Bond Label website currently provides issuance data on 4,271 covered bonds, amounting to a total face value of over 1.66 trillion EUR, out of which 2,059 covered bonds already include information on the Liquidity Coverage Requirement (LCR).

For more information, please visit the Covered Bond Label website: www.coveredbondlabel.com.

External links

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