8.10.2 Open to subsidiaries of foreign banks

Banks often operate across national borders (through subsidiaries or branches). In principle, subsidiaries and branches of foreign banks should be eligible for a support scheme. This was clearly established by the 2008 Banking Communication. Point 18 of the 2008 Banking Communication requires that the eligibility criteria for a guarantee scheme should be objective and non-discriminatory. Point 18 further specifies that “in application of the principle of non- discrimination on the grounds of nationality, all institutions incorporated in the Member State concerned, including subsidiaries, and with significant activities in that Member State should be covered by the scheme.” Although this requirement was specified in the context of guarantee schemes, it also applies to recapitalisation schemes and other types of bank support schemes, pursuant to point 35 and 44 of the 2008 Banking Communication.

The analysis of the bank State aid decisions reveals that all schemes comply with this requirement. There is no scheme that excludes subsidiaries of foreign banks.1 This can be explained by the fact that the scheme should be open for subsidiaries of foreign banks, is a clear requirement to which Member States have to comply. If a Member State would have proposed a scheme that excluded subsidiaries of foreign banks, then the scheme would most probably not be approved by the Commission.