Euribor manipulation, EU aims to avoid recalculation for mortgages
The European Commission's observations to the Court of Justice
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Key points
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On 7 August, the European Commission submitted to the Court of Justice its observations on the questions referred for a preliminary ruling by the Cagliari Court of Appeal on the effects of the Euribor manipulation agreement established by decisions of the same Commission in 2013 and 2016.
We are talking about a very important issue for the banking system and financial companies, since it is a procedure that must clarify whether clauses in variable-rate loan contracts linked to the 'manipulated' index should be declared automatically null and void.
I points
.In particular, the Sardinian court had referred the matter to the Court of Justice of the European Union for clarification on a number of points: (i) whether the proof of manipulation of the Euribor by a pool of banks, as established by the Commission and the Court of Luxembourg itself, could also be deemed to have been reached by the national courts and (ii) whether the restriction of competition implemented by the cartel of international credit institutions constituted a prohibited cartel only in the derivatives market or in any market in which the parameter allegedly altered was used.
Well, the Commission (whose opinion is obviously of considerable weight for the subsequent and awaited decision of the Court of Justice) expressed its opinion arguing that: the evidence of Euribor manipulation must be considered proven within the limits of the 2013 and 2016 decisions; the evidence constitutes 'privileged evidence' also for national courts, within these limits; manipulation is proven only with regard to the interest rate derivatives market, and moreover not the 'direction' of the manipulation (i.e. whether the rate was altered upwards or downwards); there is no proof of manipulation for mortgages, and in any case the nullity of the cartel does not automatically affect 'downstream' contracts concluded between parties unconnected with the manipulative cartel. Finally, according to the committee, it will be the national court that will have to rule.
The commission, however, said that the nullity of contracts other than derivatives can be achieved by applying national law, an area in which the European Court cannot express an opinion.
