Housing & Financial Services Briefing
Ireland's Presidency is expected to be particularly relevant to clients operating in housing, financial services, capital markets and lending. These areas sit at the intersection of the EU's competitiveness agenda, the need to mobilise investment and the policy objective of making regulation more proportionate and effective.
On housing, the Presidency is expected to progress initiatives under the European Affordable Housing Plan through the Competitiveness Council. The proposed Affordable Housing Act is intended to support public authorities in identifying areas of housing stress and taking measures to protect affordability, including in relation to short-term rentals. The programme also recognises that addressing housing stress requires measures to increase supply, including new build, better use of vacant properties, social housing and simplified planning and permitting.
The proposed Construction Services Act is expected to modernise the regulatory framework for construction and installation services, improve productivity and make it easier to provide services across borders, particularly for SMEs operating in border regions. These initiatives sit alongside the broader simplification agenda and the Presidency's focus on supporting affordable housing and critical infrastructure.
The Presidency is also expected to progress a Council recommendation on fighting housing exclusion, with a focus on the ability of individuals to access and maintain decent, stable housing across the EU, particularly those most affected by homelessness and precarious housing conditions.
On financial services and capital markets, the Savings and Investments Union is expected to be a key ECOFIN priority. A deeper and more liquid EU capital market is intended to improve the functioning of the real economy by offering more attractive opportunities for businesses and investors and strengthening Europe's capacity to finance innovation.
In legislative and policy terms, the Presidency is expected to seek progress on the Market Integration and Supervision Package, take forward trilogue negotiations on the Securitisation Framework, and facilitate discussion of the European Commission's report on the competitiveness of the EU banking sector. The securitisation file will be relevant to market participants because a revitalised EU securitisation market is intended to act as a bridge between bank lending and capital markets, freeing up bank lending capacity and creating investment opportunities for capital market investors.
The Presidency is also expected to engage in trilogue negotiations on the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation and progress negotiations on the Supplementary Pensions Package. Together, these files form part of the wider EU focus on deepening capital markets, improving rules for investment in the green transition and strengthening participation by EU savers and pension funds.
For lenders, investors, asset managers, developers and regulated firms, the second half of 2026 may therefore be a significant period for monitoring legislative progress, assessing implementation risk and engaging with policy developments that could affect transaction structures, disclosure obligations, regulatory strategy and access to capital.