Integrity and irreproachable professional conduct are crucial for ensuring that the Authority operates in a high ethical environment to protect the independence, transparency and objectivity of its decision-making functions and the tasks granted to it by Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010.
The Agency has in place ethics guidelines that set out the rules of behaviour and conduct of its staff and other persons that provide services to it. The guidelines govern a variety of areas and provide the ethical framework expected of an Agency of the EU. They include principles of professional ethics of staff, behaviour at work and relations with the public. Equally, the guidelines set out rules on how to deal with interests and more in particular with those of a financial nature, in view of the role that the EBA plays in the regulation and supervision of financial institutions in the EU.
Other rules include gifts and offers of hospitality, outside activities and occupational activities after leaving the EBA, freedom of expression, etc.
To deal with conflicts of interest, the EBA has adopted a policy on conflicts of interests for staff which provides the specific framework that staff and other persons providing services to the EBA need to observe. The policy requires staff to submit annually a declaration of interests. The appointing Authority shall adopt preventive measures to ensure that the EBA continues operating under the highest standards of integrity to guarantee its independence and transparency.
The policy identifies different types of interests that should be reported to and assessed by the EBA. These range from economic interests, memberships, activities with other employers, consultancy activities, intellectual property rights, interests of close family members and any other activities or situations which might create an actual or potential conflict of interest. Wherever a conflict of interest is identified, appropriate measures must be taken to either remove it or mitigate it.
A conflict of interest is defined as a conflict between the public duty of the EBA and private interests of an individual, in which an individual has private-capacity interests that could improperly influence the performance of his/her official duties and responsibilities.
| EBA Top Management and Directors | Declaration of Interests | Restrictions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EBA Chairperson | Jose Manuel Campa | Jose Manuel Campa | |
|
EBA Alternate Chairperson |
Jo Swyngedouw | ||
| EBA Executive Director | François-Louis Michaud | ||
| EBA Director of Prudential Regulation and Supervisory Policy | Isabelle Vaillant | ||
| EBA Director of Innovation, Conduct and Consumers | Marilin Pikaro | ||
| EBA Director of Data Analytics, Reporting and Transparency | Meri Rimmanen | ||
| EBA Director of Economic and Risk Analysis | Jacob Gyntelberg | Jacob Gyntelberg | |
| EBA Director of Operations | Peter Mihalik | ||
The EBA, as part of the EU’s public administration, is committed to the values of service, independence, responsibility, accountability, efficiency, and transparency. These values are reflected in its Code of Good Administrative Behaviour of 2011.
The Code informs the public of the standards of conduct to expect when dealing with the EBA, and it sets out the principles that guide the administrative conduct of the EBA, in particular:
Lawfulness;
Non-discrimination and equal treatment;
Proportionality (measures taken should be proportional to the aim pursued);
Consistency.
Under Article 66 of the EBA founding Regulation, the Authority has the mandate to implement anti-fraud measures in all the activities that it carries out.
The Authority adopted its first anti-fraud strategy in 2015. The new strategy adopted by the Management Board in January 2020 is available here.
The strategy foresees four main objectives:
I) Prevent,
II) Detect and Investigate,
III) Recover, Mitigate and Respond, and
IV) Exploit.
Under past and current anti-fraud strategies, the Authority has been performing fraud risk assessments as one of its main activities. This has permitted the Authority to scan all its activities to identify fraud risks and assess controls in place, and score those risks to understand whether there are any significant or material fraud risks that need to be addressed with suitable and effective strategies. Fraud risk assessments are an ongoing activity that involves a large number of staff and are also an opportunity to review controls and raise awareness of the legal and ethical obligation to fight fraud in the Authority.
The Authority cooperates with and relies on the investigative powers of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) to carry out investigations of fraud, irregularities and misconduct of staff. The EBA staff are encouraged to report instances of fraud, irregularities and misconduct and are protected under specific whistleblowing arrangements. Serious suspicions of fraud, irregularities and misconduct can also be reported directly to OLAF.