Overall, our existing rules for banking regulation are not too onerous. But they can be fragmented, complicated and sometimes contradictory. This is what we are addressing with the High-Level Task Force proposals, said Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel upon publication of the report by the European Central Bank’s High-Level Task Force on Simplification. The report contains 17 recommendations on how to simplify the Eurosystem’s regulatory and supervisory framework.

Cash or girocard payments remain the least expensive types of payment for retailers. According to the latest Bundesbank study The cost of payment methods in the retail sector, the average cost per cash payment amounts to only €0.43. In terms of the ratio of cost to turnover, the girocard is the most cost-effective method, at an average cost of 1 % of turnover.

“Further reform of the debt brake is right and necessary. In its current form, it cannot safeguard sound government finances or the EU rules,” said Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel in an interview with “Der Spiegel”. Topics covered included the Bundesbank’s current proposal for a reform of the debt brake, the digital euro and Germany’s economic growth.

The Bundesbank considers it important to further reform the debt brake and has presented a “three-stage approach” as a contribution to the debate. This contribution builds upon the Bundesbank’s reform proposals from early 2025 and takes into account the new underlying situation brought about by the reform of the fiscal rules in March 2025.