Official Journal of the European Union

EN

C series

—

C/2025/4616

(Case T-396/25)

(C/2025/4616)

Language of the case: English

Parties

Applicant: BAWAG PSK Bank für Arbeit und Wirtschaft und Österreichische Postsparkasse AG (Vienna, Austria) (represented by: D. Bliesener, K. Limberger and G. Tönningsen, lawyers)

Defendant: European Central Bank

Form of order sought

The applicant claims that the Court should:

—annul under Article 263 TFEU ECB’s decision dated 9 April 2025 (ECB-SSM-2025-ATBAW-6, ESA-2018-0000126 / ESA-2024-0006258) imposing absorption interest related to excess over the large exposure limits towards ‘FCT Pearl’ between December 2016 and September 2017; and,

—order ECB to pay the costs of the proceedings.

Pleas in law and main arguments

In support of the action, the applicant relies on four pleas in law.

1.First plea in law, alleging that the applicant did not breach the large exposure limit provided in Article 395(1) (EU) No 575/2013 (1).

2.Second plea in law, alleging the disproportionality of the defendant’s decision.

3.Third plea in law, alleging that the defendant incorrectly calculated the amount of absorption interest under Section 97(1) point 2 Bankwesengesetz (2) as provided by the case law of Austrian courts.

4.Fourth plea in law, alleging an infringement of the right to access to the file.

The defendant’s decision infringes the applicant’s right of access to the defendant’s files in the supervisory procedure related to the defendant’s decision, as provided in Article 22(2) subparagraph 1 sentence 2 of SSM Regulation (3) and Article 32(1) sentence 2 of SSM Framework Regulation (4). The defendant failed to grant the applicant full access to the files and withheld the defendant’s referral report underpinning the defendant’s decision.

(1) Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 (OJ 2013 L 176, p. 1, and corrigenda OJ 2013 L 208, p. 68, and OJ 2013 L 321, p. 6)

(2) Bundesgesetz über das Bankwesen (Bankwesengesetz) (Law on the banking sector) of 30 July 1993 (BGBl. 532/1993), as amended by the Bundesgesetz, mit dem das Bankwesengesetz, das Börsegesetz 2018, das Finalitätsgesetz, das Finanzmarkt-Geldwäsche-Gesetz, das Sanierungs- und Abwicklungsgesetz, das Wertpapieraufsichtsgesetz 2018 und das Zentrale Gegenparteien-Vollzugsgesetz geändert werden (Federal Law amending the Law on banking activities, the Law on stock exchanges 2018, the Law on settlement finality, the Law on money laundering on financial markets, the Law on recovery and resolution, the Law on the securities supervision 2018 and the Law on the enforcement of central counterparties) of 28 May 2021 (BGBl. I, 98/2021)

(3) Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013 of 15 October 2013 conferring specific tasks on the ECB concerning policies relating to the prudential supervision of credit institutions (OJ 2013 L 287, p. 63)

(4) Regulation (EU) No 468/2014 of the ECB of 16 April 2014 establishing the framework for cooperation within the Single Supervisory Mechanism between the ECB and national competent authorities and with national designated authorities (OJ 2014 L 141, p. 1)

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/4616/oj

ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)

—