Europe
Luxembourg's 2026 EU Presidency Will Foreground Capital Markets Union
Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel set out the six-month programme in Brussels, naming defence-financing and a long-overdue securitisation revival as flagship files.
Luxembourg's six-month Council presidency, which begins on 1 July 2026, will be organised around a relaunched Capital Markets Union — a file the Grand Duchy has championed for more than a decade — Foreign and European Affairs Minister Xavier Bettel told an audience at the Egmont Palace on Tuesday.
Three priority workstreams will run in parallel: a securitisation-rulebook overhaul intended to revive issuance volumes that collapsed after 2008; a "defence financing facility" anchored at the European Investment Bank, also Luxembourg-headquartered; and a single supervisory rulebook for non-bank financial intermediation. The presidency programme also formally backs faster accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia.
Frequently asked
- When does Luxembourg hold the EU Council presidency in 2026?
- Luxembourg holds the rotating Council of the European Union presidency for six months, from 1 July 2026 to 31 December 2026.
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