Order of the General Court (Tenth Chamber, Extended Composition) of 11 March 2025

1. Plea of illegalityScopeMeasures the illegality of which may be pleadedGeneral measure providing the basis of the contested decisionNeed for a legal connection between the contested measure and the contested general measure

(Arts 263 and 277 TFEU)

(see paragraphs 39-41)

2. Economic and monetary policyEconomic policyRecovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firmsPromotional bankCalculation of the ex ante contributions to Single Resolution Fund (SRF) –Exclusion of liabilities related to promotional loans from that calculationScopeLiability related to an ancillary promotional activity carried on in a competitive, for-profit environmentPrecluded

(Commission Regulation 2015/63, recital 13 and Arts 3, point 28, and 5(1)(f))

(see paragraphs 56, 61, 69-74)

3. EU institutionsExercise of powersPower conferred on the Commission to adopt delegated actsScopeComplex assessments and evaluationsBroad discretionDetermination of the methodology for calculating the ex ante contributions to the Single Resolution Fund (SRF)Establishment of the criteria for adjusting those contributionsJudicial reviewLimits

(Art. 290 TFEU, European Parliament and Council Directive No 806/2014 recital 41; European Parliament and Council Directive 2014/59, Art. 103(7))

(see paragraphs 98, 99, 113)

4. Judicial proceedingsApplication initiating proceedingsFormal requirementsClear and precise statement of the pleas relied onSimilar requirements for submissions made in support of a pleaImprecise formulation of a claimInadmissibility

(Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 76(d))

(see paragraphs 138-140)

5. Acts of the institutionsTemporal applicationNon-retroactivityExceptionsConditionsAccomplishment of an objective in the general interest and respect for legitimate expectationsWithdrawal of a decision of the Single Resolution Board (SRB) setting ex ante contributions to the Single Resolution Fund (SRF) in order to rectify a failure to state reasonsAdoption of a decision entering into force on the date that the earlier decision takes effectNo amendments to the amount and the calculation of those contributionsAccount taken of the purpose of contributions to the SRFWhether permissible

(Art. 296 second para., TFEU; European Parliament and Council Directive No 806/2014; Commission Regulation 2015/63, Arts 4 to 7, 9 and Annex I; European Parliament and Council Directive 2014/59)

(see paragraphs 179-182)

6. Acts of the institutionsStatement of reasonsObligationScopeDecision of the Single Resolution Board (SRB) establishing the ex ante contributions to the Single Resolution Fund (SRF)Not necessary to include, in that decision, all figures necessary for verifying the accuracy of the calculation of the contributionsWeighing the obligation to state reasons against the general principle of protection of the business secrets of the institutions concernedLegality of the provisions concerning the methodology for calculating the ex ante contributions to the SRFPrinciple of non-disclosure of business secretsObligation for the SRB to publish or disclose to the institutions concerned, in collective and anonymised form, the information relating to the institutions that was used to calculate the ex ante contribution

(Art. 296 second para., TFEU; European Parliament and Council Regulation No 806/2014; Commission Regulation 2015/63, Arts 4 to 7, 9 and Annex I; European Parliament and Council Directive 2014/59)

(see paragraphs 192-199, 226)

7. Acts of the institutionsStatement of reasonsObligationScopeDecision of the Single Resolution Board (SRB) establishing the ex ante contributions to the Single Resolution Fund (SRF)Obligation for the SRB to disclose to the institutions concerned the methodology for calculating those contributions and the methodology for setting the amount of the annual target level

(European Parliament and Council Directive No 806/2014, Arts 69(1) and (2), and 70(2); Council Regulation 2015/81, Art. 4; Commission Regulation 2015/63, Art. 4(2); European Parliament and Council Directive 2014/59)

(see paragraph 253)

Operative part

1. The action is dismissed.

2. NRW.Bank is ordered to bear its own costs and to pay those of the Single Resolution Board.

3. The European Commission is ordered to bear its own costs.