Close-out Netting für Finanzunternehmen

The privilege of Close-out Netting for Financial Institutions is the most economically important of all the privileges contained under the umbrella of Insolvency Law, yet it hasn’t received the attention it deserves from German insolvency lawyers. The first relevant ruling by the Federal Court of Justice (together with the rather unheard-of, same-day reactions by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority and Federal ministries) has initiated a much-needed discussion, and this work, by examining the development of this privilege in various jurisdictions, its role during the financial crisis, and lawmakers’ reactions on the different levels in its aftermath, strives to continue and broaden that conversation.
The author takes on the role of pioneer as he explores the interdependencies between Insolvency Law and Competition Law, and even more particularly Cartel Law. In such an examination, where better to start than with a statutory privilege?