Madrid, 16 December 2025 — Spain’s competition authority, the National Commission on Markets and Competition (CNMC), has called for greater legal clarity and regulatory safeguards in a draft royal decree aimed at promoting ethical finance and social-economy financial institutions.
In an opinion issued at the request of the Ministry of Labour and Social Economy, the CNMC warns that several of the planned support measures — including public subsidies and visibility campaigns — could qualify as state aid under EU law and must therefore comply with European rules.
The proposed regulation seeks to create a framework to foster financial entities and financing operations aligned with environmental and social objectives. While recognising these goals, the CNMC stresses that vague definitions and insufficiently justified requirements could lead to legal uncertainty or unjustified restrictions on access to public support.
To address these risks, the authority recommends clearly defining what constitutes an ethical finance entity, introducing verifiable indicators and accreditation procedures, and justifying thresholds related to territorial presence and expected social impact. It also urges lawmakers to explicitly acknowledge the potential state-aid nature of subsidies and to apply objective criteria when assessing the social and environmental benefits of supported projects.
The CNMC’s intervention forms part of its broader mandate to promote effective competition and sound regulation, either on its own initiative or at the request of public authorities, legislative bodies, and stakeholder organisations.
Source: https://www.cnmc.es/prensa/subvenciones-finanzas-eticas-20251216?back=news
