2026 Video Series European Insolvency Regulation

Video 8 (out of 8)
The Road to the 2027 Review: Achievements & Fault Lines – Summary
Presenters: Defne Taşman & Bob Wessels

After having discussed the European Insolvency Regulation, its purpose, and its provisions, in videos 1 – 7, this final video (8) reflects on what the European Insolvency Regulation has achieved and what may need attention in the 2027 review. 

Regarding the achievements, at least five can be identified. The Regulation introduced a structured system based on COMI, establishments, main proceedings and secondary proceedings; normalized automatic recognition; expanded beyond liquidation; turned communication and cooperation into binding duties; and improved transparency. 

The video then turns to areas where reform may be needed, looking at: the nature of the Regulation; the boundary between the Regulation and other EU instruments; the scope, in particular regarding the concept of “public collective proceedings”; the key concept of “COMI”; secondary proceedings against one debtor; the ambiguity of the situs with emerging modern assets like crypto-assets; cooperation duties; and group insolvencies.

Finally, the video places the Regulation in a broader EU context. Future reform should consider its interaction with Brussels Ibis, Rome I Regulation, GDPR, the Preventive Restructuring Directive, the proposed insolvency harmonisation directive (now adopted as EU Directive 2026/799), mediation and ADR, and possible discussions around a 28th regime for innovative European companies (Commission Proposal COM(2026) 321 final) . 

Overall, the European Insolvency Regulation has become a durable framework, but the 2027 review offers a chance to refine it for a more restructuring-oriented, digital and geopolitically uncertain European market.

*Update for viewers of our European Insolvency Regulation video series*

Two blogs are published as a companion piece to our eight-part video series on the European Insolvency Regulation (EIR 2015). Since the videos were recorded in late February 2026, important legislative developments have taken place in European insolvency law, including the adoption of Directive (EU) 2026/799 harmonising certain aspects of insolvency law and the European Commission’s proposal for a 28th corporate regime (“EU Inc.”). To ensure that viewers remain fully up to date with recent developments and with the future evolution of the European insolvency framework, these blogs provide a concise overview of these new instruments. These blogs should be read together with Video 8 of the Lecture Series (“The Road to the 2027 Review: Achievements & Fault Lines”), in which we discuss the future development of European insolvency law and possible reforms of the EIR 2015.

The blogs can be accessed via the links to the Prof. Em. Bob Wessels blog below

Further Reading

  • Bob Wessels and Defne Taşman, The European Insolvency Regulation: An Essential Guide (Edward Elgar Publishing forthcoming 2026) (Elgar Practical Guides)
  • Reinhard Bork and Kristin van Zwieten (eds.), Commentary on The European Insolvency Regulation, Oxford University Press, 2nd ed. (2022)
  • Insolvency Regulation 1346/2000: Council Regulation (EC) No 1346/2000 of 29 May 2000 on Insolvency Proceedings [2000] OJ L160/1
  • Insolvency Regulation 2015/848: Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on Insolvency Proceedings (Recast) [2015] OJ L141/19, consolidated version (6 November 2025)
  • Brussels I bis Regulation 1215/2012: Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (recast), [2012] OJ L 351/1, consolidated version (26 February 2015)
  • Rome I Regulation (EC) 593/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 on the law applicable to contractual obligations [2008] OJ L 177/6 consolidated version (24 November 2009) [2015] OJ L141/19
  • Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the 28th Regime Corporate Legal Framework (‘EU Inc.’) COM(2026) 321 final, 18 March 2026
  • Directive (EU) 2026/799 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 March 2026 harmonising certain aspects of insolvency law [2026] OJ L 2026/799
  • Case C-394/22 Oilchart International NV v O.W. Bunker (Netherlands) BV, ING Bank NV (ECLI:EU:C:2024:952)
  • 2026-06-doc4 The New EU Insolvency Harmonisation Directive: A Bird’s-Eye View https://bobwessels.nl/blog/2026-06-doc4-the-new-eu-insolvency-harmonisation-directive-a-birds-eye-view/ 
  • 2026-06-doc3 EU Inc. and Insolvency Law: A First Look at the Proposed 28th Regime – https://bobwessels.nl/blog/2026-06-doc3-eu-inc-and-insolvency-law-a-first-look-at-the-proposed-28th-regime/