The European banking union will transfer domestic banking supervision responsibilities of euro area member states to the European Central Bank (ECB). It will also install a single resolution mechanism (SRM) in a crisis scenario. This is a contentious topic among some EU members, but it is due to become fully operational in January 2016, when the SRM is expected to be implemented, though the ECB will assume its single supervisory mechanism responsibilities much earlier, taking control from November this year.
Romania, which is not yet a member of the eurozone, would not automatically be included in the banking union, but has voiced an interest in joining.