Publication of EBF's position paper on Digital Omnibus Regulation: GDPR

Publication of EBF's position paper on Digital Omnibus Regulation: GDPR 

Brussels, 15 September 2026 – The European Banking Federation welcomes the Commission’s efforts to modernise, simplify and strengthen the EU digital regulatory framework, particularly in areas such as data.

On the Data Act, the EBF supports the proposal to bring together the main concepts and principles for non-personal data sharing under a single regulation. This can improve harmonisation at EU level and make data-sharing requirements easier to understand and apply. At the same time, the EBF stresses that access to company data should be based on fair, market-based compensation, taking into account the investments made by data holders. The protection of intellectual property, trade secrets and strategically sensitive data should also be preserved. In addition, exemptions from data-sharing obligations should not be based only on company size but should also consider factors such as the volume and sensitivity of data processed.

On the GDPR, the EBF welcomes the Commission’s objective to reduce administrative burden and better align data protection rules with the EU’s digital agenda. In particular, the EBF supports targeted improvements on abusive or excessive data access requests, personal data breach notifications, automated decision-making, scientific research, biometric verification and the use of special categories of data in the context of AI. These changes can help make the GDPR more workable in practice, while maintaining strong safeguards for individuals.

The EBF also calls for caution where proposed changes raise complex legal and technical questions. The debate around the definition of personal data and re-identification, specially, should not be addressed through a fast-track simplification process, as it touches on the core scope of the GDPR.

Read the full position

For more information:

Alexandra Maniati, Senior Director- Innovation & Cybersecurity - a.maniati@ebf.eu

Rachele Ceraulo, Policy Adviser - Data & Innovation - r.ceraulo@ebf.eu

About the EBF:
The European Banking Federation is the voice of the European banking sector, bringing together national banking associations from across Europe. The federation is committed to a thriving European economy that is underpinned by a stable, secure, and inclusive financial ecosystem, and to a flourishing society where financing is available to fund the dreams of citizens, businesses and innovators everywhere.