1.Without prejudice to Article 141, Member States shall ensure that supervisory authorities have the power to take measures to preserve the financial position of individual insurance or reinsurance undertakings during periods of exceptional sector-wide shocks that have the potential to threaten the financial position of the undertaking concerned or the stability of the financial system.
2.During periods of exceptional sector-wide shocks, supervisory authorities shall have the power to require undertakings with a particularly vulnerable risk profile to take at least the following measures:
restrict or suspend dividend distributions to shareholders and other subordinated creditors;
restrict or suspend other payments to shareholders and other subordinated creditors;
restrict or suspend share buy-backs and repayment or redemption of own fund items;
restrict or suspend bonuses or other variable remuneration.
Member States shall ensure that the relevant national bodies and authorities with a macroprudential mandate are duly informed of the national supervisory authority’s intention to make use of the powers provided for in this Article, and are appropriately involved in the assessment of exceptional sector-wide shocks in accordance with this paragraph.
3.When exercising the power referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, supervisory authorities shall duly take into account the proportionality criteria referred to in Article 29(3), and the existence of approved risk tolerance limits by the undertaking and thresholds in its risk management system.
4.When exercising the power referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, supervisory authorities shall take into account the evidence resulting from the supervisory review process and a forward-looking assessment of the solvency and financial position of the undertakings concerned, in line with the assessment referred to in Article 45(1), second subparagraph, points (a) and (b).
5.The application of the measures referred to in paragraph 2 shall last for as long as the reasons that justify the measures are present. Those measures shall be reviewed at least every three months and shall be removed as soon as the reasons that justified the measures have ceased to exist.
6.For the purposes of this Article, significant intra-group transactions referred to in Article 245(2), including intra-group dividend distributions, shall only be suspended or restricted where they are a threat to the solvency or liquidity position of the group or of at least one of the undertakings within the group. The supervisory authorities of the related undertakings shall consult the group supervisor before suspending or restricting transactions with the rest of the group.
7.In order to ensure consistent application of this Article, EIOPA shall, after consulting the ESRB, develop draft regulatory technical standards to specify the criteria for the identification of exceptional sector-wide shocks. EIOPA shall submit those draft regulatory technical standards to the Commission by 29 January 2026.
Power is conferred on the Commission to supplement this Directive by adopting the regulatory technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph in accordance with Article 10 to 14 of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010.