The research in the banking & finance team will focus on a number of topics that all have a close connection to the global debt- and banking crisis that still has not been resolved. The responsiveness of private law to the new reality25 created by this crisis is an important question. Developments include: - the continuing economic crisis which leads to further efforts from the European legislator in relation to banks and other financial institutions. The European legislature is slowly moving towards a banking union which, among other things means that national legal systems continue to be confronted with new legislation. - continued efforts to modernize Dutch insolvency law as a tool for efficient restructuring of companies in financial difficulties. In times of economic downturn questions of the ability of insolvency legislation to restructure companies in financial difficulties often arise. This economic crisis is no exception. The main question is whether Dutch private law will be able to be sufficiently responsive in light of these external developments. At the end of this research period, this question will be answered for a number of key areas of property and insolvency law with a special emphasis on the ability of private law to respond to regulatory developments where regulation (public law) slowly seems to invade the field of private law.