May 2026 Data (June Edition)

Section A: The Themes Hidden in May's Lobbying Data

Surge in Insurance Sector Lobbying Reflects IRRD Scrutiny

Lobbying activity among insurance organizations spiked in May 2026 as the sector, including Zurich Insurance Company Ltd and the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers in discussions with Comm Dombrovskis and Comm Albuquerque, sought to influence the implementation of the new EU Insurance Recovery and Resolution Directive (IRRD). This uptick aligns with industry concerns about the potential burden of recovery planning requirements and an ongoing push for more proportionate, phased-in regulation to avoid harming competitiveness, a theme emphasized by Unipol Assicurazioni S.p.A. Calls for simplification found support in newly released guidelines, which incorporate targeted feedback from insurers such as Svensk Forsakring.

📎 EIOPA publishes the first batch of guidelines and draft technical standards related to the IRRD · EU insurance rescue rules meant to boost certainty. But industry fears competitiveness hit

Intensified Focus on EU Savings and Investments Union

A notable concentration of lobbying efforts centered around the EU’s Savings and Investments Union (SIU) initiative, as talks advanced on measures to unlock long-term capital and deepen market integration, with organisations such as Cassa Depositi e Prestiti s.p.a., Invest Europe, and Deutsches Aktieninstitut engaging with officials including Direct. Gen. Financial Services and Comm Albuquerque (Financial Services). Industry groups and national finance ministers alike publicly advocated for an ambitious SIU, pressing for legislative changes that would boost investment capacity for insurers—particularly in infrastructure, a focus also reflected in inputs from the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers. This increased advocacy coincides with a rise in meetings involving trusts & funds and reinsurance entities during May.

📎 Savings and investments union - Finance - European Commission · E6 insurance markets call for decisive action in support of a resilient and future-oriented EU economy

Cyber and Digital Resilience: Push for Streamlined Regulation

Insurance Europe and sector peers, including Zurich Insurance Company Ltd and Bundesverband deutscher Banken e.V., escalated their advocacy in May 2026 for clearer, more harmonized digital and cyber regulations, amid a period of heightened rulemaking and enforcement across the EU. As implementation of the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) intensified, industry groups—supported by direct engagement with Direct. Gen. Financial Services and Direct. Gen. Tech Sovereignty—stressed the risk of duplicative or overly complex compliance obligations, calling for simplified and sector-tailored cybersecurity frameworks. This drive for regulatory coherence closely matches a spike in meetings addressing digital and cyber legislative issues, such as those with EVP Virkkunen (Digital Services).

📎 Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) - European Insurance and ... · Insurance Europe calls for simplification of EU cybersecurity regulation · EU cybersecurity regulatory update for 2026 and beyond

Section B: Lobbying Activity by Industry

This section compares, by industry, the lobbying activity with the European Commission last month to its historical average.

Industry Lobbying Activity, May 2026

In May 2026, 8 industries from this sector were active in lobbying meetings with the European Commission, led by Monetary Intermediation.

Industries running notably above their historical average this month include Insurance, Trusts & Funds Activities, and Reinsurance.

On the quieter side, Financial Services Auxiliaries, Fund Management, Monetary Intermediation, Other Financial Services, and Holding Companies and Financing saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section C: Lobbying by Industry for the Past Year

To contextualize Section B, this chart shows the residual trajectory of the same top industries from Section B over the past 12 months — the deviation from what would be expected after accounting for seasonal patterns and the overall trend. Persistent above-zero values indicate sustained over-activity; persistent below-zero values indicate sustained quiet periods.

Industry Lobbying Residuals, May 2026

This chart shows the 8 industries in this sector with the largest deviations from expected lobbying activity in May 2026. Positive values run above their seasonal trend, negative values below.

Insurance saw lobbying notably above expected levels this month.

Fund Management, Holding Companies and Financing, Financial Services Auxiliaries, Other Financial Services, and Trusts & Funds Activities saw lobbying notably below expected levels this month.

Section D: Lobbying Activity by Organization

In this section, we see the organizations with the most unusual lobbying behavior last month, defined by either unusually high or unusually low lobbying activity.

Organization Lobbying Activity, May 2026

In May 2026, 80 organizations from this sector took part in 94 lobbying meetings with the European Commission.

The organizations with the most notable increases in lobbying activity this month include Zurich Insurance Company Ltd, Federation Francaise de l'Assurance, Citigroup Inc., UniCredit, and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti s.p.a..

On the quieter side, Deutsche Bank AG, Insurance Europe, Association for Financial Markets in Europe, Bureau Europeen des Unions de Consommateurs, and Wirtschaftskammer Osterreich saw notably less lobbying activity than usual.

New to the sector's lobbying records this month: Lannebo Kapitalforvaltning AB, Odin Fonder Sverige AB, Jet Bank, Exportni garancni a pojistovaci spolecnost, a.s., and RDI Hub.

Section E: Lobbying of Government Institutions in the Past Month

Every lobbying meeting takes place with one of two types of European Commission body: a Commissioner's cabinet (political staff) or a Directorate-General (the civil service). This section shows the organisation-to-institution pairings with the most unusual lobbying activity last month, defined by the largest absolute difference between this month's meeting count and the pair's 12-month rolling average.

Lobbying of Commission Institutions, May 2026 vs 12-Month Avg

In May 2026, 80 organisations from this sector met with 28 Commission bodies across 94 meetings — split across 16 Commissioner cabinets and 12 Directorates-General.

Notable increases in lobbying activity this month include Federation Francaise de l'Assurance with Direct. Gen. Financial Services, Zurich Insurance Company Ltd with Direct. Gen. Financial Services, AXA with Direct. Gen. Financial Services, and BNP PARIBAS with Direct. Gen. Financial Services.

On the quieter side, Association for Financial Markets in Europe with Direct. Gen. Financial Services saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section F: Organization Lobbying by Subject in the Past Month

This section shows the organisation-to-subject pairings with the most unusual lobbying activity last month. Subjects are classified from each meeting's title text into one of 19 EU policy areas. A meeting covering multiple topics counts toward each of them.

Lobbying by Subject, May 2026 vs 12-Month Avg

In May 2026, 74 organisations from this sector lobbied on 13 policy topics across 94 meetings. Meetings may touch multiple topics, so subject totals can exceed total meetings.

Topics with notably elevated lobbying activity this month include Citigroup Inc. on Finance & Insurance, UniCredit on Finance & Insurance, Citigroup Inc. on Foreign Affairs, Bureau Europeen des Unions de Consommateurs on Social Issues, and Federation Francaise de l'Assurance on Finance & Insurance.

On the quieter side, Deutsche Bank AG on Finance & Insurance, Insurance Europe on Finance & Insurance, Association for Financial Markets in Europe on Finance & Insurance, Bureau Europeen des Unions de Consommateurs on Single Market, and Federation bancaire francaise on Finance & Insurance saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section G: Most-Lobbied Officials

This section lists the most-frequent lobbying touchpoints between this sector's organisations and individual European Commission officials last month, compared to each pairing's average over the past year.

Most-Lobbied Officials, May 2026

In May 2026, 79 European Commission officials took part in 94 meetings with this sector's lobbyists.

The most-frequent meetings this month were AXA and Helene Bussieres at Direct. Gen. Financial Services, PayPal Limited, Belgium Branch and Henna Virkkunen + 1 other at EVP Virkkunen (Digital Services), Ibec and Stephane Sejourne + 2 others at EVP Sejourne (Industry and SMEs), UniCredit and Teresa Ribera Rodriguez + 2 others at EVP Ribera Rodriguez, and Finland Chamber of Commerce (Keskuskauppakamari) and Henna Virkkunen + 1 other at EVP Virkkunen (Digital Services).

Most activity came from Cabinet members (83 meetings), followed by Head of Unit (32) and Director (9).