1. To help facilitate consultation with stakeholders in areas relevant to the tasks of the Authority, a Banking Stakeholder Group shall be established. The Banking Stakeholder Group shall be consulted on actions taken in accordance with Articles 10 to 15 concerning regulatory technical standards and implementing technical standards and, to the extent that these do not concern individual financial institutions, Article 16 concerning guidelines and recommendations. If actions must be taken urgently and consultation becomes impossible, the Banking Stakeholder Group shall be informed as soon as possible.

The Banking Stakeholder Group shall meet on its own initiative as necessary, and in any event at least four times a year.

2. The Banking Stakeholder Group shall be composed of 30 members. Those members shall comprise of:

(a) 13 members representing, in balanced proportions, financial institutions operating in the Union of whom three shall represent cooperative and savings banks;

(b) 13 members representing employees' representatives of financial institutions operating in the Union, consumers, users of banking services and representatives of SMEs; and

(c) four members who are independent top-ranking academics.