The European Court of Auditors (ECA) has published its Special Report 24/2025, urging the European Commission and EU Member States to fully capitalise on the reflows generated by EU financial instruments — in order to maximise the long-term impact of EU funding.
According to the audit, many Member States have not yet made full use of available reflows, limiting the overall effectiveness and sustainability of EU investment. The ECA warns that under-utilisation of reflows weakens one of the core advantages of financial instruments: the ability to revolve funds and support multiple generations of projects.
For fund managers, intermediaries and public authorities involved in EU-backed financial instruments, the report serves as a clear call to action. Properly deploying reflows could enable new waves of eligible operations — helping deliver EU policy objectives without requiring additional budget resources.
In the context of cohesion, regional development, sustainable infrastructure and social investment — all central to fi-compass stakeholders — the message is straightforward: ensuring that reflows are systematically reused is essential to maximising impact and strengthening financial sustainability.
