Finance ministers from the 18-nation eurozone are trying to agree with European lawmakers on the timely creation of a body that can unwind or restructure ailing banks.
Dutch finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem on Monday said he was confident an agreement on the so-called single resolution mechanism would be reached to ensure the legislation can be passed in April.
But German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble cautioned there was only a limited scope for compromise.
European Parliament lawmakers have rejected the ministers' proposal and threatened to shelve the project unless the governments offer significant concessions.
Failure to pass the legislation before Parliament's term expires in May would delay the project until 2015.
The body would be part of a wider banking union, the bloc's main effort to stabilize its financial system.
