The Riksbank and Finansinspektionen start a council for cooperation on macroprudential policy

Date 18/01/2012

Both the Riksbank and Finansinspektionen (the Swedish financial supervisory authority) have the task of promoting a stable financial system. Part of this task entails mitigating risks to the system as a whole. Now the authorities are establishing a council for cooperation to intensify this preventive work.

 

The idea is that this council will be a forum where assessments of risk and questions regarding macroprudential policy are discussed jointly.

 

The council will meet twice a year and the members are the Riksbank Governor, the Director General of Finansinspektionen, one of the deputy governors, the head of the Riksbank’s Financial Stability Department, and the chief economist and chief legal counsel at the Finansinspektionen. The council’s first meeting is planned for 24 February.

 

Background

The cooperation between the Riksbank and Finansinspektionen has previously been outlined in the so-called four-party agreement.  The new council supplements the agreement by further developing the authorities' cooperation on preventive macroprudential policy.

 

The Riksbank and Finansinspektionen will continue to make independent decisions within their areas of responsibility in accordance with the decision-making processes that apply at the respective authorities. The new council will thus not alter the independence, responsibility and decision-making rights of the respective authorities with regard to their tasks.

 

The Memorandum of Understanding on a council for cooperation will cease to apply if responsibilities and powers concerning macro-prudential policy are regulated by law in some other way.