Stefan Ingves: "It takes all sorts..." - macroprudential oversight in the EU

Keynote address by Mr Stefan Ingves, Governor of the Sveriges Riksbank and Chairman of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, in his capacity as Chairman of the ESRB Advisory Technical Committee, at the First ESRB Annual Conference, Frankfurt am Main, 22-23 September 2016.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

BCBS, Central bank speech  | 
24 October 2016

"It takes all sorts to make a world" is a common expression when confronted with something odd, but at the same time recognizing that diversity is essential. I think it also "takes all sorts", or at least plenty of different sorts, to make a functional macroprudential body. Especially one at an international level like our host - the European Systemic Risk Board, the ESRB. The ESRB's macroprudential mandate is mirrored by its broad composition, bringing together central bankers and financial supervisors; national and EU-wide perspectives; sectoral experts and academics. Certainly we may look at various issues differently. We may indeed find each other's perspectives odd at times. But that is also the point. With the right set-up, differences in perspectives and expertise enrich our assessments and become a strength. And the ESRB uses that strength to handle its rather daunting task of overseeing the EU financial system as a whole. So let me elaborate a little on what the ESRB has achieved so far and why I think the EU needs a strong ESRB with a broad membership as we move forward.