Country Reports
2016
June 29, 2016
Germany: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Detailed Assessment of Observance on the Eurex Clearing AG Observance of the CPSS-IOSCO Principles for Financial Market Infrastructures
Description: This paper provides a detailed assessment of observance on the Eurex Clearing AG observance of the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems-International Organization of Securities Commissions principles for financial market infrastructures. Eurex Clearing is a global central counterparty clearing house that clears a broad range of both listed and over-the-counter (OTC) products. It offers fully automated and straight-through post trade services to the derivatives markets Eurex Deutschland and Eurex Zürich, the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, the multilateral trading systems of Eurex Bonds GmbH and Eurex Repo GmbH, the Irish Stock Exchange as well as clearing services for OTC interest rate derivatives (Eurex OTC Clear), as well as clearing services for transactions in cash equities, bonds, repos, derivatives, secure funding, securities financing, and transactions.
June 29, 2016
Germany: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Insurance Sector Supervision-Technical Notes
Description: This paper provides an update on the German insurance sector and an analysis of certain key aspects of the regulatory and supervisory regime. It includes an analysis of German practice in relation to selected Insurance Core Principles in the context of a wider discussion of key issues in regulation and supervision. This technical note focuses mainly on recent developments in the sector and key vulnerabilities, including life insurance issues, those vulnerabilities associated with the continuing low interest rate environment; the preparations of the authorities and industry for the implementation of the Solvency II requirements; and the supervisory approach to large insurance groups.
June 29, 2016
Germany: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Stress Testing the Banking and Insurance Sectors-Technical Notes
Description: This paper assesses Germany’s financial system and, in particular, its potential for spillover risk. The analysis comprises structural and financial statement analyses, detailed stress tests for banks and insurance companies, and spillover risk analysis. Solvency and liquidity stress tests cover all 1,776 banks operating in Germany, and insurance-sector analysis covers 93 percent of the life insurance sector in terms of the assets. Germany is highly interconnected through trade and financial channels. The total consolidated claims of German banks on foreign banks, nonbank private sector, and public sector stood at about $1.7 trillion in the second quarter of 2015, with the majority of cross-border exposures vis-à-vis France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
June 29, 2016
Germany: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Financial System Stability Assessment
Description: This paper evaluates the risks and vulnerabilities of the German financial system and reviews both the German regulatory and supervisory framework and implementation of the common European framework insofar as it is relevant for Germany. The country is home to two global systemically important financial institutions, Deutsche Bank AG and Allianz SE. The system is also very heterogeneous, with a range of business models and a large number of smaller banks and insurers. The regulatory landscape has changed profoundly with strengthened solvency and liquidity regulations for banks (the EU Capital Requirements Regulation and Directive IV), and the introduction of macroprudential tools.
June 29, 2016
Germany: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Fund Management: Regulation, Supervision and Systemic Risk Monitoring-Technical Notes
Description: This paper discusses the German asset management sector and an analysis of certain key aspects of the regulatory and supervisory regime. Germany has a large and diverse asset management sector to which it applies a strong and comprehensive regulatory framework. The sector is the third-largest in Europe, as measured by all managed assets, and comprises a broad range of management companies and funds. BaFin is able to monitor developments in the asset management sector by having access to an extensive set of data shared by the Bundesbank. The data are sufficiently granular that individual exposures can be identified swiftly and accurately, allowing supervisory intervention where needed.
June 29, 2016
Germany: Selected Issues
Description: This paper analyzes the macroeconomic impact of targeted labor market reforms aimed at boosting employment and labor productivity and the price responsiveness of German residential investment. Germany’s population is getting older, and potential growth is set to decline. Demographic projections suggest that labor force will start declining around 2020, and will drop at an accelerating pace once immigration flows normalize. After years of stagnation, German housing prices and new residential rents have increased more steeply since 2009, especially in large cities. This paper provides econometric evidence that supply response to changes in housing prices has declined over the past several years and discusses how various housing policies can foster this response.
June 28, 2016
Republic of Croatia: 2016 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for the Republic of Croatia
Description: This paper discusses the economic developments, outlook, risk, and policies of Croatia. This East European country has begun since the last quarter of 2014 to gradually recover from a six-year recession. In 2015 real GDP grew by 1.6 percent, driven by strong exports and tourism, a revival of private consumption, and higher public investment. Consumer prices have largely been declining over the past two years, mainly due to lower energy and food prices. Unemployment declined only slightly since 2014 and remains very high. However, absent concrete measures to underpin some of the planned reforms, slightly higher deficit in 2016 and a slower pace of consolidation over the medium term are projected.
June 28, 2016
Republic of Croatia: Selected Issues
Description: This paper mainly examines fiscal decentralization, credit-loss recovery, and unemployment in Croatia. The degree of expenditure and revenue decentralization in Croatia appears limited relative to its peers. At about 16 percent of general government spending, subnational government spending in Croatia is modest compared to other southeastern European countries and to the EU-28 average, and particularly low compared to the most decentralized countries in the EU. Croatia’s recovery since late 2014 has been moderate. Croatia’s recession lasted six years and was thus the longest among the new EU member states. Croatia’s structural and cyclical unemployment rates are very high, at about 11.5 percent and 5 percent respectively in 2015.
June 28, 2016
Montenegro: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Banking Supervision and Regulation-Technical Note
Description: This paper discusses the current status of banking supervision and regulation in Montenegro in the context of select Basel Core Principles. It provides a brief overview of the financial system structure, bank system performance, and the framework for financial oversight. Laws, regulations, and supervision have improved significantly since the 2006 Financial Sector Assessment Program to align more closely with Basel and EU requirements. The banking sector dominates the financial system and accounts for about 90 percent of financial system assets, equivalent to about 93 percent of GDP as of June 2015. There are currently 14 banks operating in Montenegro, up from 11 in 2013.
June 28, 2016
Montenegro: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Financial Crisis Preparedness and Management-Technical Note
Description: This paper provides assessment of the crisis preparedness and management framework of Montenegro. The banking sector dominates the financial system and accounts for about 90 percent of financial system assets, equivalent to about 93 percent of GDP as of June 2015. In 2010 the Financial Stability Council (FSC) was established to maintain financial system stability and avoid financial distress. FSC members are the Central Bank of Montenegro (CBM) governor (chair), the minister of finance, the president of the Insurance Supervision Agency Council, and the Securities and Exchange Commission president. The CBM functions as the de facto resolution authority for banks.