The European Central Bank (ECB) has published its annual report for 2013.
The report provides an overview of the ECB’s activities in 2013 and the Eurosystem (that is, the central banking system of the eurozone, comprising the ECB and the national central banks of the eurozone).
The report covers activities relating to:
- payment and settlement services, in particular the TARGET2 system and TARGET2-Securities;
- financial stability monitoring and arrangements, and progress made towards establishing the single supervisory mechanism;
- the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB);
- financial regulation and supervision, particularly in the banking and securities sectors;
- financial integration, including the Single Euro Payments Area; and
- oversight of payment systems and market infrastructures, including work relating to retail payment systems, payment instruments, securities, derivatives clearing and settlement.
The report notes that a major step towards enhancing the resilience of the financial system in the EU was taken in 2013 with the implementation of Basel III through the Capital Requirements Regulation and Directive. It also notes that these measures called for a series of preparatory and implementing measures by the ESRB, which were carried out in cooperation with ESRB members. In July 2013, the ESRB published a handbook on the follow-up to its recommendations, which was first used to assess the implementation of the ESRB Recommendation on lending in foreign currencies. The results of the assessment showed that Member States had complied well with the Recommendation.
View European Central Bank annual report 2013, 7 April 2014
