Towards a new Approach to Regulation and Supervision in the EU: Post-FSAP and Comitology

The aim of this paper is to analyse the progress made in the process of European integration from two points of view: regulation and supervision. We first briefly outline the main steps in the development of the Financial Services Action Plan - FSAP and the process of Comitology, defined by the Committee of Wise Men (Lamfalussy Committee). We then provide an initial evaluation of the new regulatory system, with its merits and flaws: while the definition and completion of the FSAP has been an undoubted success, some aspects still have to be dealt with, several of them with problematical connotations, considered in the Financial Services Agenda 2005-2010 The transposition into national regulations of a complex body of wide-ranging standards is a difficult process in terms of both times and procedures, although the functioning of the Comitology structure has been met with general approval. There is also the problem of a supervisory structure which retains its national basis, but onto which the output generated by the Committees envisaged by the Lamfalussy process is gradually being grafted, possibly leading towards a new framework of controls at a European level.Single Financial Market; FSAP; Lamfalussy Report; Committee of Wise Men; Comitology; Regulation; Supervision; Eu directives; Financial Services Agenda 2005-2010

Rischi sistemici e regolamentazione macroprudenziale

La crisi finanziaria del 2007-2008 ha rifocalizzato l’attenzione degli economisti e dei policy maker sui rischi sistemici e sulle politiche e la regolamentazione finalizzate a contenerlo e gestirlo. La crisi ha infatti rappresentato un punto di svolta di grande importanza nella comprensione della struttura interna e del funzionamento del sistema finanziario e dei suoi legami con il resto dell’economia. L’analisi della sua genesi e delle sue dinamiche ha consentito di individuare le inadeguatezze delle norme prudenziali e della pratica di vigilanza vigenti e di comprendere la limitatezza dell’apparato teorico che le aveva sostenute nel trentennio precedente. L’obiettivo del presente lavoro è una ricognizione dello stato dell’arte in materia di politiche macroprudenziali, con riferimento sia alla diagnostica sia alla profilassi. Il lavoro è diviso in due parti. Nella prima parte vengono illustrate le molteplici letture che possono essere date dell’instabilità finanziaria e del rischio sistemico. Nella seconda viene invece offerta una sintesi delle problematiche di definizione e di gestione delle politiche macroprudenziali. Una definizione appropriata della multiforme natura del rischio sistemico, della sua genesi e dei suoi meccanismi di trasmissione è la precondizione sia per individuare il perimetro di azione delle politiche macroprudenziali (in termini di obiettivi finali ed intermedi) sia per determinarne le modalità di azione (in termini di strumenti di intervento, di timing dell’azione, di relazione con altre politiche e quindi, più in generale, di governance del processo decisionale). La ricognizione dei fallimenti del mercato evidenziati dalla crisi finanziaria ha consentito di focalizzarne gli obiettivi, mentre la necessità di dotare le autorità di supervisione macroprudenziale di un toolkit operativo efficace ha accelerato la ricerca di indicatori anticipatori dei rischi sistemici, ha costretto a mappare le relazioni tra gli strumenti di intervento disponibili e gli obiettivi e di testarne l’efficacia e le modalità di utilizzo

Credit crunch: analisi e possibili soluzioni

La seconda fase della grande crisi finanziaria iniziata nel 2010, c.d. del debito so-vrano, ha pesantemente colpito le banche italiane, determinando dal 2011 una si-tuazione di credit crunch per famiglie e imprese. L’obiettivo del presente contributo è di analizzare come il credit crunch stia determinando una situazione di disintermediazione, ormai strutturale, del canale bancario per il credito alle imprese, modificando il tradizionale rapporto banca-impresa in Italia. Come conseguenza occorre individuare e implementare azioni volte a intervenire sull’assetto complessivo del nostro sistema finanziario per porre rimedio a severe carenze strutturali in termini di strumenti, mercati e intermediari

Monitoring systemic risk a survey of the avialiable macropridential toolkit

Understanding the nature of systemic risk and identifying the channels of diffusion of the shocks are the necessary prerequisite to anticipate and manage successfully the insurgence of financial crises. In order to prevent financial distress and manage instability, the macroprudential regulator needs to track and measure systemic risks ex-ante. The aim of the paper is twofold: on one side, it reviews the theoretical frameworks which allow to assess the different dimensions of systemic risk and, on the other, it classifies accordingly and analyzes the methodologies available to assess in advance the occurrence of systemic distress. The paper classifies the different definitions of systemic risk and discusses their significance during the 2007-08 crisis. It presents the tools available to extract real time information on market perception of risk from market prices of securities and derivatives (i.e. CDS and equity options). The analysis is extended to the methods focused on the measurement of the financial fragility due to the networks linkages within the financial system. On the basis of the available empirical research, the paper also reviews the capacity of the different methods to spot in advance the insurgence of the crisis prior to 2007-08 and draws some preliminary conclusions on the completeness and consistency of the toolkit available to policy makers

Internal Corporate Governance and the Financial Crisis: Lessons for Banks, Regulators and Supervisors

This paper aims to highlight the importance of banks’ Internal Corporate Governance (ICG),viewed as an operational mitigation instrument, in a context where banks enjoy a high degree oforganisational flexibility due to principle-based regulatory and risk-based supervisory approaches.The recent crisis has shown, on the one hand, that financial mitigations (i.e. capital requirements) are,per se, not sufficient to ensure the stability of the banks (which underpins the soundness of the entirefinancial system) and, on the other hand, the failure of the light-touch supervisory approach. The mainresearch question is whether the improvement of ICG, involving proper protection for stakeholdersand the switch to a more intrusive supervisory model, will be able to offset the failures of marketdiscipline revealed by the crisis and, together with Basel 3’s reinforced capital adequacy regime,strengthen the resilience of the financial system, without the reintroduction of structural reforms. In theEuropean Union, the new European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) and, above all, the three newEuropean Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) will play a crucial role in this process

Financial Crisis and New Dimensions of Liquidity Risk: Rethinking Prudential Regulation and Supervision

This paper aims to stress the importance of market liquidity for the stability of the financial system, emphasizing the pivotal role played by liquidity risk in the development of the current financial crisis, pointing out the flaws of regulation and supervision and stressing the need for their reform. We first investigate the evolution of the concept of liquidity and the nexus between the transformations of financial systems and their increased vulnerability to liquidity risks. Then we focus on the causes of the emergence of liquidity risk in the ongoing financial crisis. We point out two intertwined processes: firstly, the huge increase in financial assets stemming from the shift to an \u201coriginate-to-distribute\u201d intermediation model; secondly, the growth of a parallel financial circuit. After this, we focus on the main lessons for regulation and supervision: first of all we address the case for adjustments to or reform of Basel 2 in view of the nexus between solvency and liquidity. Further crucial points relate to market liquidity and OTC markets, scale and scope of LLR function, architecture of supervisory authorities and perimeter of controls. Finally we stress the need for harmonization, or at least coordination, of national liquidity regimes, at least for cross-border group

Postille

F. Gasti, La letteratura tardolatina. Un profilo storico (secoli III-VII d. C.), Roma, Carocci editore, 202

Un leone nella neve. Stilicone nel De bello Getico di Claudiano

In 402 A.D. Claudian declaimed in Rome his poem De bello Getico, praising Stilicho shortly after his controversial victory over Alarich at Pollentia. The poem was recited in front of members of the senatorial aristocracy not necessarily well disposed to Stilicho. Focusing on two specific passages the paper examines how Claudian tried to portray him in a favourable light and to justify his actions, playing with mythological synkrisis and cleverly evoking historical memories and traditions well suited to the audience.Nel 402 Claudiano presentava a Roma il suo poema De bello Getico, celebrando Stilicone poco dopo la sua discussa vittoria contro Alarico a Pollenzo. Il poema veniva recitato alla presenza di membri dell’aristocrazia senatoria non sempre ben disposti verso Stilicone. Concentrandosi sull’analisi di due passi l’articolo esamina come Claudiano cerchi di metterlo in luce favorevole e giustificarne l’operato, sia giocando sulla synkrisis col mito, sia sottilmente evocando richiami al passato e a temi tradizionali cari al pubblico presente