A technical note on the stress test of Israel’s banking, insurance, and pension sectors is presented. The Israel Financial Sector Assessment Program Update stress testing exercise comprises a comprehensive analysis of solvency and liquidity risks of key banking and insurance institutions....

In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.

This Technical Note discusses key results of stress testing of the banking sector in Austria. The Austrian banking system is in a recovery phase following the 2008–2009 global financial crisis. Stress testing results suggest that Austrian banks, on aggregate, have sufficient capital...

This paper presents Detailed Assessment of the United States’s observance of Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision. The U.S. financial system is large and highly diversified. At the end-2007, total U.S. financial assets amounted to almost four and a half times the size...

Owing to the high dependence of its exports on countries and commodities, Finland experienced the worst recession in the euro area. Executive Directors encouraged authorities to focus on improving bank cost efficiency, preventing excessive risk taking, and limiting liquidity and funding risks....

This paper discusses the current state of Swedish implementation of the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision (BCP). The banking supervisory framework and its implementation in Sweden are in line with many of Basel Core Principles’ essential criteria. However, the...

Advocates for internal model-based capital regulation argue that this approach will reduce costs and remove distortions that are created by rules-based capital regulations. These claims are examined using a Merton-style model of deposit insurance. Analysis shows that internal model-based capital...

This Selected Issues paper for the Philippines has been prepared by a staff team of the International Monetary Fund as background documentation for the periodic consultation with the member country. Spillovers have been particularly prominent for countries with financial systems with high...

A detailed assessment of Israel’s compliance with the Basel Core Principles for effective banking supervision is presented. The Bachar reform that has been started in mid-2005 forced banks to divest most noncommercial banking activities, such as mutual funds, insurance, pension, and...

Better “financial soundness†of banks could help mitigate the volatility of financial cycles by reducing banks’ risk exposure. But trying to improve financial soundness in the midst of a downturn can do the opposite—further aggravating the contraction of credit....