The fourth meeting of this year of the General Board of the National Committee for Macroprudential Oversight (NCMO) was held on 15 December 2022.

The NCMO was established by virtue of Law No. 12/2017 on the macroprudential oversight of the national financial system, thus ensuring that Recommendation of the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) No. 3/2011 on the macroprudential mandate of national authorities was implemented. The NCMO brings together representatives of the National Bank of Romania, the Government of Romania and the Financial Supervisory Authority. The NCMO’s mission is to ensure coordination in the field of macroprudential oversight of the national financial system by setting the macroprudential policy and the appropriate instruments for its implementation.

During the meeting, Board members examined analyses and adopted measures concerning macroprudential policy and systemic risk, namely the regular analysis on the recalibration of the countercyclical capital buffer.

The NCMO General Board was informed of: (i) the systemic risks identified across the domestic financial system, (ii) the macroprudential measures adopted by member states of the European Economic Area (EEA) in 2022, and (iii) the evolution of lending, real estate lending included.

The NCMO General Board approved NCMO Recommendation No. R/6/2022 on the countercyclical capital buffer. Whereas the growth rate of lending remains among the highest in the European Union, while the levels of risks flagged in previous analyses stay above average in the period ahead as well, the National Bank of Romania is recommended to keep in place the measure to set the countercyclical buffer rate at 1 percent as of 23 October 2023.

In order to respond to the potential materialisation of negative scenarios, whose probability of occurrence is influenced by the current macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions, credit institutions need to accelerate the build-up of capital reserves.

In this special context, the NCMO pays increased attention to monitoring the mix of systemic risks that may affect financial stability.

The members of the NCMO General Board decided on the compliance with and the implementation at national level of the European Banking Authority Guidelines EBA/GL/2022/12 amending Guidelines EBA/GL/2020/14 on the specification and disclosure of systemic importance indicators by relevant national authorities.

The NCMO recommendations and decisions were unanimously approved by the NCMO General Board.