This year’s second meeting of the General Board of the National Committee for Macroprudential Oversight (NCMO) was held on 16 June 2026.

During the meeting, Board members examined analyses and adopted measures concerning macroprudential policy and systemic risk, namely: (i) the regular analysis on the recalibration of the countercyclical capital buffer, (ii) the regular analysis on the systemic risk buffer, (iii) preserving the Republic of Moldova’s material third country status for the Romanian banking sector in relation to the recognition and setting of countercyclical buffer rates, and (iv) the analysis on the recognition through voluntary reciprocity of a macroprudential policy measure adopted by Austria.

In addition, the NCMO General Board was informed of: (i) the systemic risks to financial stability identified by NCMO member authorities as per their specific area of competence, (ii) the implications for the banking sector and financial stability following the Competition Council’s action, (iii) the main developments in the digital assets market, and (iv) the analysis of risks in the agri-food sector.

The NCMO General Board unanimously approved NCMO Recommendation No. R/2/2026 on the countercyclical capital buffer. Specifically, the buffer rate is kept at 1 percent, amid the high cyclical systemic risks, compounded inter alia by the protracted geopolitical tensions.

In the context of the annual exercise to identify material third countries for the Romanian banking sector, in terms of recognising and setting countercyclical buffer rates, NCMO members decided to preserve the Republic of Moldova’s material third country status and to recognise the macroprudential measure on the countercyclical capital buffer taken by the competent authority in the said country. Pursuant to the European regulations in force, the 1.5 percent rate of the countercyclical capital buffer, applicable starting May 2026 by the competent authority in the Republic of Moldova, shall be used by credit institutions in Romania to calculate the institution-specific countercyclical capital buffer for exposures to the said country.

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 Financial Supervisory Authority and the Government of Romania. 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.