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AUSTRIA
Annex I. Macroprudential Policies
The Austrian authorities have been implementing the new EU-wide macro-prudential framework.
Drawing from the lessons from the global financial crisis, their earlier focus was on strengthening
the business model of CESEE-active banks and reducing foreign currency loans.
Institutional Setup
An Austrian Financial Market Stability Board (FMSB) was created in 2014 and has a consultative role.
The Austrian authorities regard financial stability as a shared responsibility of the Financial Market
Authority (FMA), the Austrian National Bank (OeNB), and the Federal Ministry of Finance (MoF). The
FMSB serves as forum for exchanging views and encouraging cooperation among these actors. It
can issue risk warnings and recommendations and eventually make them public. It also reports
annually to parliament.
The Austrian Financial Market Authority remains the implementing authority for macro-prudential
measures. The FMSB recommendations need to be legally implemented by the FMA under a
“comply or explain” rule.
The Austrian National Bank is in charge of operational bank supervision in the Austrian supervisory
setup and provides macro-prudential analysis for the FMSB such as the identification of systemic
risks and the evaluation of the effectiveness of implemented measures. The OeNB can make
proposals for risk warnings and recommendations to the FMSB.
The Ministry of Finance has two representatives at the FMSB and chairs it. In addition, two other
representatives come from the Fiscal Council. OeNB and FMA have one representative each. The
Board decisions are made with simple majority, with the chair deciding in case of a tied vote.
Reports have to be agreed on unanimously.
Currently Available Tools
So far, the available macro-prudential toolkit remains limited to instruments as foreseen in the EU
Capital Requirement Directive (CRDIV). The toolkit includes various capital buffers, such as the
counter-cyclical and systemic risk buffer, and the possibility to change risk weights on exposures
secured by mortgages on immovable property.
Additional sector-specific macro-prudential tools would be beneficial. In particular, caps on the
loan-to-value (LTV) ratios, debt-to-income (DTI), or debt service-to-income (DSTI) ratios specifically
targeted to the housing market and possibly regionally differentiated could help moderate
periodically occurring strong house price hikes. Legally, this would be possible on the basis of
national legislation as in several other EU countries.
Forthcoming Activation of the Systemic Risk Buffer
The FMSB issued a recommendation to the FMA to activate the systemic risk buffer in September
2015. The measure targets structural systemic risks that arise from the size of banks and the banking
sector as a whole, banks’ ownership structure, interconnectedness, and the concentrated foreign risk
exposure to CESEE. The buffer, to be phased in over 2016–19, applies to twelve large and
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