International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
The BCEAO has conducted a comprehensive reform during the past five years. The regulatory and prudential framework were aligned with international standards and the conditions for supervision have been strengthened, although the efforts must be continued (liquidity ratio/net stable funding ratio and tools for monitoring liquidity, transfers of ownership, acquisitions of holdings, guidelines on nonperforming claims, and anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism—AML-CFT). The transition to Basel III has made it possible to incorporate additional capital requirements, while the rules applicable to credit institutions were upgraded with the 2017 publication of four circulars on governance, risk management, internal supervision, and compliance.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
This virtual technical assistance (TA) mission supported the Agency in strengthening certain elements of its risk-based supervisory framework. The mission provided recommendations and training to the Agency on the assessment of banks’ recovery plans and interest rate risk in the banking book (IRRBB). The mission benefited from simultaneous translation. The priorities for the forthcoming TA missions were discussed with the Agency (strengthening cybersecurity in financial institutions, and assessment of banks’ liquidity within the SREP framework).
Abdullah Al-Hassan, Imen Benmohamed, Aidyn Bibolov, Giovanni Ugazio, and Ms. Tian Zhang
The Gulf Cooperation Council region faced a significant economic toll from the COVID-19 pandemic and oil price shocks in 2020. Policymakers responded to the pandemic with decisive and broad measures to support households and businesses and mitigate the long-term impact on the economy. Financial vulnerabilities have been generally contained, reflecting ongoing policy support and the rebound in economic activity and oil prices, as well as banks entering the COVID-19 crisis with strong capital, liquidity, and profitability. The banking systems remained well-capitalized, but profitability and asset quality were adversely affected. Ongoing COVID-19 policy support could also obscure deterioration in asset quality. Policymakers need to continue to strike a balance between supporting recovery and mitigating risks to financial stability, including ensuring that banks’ buffers are adequate to withstand prolonged pandemic and withdrawal of COVID-related policy support measures. Addressing data gaps would help policymakers to further assess vulnerabilities and mitigate sectoral risks.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
The Banking Supervision Department (BSD) of the BoL is implementing risk-based supervision (RBS) methods. BoL staff are showing favorable results in understanding and applying RBS, recognizing that they are still in the early stages of capacity development. A new commercial banking law became effective in June 2019. The law incorporates expectations that financial institutions establish appropriate risk management systems and maintain adequate capital and liquidity. The law also gives the BoL purview over the adequacy of risk management in banks.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department and International Monetary Fund. Legal Dept.
This Technical Assistance Report paper on Chile advices on the planned integration of the superintendency for banking supervision, Superintendencia de Bancos y Instituciones Financieras (SBIF), into the Comisión para el Mercado Financiero (CMF). While the approved Bills contain important enhancements to the governance and regulatory framework, several legal aspects would benefit from further clarification. These include aspects related to the mandate, objectives, powers, and governance of the CMF. This report discusses the mission’s main observations and recommendations regarding the integration of the SBIF into the CMF. The report also provides an overview of the existing supervisory architecture and discusses the legal mandate, objectives, and powers of the new CMF, followed by a discussion on the governance arrangements that existed prior to the integration and of the main changes brought in the Law recently approved. It also discusses a possible blueprint for the organizational structure of the new CMF aimed at realizing the desired synergies in the supervision function and strengthening conglomerate supervision.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
The IMF conducted a Financial Sector Stability Review of the Republic of Guinea in June 2019. The review shows that while the current economic situation is benign, the financial soundness indicators (FSIs) point to increasing vulnerabilities. The economic outlook is currently positive. Moreover, financial inclusion is growing rapidly as mobile money services are quickly adopted. However, the FSIs suggest growing vulnerabilities and possibly some idiosyncratic stress in the banking sector. As a result of data quality and availability issues, it is difficult to make a more in-depth assessment of financial stability and potential vulnerabilities. The financial sector structure is, to some extent, a mitigant to the potential financial stability vulnerabilities. All banks are part of foreign financial groups that they can fall back on during periods of stress. While the current economic situation is benign, it is an opportune moment to develop the necessary capacity to handle potential financial stability vulnerabilities. As a priority, on and offsite supervision and the availability and quality of data on the banking sector, and in a later stage also for the other financial sectors, should be significantly improved, and the regulatory framework for banks should be modernized.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
This Technical Assistance report on the Lao People’s Democratic Republic provides advice toward implementing risk-based supervision (RBS). Special attention needs to be given to expediting the formal approval of the RBS manual and fully implementing RBS methods in practice. Although this could be delayed due to other supervisory priorities, it is considered essential as the quality of supervision is improved by the practical application of RBS tools and learning-by-doing. The root causes of risks should be better identified, and greater attention should be paid to well-reasoned analysis of risks and the accompanied supervisory action. In addition, the mission advised additional modification of these documents to enhance its usefulness and quality. With respect to foreign-branch supervision, special consideration should be given to the extent of adequate oversight by the branch head office, supervision by the home supervisor, and overall financial condition of the foreign banking group. The mission provided examples of qualitative criteria for foreign-branch rating.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
The BoL has been implementing risk-based supervision (RBS) methods on a pilot basis. The RBS manual is now substantially complete, and the BSD staff are applying the RBS methods on a pilot basis. The BSD staff have drafted Institutional Profiles (IP) and Risk Assessment Summaries (RAS) for more than half of the banks; benchmarks and peer groups are being implemented; on-site reports of examination (ROX) have been utilized for several banks. The mission worked with off-site and on-site teams analyzing data for two pilot banks. Utilizing actual results for two pilot banks, the mission assisted BSD staff in identifying the risks, measuring and evaluating the impact on banks’ condition, and formulating appropriate conclusions and ratings.