macroprudential policy in europe : the german countercyclical capital buffer ( ccyb ) panel statement at the seminar “ financial stability and central banks ” bank of mexico 01. 11. 2019 | mexico city | claudia buch 1 in europe, macroprudential policy is a national task that calls for close collaboration at the european level. 2 cyclical risks have built up in the german financial system. 3 the ccyb is the appropriate instrument to address cyclical systemic risks. 4 summing up 5 references 6 figures the global economy is at a crossroads : trade tensions and geopolitical conflicts are leaving their mark in global trade and investment, growth forecasts are being revised downward, and uncertainties abound. whether and to what extent risks to the growth outlook will materialize is unclear, and there is uncertainty about the longer - term growth potential. the global financial system is more resilient to these risks and uncertainties because the banking system is better capitalized now than in the period prior to the global financial crisis. however, the global economy remains highly leveraged, risks may have migrated to the non - bank financial system, and vulnerabilities might become exposed unexpectedly. central banks are attentive observers of these trends, as the conduct of monetary policy depends on a stable financial system. hence, i very much welcome the initiative of the bank of mexico in organizing this seminar on financial stability and central banks. given the close interlinkages in the global economy – both real and financial – it is important to learn from each other and to share experiences. there are three experiences and insights that i would like to share with you today : • first, i would like to stress the importance of international policy coordination. in europe, macroprudential policy is essentially a national task, but with close coordination at the european level. this accounts for the fact that the european financial system is highly integrated and that financial shocks might easily spill over across borders. • second, i would like to update you on our current assessment of financial stability risks in germany. until very recently, the german economy saw an exceptionally long spell of positive growth rates – one of the longest in the post - war years. during the long period of robust growth and low interest rates, cyclical risks have built up in the german financial system. at the current juncture, the slow - down of global growth is certainly being felt in the german economy. hence, we are concerned that a further (

become fully green. 2 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches earlier this year, the bundesbank asked german banks about the impact of climate change on bank lending. banks reported that they had tightened credit standards for carbon - intensive companies more than for green and transitioning companies over the past 12 months. in addition, banks said that over the next 12 months they were planning to tighten their credit standards even more sharply in connection with the impact of climate change. 2 this goes to show that companies that cannot credibly set out a path to a low - carbon business model might struggle to access financing in the future. transition plans function as a market instrument that can help to channel financing to companies that have made a credible commitment to achieving climate targets. 3 too many cooks spoil the broth – a case for consistent standards the benefits of transition plans are clear. actually writing them is less straightforward. existing transition plans differ greatly in terms of length, format and content. i have seen some that are 100 pages long. and i have seen others that are a much shorter read. there are multiple competing market standards. each of them aim to bring greater clarity. while laudable, the multitude of varying frameworks might, in fact, have made it less clear what a good transition plan should entail. i believe the clarity that corporates and financial institutions need has to come from the public sector. the network for greening the financial system ( ngfs ) – a global coalition of central banks and supervisors that i will have the privilege of chairing starting in january – is engaging with financial institutions around the world. we aim to find out if financial institutions are currently getting the data they need from their corporate clients'transition plans. in a perfect world, the answer would be yes, but we expect to find data gaps. good data is key and closing data gaps is crucial. by identifying these gaps, the ngfs can help to improve the informative value of transition plans. regulators have also been busy bringing some order into the diverse transition plan landscape. for instance, many eu and non - eu companies will soon have to disclose transition plans under the corporate sustainability reporting directive ( csrd ). the eu's framework has the potential to become an international reference point. having these international reference points is absolutely critical. i want to stress one thing : we must not replace competing market standards with competing regulation. ideally, by disclosing one transition plan, companies can comply with regulatory requirements in multiple jurisdictions.