growth. this assessment is also broadly reflected in the december 2018 eurosystem staff macroeconomic projections for the euro area, which foresee annual hicp inflation at 1. 8 % in 2018, 1. 6 % in 2019, 1. 7 % in 2020 and 1. 8 % in 2021. compared with the september 2018 ecb staff macroeconomic projections, the outlook for hicp inflation has been revised slightly up for 2018 and down for 2019. turning to the monetary analysis, broad money ( m3 ) growth stood at 3. 9 % in october 2018, after 3. 6 % in september. apart from some volatility in monthly flows, m3 growth continues to be supported by bank credit creation. the narrow monetary aggregate m1 remained the main contributor to broad money growth. in line with the upward trend observed since the beginning of 2014, the growth of loans to the private sector continues to support the economic expansion. the annual growth rate of loans to non - financial corporations stood at 3. 9 % in october 2018, after 4. 3 % in september, while the annual growth rate of loans to households remained unchanged at 3. 2 %. the pass - through of the monetary policy measures put in place since june 2014 continues to significantly support borrowing conditions for firms and households, access to financing – in particular for small and medium - sized enterprises – and credit flows across the euro area. to sum up, a cross - check of the outcome of the economic analysis with the signals coming from the monetary analysis confirmed that an ample degree of monetary accommodation is still necessary for the continued sustained convergence of inflation to levels that are below, but close to, 2 % over the medium term. in order to reap the full benefits from our monetary policy measures, other policy areas must contribute more decisively to raising the longer - term growth potential and reducing vulnerabilities. the implementation of structural reforms in euro area countries needs to be substantially stepped up to increase resilience, reduce structural unemployment and boost euro area productivity and growth potential. regarding fiscal policies, the governing council reiterates the need for rebuilding fiscal buffers. this is particularly important in countries where government debt is high and for which full adherence to the stability and growth pact is critical for safeguarding sound fiscal positions. likewise, the transparent and consistent implementation of the eu ’ s fiscal and economic governance framework over time and across countries remains essential to bolster the resilience of the euro area economy. improving the functioning of economic and monetary union remains

##tick year after year. in 2022, 50 % of our supervised entities were subject to at least one successful cyberattack, rising to 68 % in 2023, as our forthcoming annual horizontal analysis will show. in absolute terms, the number of cyber incident reports has also risen considerably. the number of cyber incident reports we received in 2023 was 77 % higher than in 2022, and we expect the total number of incident reports in 2024 to be similar. the imf also reports that the number of attacks has doubled since the pandemic. heeding the lessons from the past as we celebrate ten years of european banking supervision, i think it is helpful to recall what was happening in the world when it was set up. european banking supervision was launched at a moment when the sovereign debt crisis threatened the cohesion of the euro area, when taxpayers'money was used to bail out banks and the global financial crisis was not far behind us. as the global financial crisis fades into the rearview mirror, it seems that competitiveness considerations have taken the wheel. however, just as guardrails on a motorway do not impede drivers but ensure they stay on the road, a robust regulatory framework sets safe boundaries for banks, enabling them to fulfil their role of lending to the real economy. and it is important to recall that, just as in the movie " jurassic park ", objects in the rearview mirror are closer than they appear. the global financial crisis is not so far behind us that we should not heed its lessons. let me take this motorway metaphor even further. countless studies show that speed limits not only reduce danger but also minimise congestion, thereby reducing the overall travel time. it's a fallacy to think that higher speed limits mean faster travel, just as laxer regulation does not lead to more sustainable growth. similarly, regulatory competition across countries is more likely to lead to a race to the bottom than to a robust regulatory framework. by contrast, the lack of a complete banking union is a significant impediment to a competitive and integrated european banking sector. achieving this goal means removing unnecessary barriers to cross - border banking and enabling cross - border groups to manage liquidity and capital at the group level. a fully integrated, crossborder european banking landscape would enable banks to diversify their risks and revenue streams, not only making them more efficient but also more resilient to domestic shocks. this would support private risk sharing and enhance the overall economy's