Supervision Newsletter - August 2026
Interview
"Fragmentation is a strategic vulnerability"
Eurogroup President Kyriakos Pierrakakis explains in an interview that Europe must strengthen the banking union, facilitate cross-border banking and mobilise savings for investment if it wants to boost competitiveness, resilience and strategic autonomy.
Read the interviewIn focus
Timely remediation for more resilient banks
Further enhancements to the ECB’s findings and measures approach will sharpen focus on risk, simplify follow-up for less relevant issues and support timely remediation by banks. Supervisors will apply the new approach going forward and in a one-off review of outstanding measures.
Article on timely remediation
More risk-focused and effective on-site investigations
The ECB is further improving on-site investigations. Banks are seeing better coordination, faster investigations and shorter, more focused reports, allowing banks and supervisors to prioritise issues and follow up more effectively.
Article on on-site investigations
Investment banking: connecting banks, markets and the economy
Investment banking supports innovation and growth and helps banks diversify their income. But alongside the benefits, there are also significant risks. The ECB – without discouraging sound capital market activity – regularly assesses whether banks manage those risks effectively.
Article on investment bankingKey data
Significant banks’ NSFR hits record low since 2021
The net stable funding ratio (NSFR) fell to 125.63% in Q1 2026, its lowest level since the time series began. Compared with Q4 2025, the decline was driven by a required stable funding increase, led by loan growth of €167 billion (up 1.7%).
Explore the liquidity and funding metrics
Smaller banks’ capital build-up stalls
Less significant institutions’ profitability and capital climbed from 2022 to 2024, as higher rates supported earnings and helped beef up capital. Since then, both have levelled off: return on equity has settled near 7%, while capital growth slightly improved again in Q1 2026.
Explore the profit and loss figuresDid you know...
… that the ECB and national competent authorities (NCAs) have published their first joint annual report on whistleblowing, highlighting how whistleblowing helps keep banks safe? The ECB and NCAs have established secure, confidential channels for whistleblowers to report suspected breaches of prudential regulation. In 2025 most of the reports relevant to prudential supervision focused on internal governance issues at banks. While not all of these reports provided enough evidence for immediate action, supervisors used various tools to follow up where needed. Most reports fell outside the scope of prudential supervision, often relating to consumer protection. Several NCAs provide online resources to help consumers identify the appropriate authority for handling such complaints. Whistleblowers play an important role in banking supervision. By helping supervisors identify risks at an early stage, they contribute to protecting banks, customers and the financial system.
Read the annual report on whistleblowing- 2 September 2026
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Claudia Buch at Bruegel Annual Meetings 2026
The Chair of the Supervisory Board will join a panel to discuss European banking, growth and resilience.
- 15 September 2026
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Claudia Buch at Goethe Universität financial market regulation and supervision conference
The Chair of the Supervisory Board will speak about the role of banking supervisors and regulators amid increasing public and market scrutiny.
- 22 September 2026
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Claudia Buch at Foreign Bankers Association annual conference
The Chair of the Supervisory Board will deliver a keynote speech on how digitalisation and digital assets are reshaping banks, banking supervision and the broader financial system.
- 24 September 2026
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Patrick Montagner at BFF-EBF-SUERF conference
The ECB representative to the Supervisory Board will explore how simplification efforts can be balanced with the need to maintain a competitive and resilient financial sector.
- 28 September 2026
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Pedro Machado at Expansión Financial Forum
The ECB representative to the Supervisory Board will outline supervisory priorities for European banks and address risk management challenges posed by a changing economic environment.
- 29 September 2026
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Anneli Tuominen at Svenska Dagbladet Bank Summit 2026
The ECB representative to the Supervisory Board will explore financial resilience in the Nordic region and the systemic vulnerabilities present in the financial system.
- 1 October 2026
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Patrick Montagner at S&P Global Ratings European Financial Institutions Conference 2026
The ECB representative to the Supervisory Board will participate in a panel discussion on the challenges and opportunities facing European banks, including regulatory simplification and digital innovation.
- 5 October 2026
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Claudia Buch and Sharon Donnery at OeNB-SUERF-JVI-Yale conference
The Chair of the Supervisory Board and the ECB representative to the Supervisory Board will discuss the implications of digital finance and artificial intelligence for financial stability and supervision.
- 6 October 2026
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Frank Elderson at FMA annual supervisory conference
The Vice-Chair of the Supervisory Board will participate in a panel discussion on the role of effective supervision and enforcement in safeguarding the resilience and integrity of the European banks.
- 6 November 2026
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Sharon Donnery at 2026 IIF European Banking Regulation and Supervision Colloquium
The ECB representative to the Supervisory Board will deliver a keynote speech on strengthening European banking sector competitiveness through simplification and reform.