Priorities & risks
Our supervisory priorities set out the focus of our activities for the next three years. They are revisited each year to reflect changes in the risk landscape and progress made on the previous year’s priorities, and can be adjusted at any time if justified by risk developments. They guide the operational planning of supervisory activities over the medium term and ensure resources are allocated efficiently.
The priorities are based on the key risks that supervised banks face in the current macro-financial and geopolitical environment.
Supervisory priorities 2025-2027What are supervisory priorities?
Priority 1
Strengthen ability to withstand macro-financial and geopolitical shocks
The current environment is shaped by persistent uncertainty surrounding the macroeconomic outlook and an increasing intensity of geopolitical threats. We need to make sure banks are able to address the immediate impact of external shocks on their business, operations and risk profile.
Strengthening banks’ resilience to shocksSpecial focus
Management of geopolitical risks
Heightened geopolitical risks require banks to reassess their strategies and operations to address mounting threats and accordingly adopt robust risk controls and mitigation plans across all risk categories.
Management of geopolitical risksPriority 2
Remedy material shortcomings effectively
The progressive shift in focus from risk identification to risk remediation is an essential feature of the SSM-wide supervisory strategy. Banks with unresolved material shortcomings will be asked to step up their efforts to comply fully with supervisory expectations.
Timely and effective remediation of material shortcomingsPriority 3
Strengthen digitalisation strategies and tackle emerging challenges
Banks need to step up their digital transformation efforts to cope with increasing competition and have adequate safeguards in place to limit potential risks stemming from new business practices and technologies.
Digitalisation strategies and emerging challengesHow do we use the supervisory priorities and the risk assessment?
The SSM priorities feed into bank-specific supervisory planning, as joint supervisory teams apply a targeted risk tolerance framework that promotes effective and risk-based supervision. In this way, the priorities are also important for the following year’s Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP) and they benefit from the outcome of the previous year’s SREP exercise.