1  2  See speech by Mario Draghi, Monetary policy communication in turbulent times, at the Conference De Nederlandsche Bank 200 years: Central banking in the next two decades, Amsterdam, 24 April 2014.
Profitability is not a goal in itself, but a means towards an end – and this end is the stability of a bank and its capacity to meet regulatory capital requirements. That’s why supervisors are concerned about falling profitability. Efficiency, in turn, is a means towards the end of profitability – where increased cost efficiency improves the return.