The IMF and the World Bank have worked together with central bankers and regulators to develop the "Financial Sector Assessment Program" as a systematic way to identify weaknesses and sources of vulnerability in national financial sectors. It is designed to help countries to enhance their resilience to crises and cross-border contagion, and to foster growth, by promoting financial system soundness and financial sector diversity.
Austria has declared its interest to participate in this program and will thus have its financial sector systematically monitored with respect to its resilience to shocks. Let me next turn to the debate about the European regulatory framework. By abolishing national boundaries and harmonizing different legislations, European integration has fostered the development of a single financial market in Europe.