Experiences in the United States show that local and national supervisors apply uniform supervisory standards with varying levels of strictness.6 This is why we should do our utmost to apply rules uniformly in Europe, thereby creating a genuine level playing field for banks. There are also areas in which the institutional framework can be improved for efficient European supervision.
  First, different tasks are bundled in the ECB. Alongside its actual task of monetary policy, the ECB Governing Council is ultimately also responsible for supervisory issues. These relate to microprudential and macroprudential supervision, with the latter addressing the stability of the financial system as a whole.