On top of their key involvement in the financial sector, central banks possess three main features that are qualifying themselves for that function: they are, by their very nature, anchors of stability; they are medium-term oriented; and they are independent. Central banks have traditionally been active in financial stability analysis. Of course, from financial stability analysis to macro-prudential supervision is yet another step.
Financial stability describes the overall resilience of the system, focusing on imbalances and stresses in the financial system in the aggregate. While macro-prudential supervision takes a similarly broad view, it must also focus on specific sources of instability or specific groups of financial institutions, adding the policy component to the oversight function.