Both financial market participants and the regulatory authorities were swayed by these arguments, at least to some extent, and were therefore willing to tolerate much greater leverage than had been seen in the past. Yet, with the benefit of hindsight, it is now clear that the value of these financial innovations was more apparent than real.
Since then, this project – known as the Bundesbank Online Panel Households – has made notable advances. It has been conducted every month since April 2020. In June 2020, another survey – the Bundesbank Online Panel Firms – went live. Since July 2021, this survey has been providing monthly data on firms' expectations.