That said, the SSM Regulation stipulates that, if deemed necessary, the ECB may apply higher requirements for measures taken by national authorities, provided that these measures are set out in EU law and are intended to address systemic or macroprudential risk. In other words, the ECB can top up national measures under certain conditions.
A case in point is the countercyclical capital buffer, or CCyB, which can be released in periods of stress, although this has never actually occurred. And here, some basic questions need to be asked. What and who trigger this release? The turning point in the financial cycle or the stress in the banking system?