In our region, these institutions are typically banks. In my view, these banks should become subject of a more stringent regulatory framework, in terms of capital and liquidity requirements, business and risk profile, including contingency plans. The supervisory authority should always be prepared for the worse and make sure that crisis management procedures are complete and tested. In this process, valid recommendations of international organizations will be closely followed for adequate implementation over time. It is important to have close coordination with other public authorities in the country, including government. 3. Anchors of macro-prudential policies  The role of anchors in monetary policy is well known. I mentioned before that an important lesson from the crisis for authorities would be to rigorously pursue countercyclical policies. I would like to stop a bit here and focus on this issue. I believe that Albania was prepared for the crisis because IMF programs have played an important role as a credible foreign anchor for economic policies. The IMF programs and similar EU membership process have played a similar role in all CEE and SEE countries. However as the countries have matured out of these programs or joined the EU, the political incentives to continue fiscal consolidation have been fading away. Current events show that the symptoms have spread to other older members of EU, where such policies become the reason behind instability. Therefore the role of anchors is very important for preserving and safeguarding financial stability. Sound, clear and enforceable fiscal rule would be an important step.
Just as problems originating on a particular sector of the economy can escalate into general macroeconomic imbalances, so financial market imbalances in one financial institution or one country can disrupt other financial institutions or countries. Collaboration between home-host supervisors is therefore a must, but I would argue that probably more can be done in this regard. My third message concerns the role of anchors in the design and implementation of macro-prudential policies. Monetary policy is made credible from the clear focus on a transparent measure of price stability (CPI inflation) which in turn increases the accountability of the central bank pursuing it and ultimately its operational flexibility. Financial stability is inherently a more difficult concept, even on a theoretical level, but I think more should be done to quantify the term and unify its understanding. This would allow for more transparent communication and increased public support for the central bank’s action. I will now expand on these issues. 1. Price stability and macro-prudential measures  A panoramic glance at the experience of central and eastern European economies with the latest crisis would indicate a broad range of outcomes. While this might look normal at first view, it is worth remembering that CEE countries share quite a few commonalities in their economic and financial structures. Furthermore, they were hit by the same type of external shock, at exactly the same time. One has thus a fair approximation of a controlled experiment on the role of macroeconomic policies before and during the crisis.