The reliance on retail deposits has been a major source of funding for the domestic banks. These remained stable during the period of financial turmoil. In other countries, banks that relied heavily on wholesale funding sources came under severe stress as interbank markets dried up and the cost of funding increased significantly. As I mentioned earlier the Eurosystem has stepped in with ample liquidity, and the Central Bank of Malta, as an active member of the system, stands ready to fulfil its intermediation role within the local banking system. Nevertheless, it is firmly my view that domestic banks should continue to operate along the lines of their traditional business model. This method of doing business has certainly protected them from the vagaries of the wholesale funding market. In this context, I would like to emphasise once again that the Central Bank will not be supportive of banking institutions that operate in Malta and seek central bank liquidity as their primary source of funding their loan and investment activities. When a banking institution funds its purchase of high yielding assets from short term sources, it is not only exposing itself to losses on the asset side but also to adverse changes in its funding costs, particularly at a time when historically low interest rates are in effect. For this reason, the Central Bank expects such institutions to look primarily to the markets for their funding requirements. I am pleased to note as well that the domestic banking system continues to be characterised by relatively high liquidity levels.
On the one hand, it needed to rapidly address the immediate financing needs of distressed countries, but at the same time it also recognised that the origins of the crisis had to be tackled through a comprehensive reform in economic governance in the Euro area. When Greece signalled that it needed financial support from its Euro area partners, the first financial programme for this country took the form of a bilateral loan agreement with its euro area partners, supplemented by aid from the IMF. It was clear at the outset that there was a need to establish a framework that could swiftly and efficiently respond to possible requests from other Member States. Thus, in May 2010 the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) was set up with a lending capacity backed by guarantees from the Member States of the euro area. As from July 2013, the EFSF will be replaced by a permanent framework, in the form of the European Stability Mechanism. 2  See I. Sarmas, “The Greek Financial Crisis from an Auditor’s Point of View”, World Class Performance Symposium 2011: Trust and accountability in public financial management, London, 17 March 2011. 3  See J. M. Gonzalez-Paramo, “The reform of the Stability and Growth Pact: an assessment”, Conference on “New Perspectives on Fiscal Sustainability”, Frankfurt, 13 October 2005.