Purpose
This report presents the Federal Reserve Board's current assessment of the resilience of the U.S. financial system. By publishing this report, the Board intends to promote public understanding and increase transparency and accountability for the Federal Reserve's views on this topic.
Promoting financial stability is a key element in meeting the Federal Reserve's dual mandate for monetary policy regarding full employment and stable prices. In an unstable financial system, adverse events are more likely to result in severe financial stress and disrupt the flow of credit, leading to high unemployment and great financial hardship. Monitoring and assessing financial stability also support the Federal Reserve's regulatory and supervisory activities, which promote the safety and soundness of our nation's banks and other important financial institutions. Information gathered while monitoring the stability of the financial system helps the Federal Reserve develop its view of the salient risks to be included in the scenarios of the stress tests and its setting of the countercyclical capital buffer (CCyB).1
The Board's Financial Stability Report is similar to those published by other central banks and complements the annual report of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), which is chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury and includes the Federal Reserve Board Chair and other financial regulators.
References
1. More information on the Federal Reserve's supervisory and regulatory activities is available on the Board's website; see Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (2021), Supervision and Regulation Report (Washington: Board of Governors, April), available at https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/supervision-and-regulation-report.htm as well as the webpages for Supervision and Regulation (https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg.htm) and Payment Systems (https://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems.htm). Moreover, additional details about the conduct of monetary policy are also on the Board's website; see the Monetary Policy Report (https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/mpr_default.htm) and the webpage for Monetary Policy (https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy.htm). Return to text