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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Analytical
  • For Experts
  • Insider's Take

Recommendation

Financial regulators believe a stable and sound banking architecture can mitigate shocks to the macroeconomy. Indeed, the credit contagion of 2008 and subsequent calamitous recession proved the need for a robust financial ecosystem. Professionals at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System examine “vulnerabilities” in the current financial environment and their implications for the overall economy. Financial executives will appreciate this valuable report on the health of the US financial sector.

Summary

To prevent another credit crisis, the Federal Reserve Board tracks “vulnerabilities” that could stress the financial architecture of the US economy. Unlike the jolts that come out of nowhere to rattle the financial system, vulnerabilities emerge gradually and follow predictable patterns. The Fed focuses on four types of vulnerabilities:

  1. “Elevated valuation pressures”  Investors chasing high returns can inflate prices of assets beyond the levels that “economic fundamentals or historical norms” indicate are rational, creating bubbles that could pop under liquidity or selling pressures. This...

About the Author

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve oversees the US Federal Reserve System.