ECB Annual Report on supervisory activities

• 1,295 public enquiries received, of which 608 enquiries on general banking supervision issues,
619 complaints about banks and 68 enquiries about supervised entities;
• 34 replies to questions from MEPs on supervisory matters published.
In 2016 <strong>ECB</strong> Banking Supervision stepped up its direct interaction with supervised banks. By
means of publications, press releases, workshops and explanatory calls, <strong>ECB</strong> Banking Supervision
explained the SREP and stress test methodologies to banks. Moreover, the <strong>ECB</strong> sought feedback
from the industry: the European Banking Federation’s annual survey on the “SSM supervisory
experience” showed that <strong>ECB</strong> Banking Supervision has made progress in communicating
effectively and clearly. Regarding the SREP specifically, 13 meetings and one teleconference were
held with banking associations. The <strong>ECB</strong> also held an exchange of views with representatives from
the office of the European Ombudsman, Ms Emily O’Reilly, on the transparency of the SREP. In a
letter to the Chair, Ms O’Reilly expressed her contentment with the ways in which the <strong>ECB</strong> ensured
transparency in the way the SREP is conducted and made some further recommendations.
Since December 2016, <strong>ECB</strong> Banking Supervision has published aggregate data on the balance
sheet composition, profitability, solvency and credit risk of supervised banks. These supervisory
banking statistics are disclosed on the <strong>ECB</strong>’s banking supervision website on a quarterly basis and
include breakdowns according to geography and bank classification.
Transparency is also ensured through the <strong>ECB</strong>’s public access regime. The <strong>ECB</strong>’s Decision on
public access to <strong>ECB</strong> documents 52 is in line with the objectives and standards applied by other EU
institutions and bodies with regard to public access to their documents. It increases transparency,
while at the same time taking into account the independence of the <strong>ECB</strong> and the NCAs and
ensuring that certain matters specific to the performance of the <strong>ECB</strong>’s tasks remain confidential.
Members of the public submitted an increased number of requests for public access to documents
relating to the supervisory tasks of the <strong>ECB</strong> in 2016.
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Decision (EU) 2015/529 of 21 January 2015 amending Decision <strong>ECB</strong>/2004/3 on public access to
European Central Bank documents (<strong>ECB</strong>/2015/1, OJ L 84, 28.3.2015, p. 64.) Under these rules, any
member of the public has a right of access to <strong>ECB</strong> documents, subject to certain conditions set out in
the <strong>ECB</strong> decision. The decision sets out grounds for refusing access to documents, e.g. the
confidentiality of the proceedings of the <strong>ECB</strong>'s decision-making bodies, the Supervisory Board or other
internal bodies.
<strong>ECB</strong> <strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong> on supervisory activities 2016 − Organisational set-up of <strong>ECB</strong> Banking
Supervision 64