Suomen Pankki

Resilience must be strengthened among borrowers, banks and payment systems

Share

Russia’s invasion has brought immeasurable human suffering and destruction to Ukraine and its people. The war’s far-reaching economic and political effects will also be felt in the financial system. The extent of the drag on economic growth will depend on the war’s duration and scale.

Finland’s financial system has remained stable. However, financial stability risks have grown since the start of the war. The weakened economic outlook, the increase in energy prices, the anticipated rise in interest rates and the possibility that finance will be less easily available will all serve to exacerbate the financial stability risks. The resilience of the entire financial system – borrowers, banks and payment systems – should be strengthened.

Household indebtedness has long been on the rise and is at a record high. New housing loans are bigger than before and increasingly often they are longer than the traditional term of 25 years. The high level of household indebtedness is a risk to the stability of the financial system. ‘Households taking a loan should be sure that their ability to repay it can withstand a rise in interest rates, higher household outgoings and any uncertainty in the jobs market,’ says Marja Nykänen, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Finland.

New macroprudential instruments are being planned for curbing debt accumulation among Finnish households. The Government’s draft proposal puts forward the idea of duration limits for housing loans and loans to housing companies, and a repayment obligation and loan cap for housing company loans. The planned reforms are necessary and merit support. Nevertheless, the instruments are still set to remain insufficient, as the reforms do not do enough to curb the growth in indebtedness. Alongside these steps, a ceiling on debt or debt-servicing costs in relation to the income of the borrower would also be needed.

The banking sector’s vulnerabilities are also exacerbated by the sector’s substantial size and concentration. Furthermore, Finland’s financial stability may be threatened by events external to the financial system – fresh examples are the war and the pandemic. ‘Vulnerabilities require banks to have good resilience in all circumstances. The authorities should be better able than they presently are to ensure that banks have adequate buffers to cope with unforeseen eventualities. Reinforcing banks’ capital buffers should be possible in more varied ways than currently,’ says Deputy Governor Nykänen.

The prevailing uncertainty also brings other threats. More determined preparedness for cyber threats and payment and settlement system vulnerabilities is needed. Making payments is one of society’s vital functions. “The financial sector is part of the chain ensuring national security of supply, and this must not be allowed to break, even in emergencies. If the use of systems is prevented for some reason, it is vital for the functioning of society that payments are managed in some other way,” says Nykänen. The design, construction and testing of smoothly functioning backup systems requires more active collaboration between the industry and the authorities.

Keywords

Images

Links

About Suomen Pankki

Suomen Pankki
Suomen Pankki
Snellmaninaukio, PL 160
00101 HELSINKI

09 1831http://www.bof.fi

The Bank of Finland is the national monetary authority and central bank of Finland. At the same time, it is also a part of the Eurosystem, which is responsible for monetary policy and other central bank tasks in the euro area and administers use of the world’s second largest currency – the euro.

Subscribe to releases from Suomen Pankki

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Suomen Pankki by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Suomen Pankki

Hushållen har mycket konsumtionskrediter – tillväxttakten har mattats av1.7.2025 10:00:00 EEST | Pressmeddelande

I maj 2025 uppgick det utestående beloppet av konsumtionskrediter som banker med verksamhet i Finland beviljat hushåll till 17,6 miljarder euro och utlåningen minskade med −0,7 % från året innan. Minskningen i det utestående beloppet av konsumtionskrediter är en följd av att utnyttjandet av konto- och kortkrediter och utbetalningarna av konsumtionskrediter utan säkerhet har minskat. Konsumtionskrediter beviljade av banker står för 63 % av hushållens totala utestående konsumtionskrediter. I maj 2025 minskade hushållens utestående kortkrediter[1] (3,6 miljarder euro) med −1,0[2] jämfört med ett år tidigare, då de utestående kortkrediterna vid motsvarande tidpunkt året innan ökade med nästan 6 %. Vid utgången av maj var 19 % av kortkrediterna räntefri betaltidskredit och 81 % äkta kortkrediter, dvs. kortkredit med ränta. I januari–maj 2025 utbetalades från bankerna 9 % mindre sedvanliga konsumtionskrediter utan säkerhet[3] jämfört med motsvarande tidpunkt ett år tidigare. Också det utestå

Kotitalouksilla runsaasti kulutusluottoja –kasvuvauhti hidastunut1.7.2025 10:00:00 EEST | Tiedote

Toukokuussa 2025 Suomessa toimivien pankkien kotitalouksille myöntämien kulutusluottojen kanta oli 17,6 mrd. euroa ja se supistui vuodentakaisesta −0,7 %. Kulutusluottokannan supistumiseen vaikuttavat tili- ja korttiluottojen vähentynyt käyttö ja vähäisemmät vakuudettomien kulutusluottojen nostomäärät. Pankkien myöntämät kulutusluotot kattavat 63 % kotitalouksien kokonaiskulutusluottokannasta. Toukokuussa 2025 kotitalouksien korttiluottokanta[1] (3,6 mrd. euroa) supistui −1,0 %[2] vuodentakaiseen verrattuna, kun vuosi sitten vastaavana aikana korttiluottokanta kasvoi lähes 6 prosentin vauhdilla. Toukokuun lopussa korttiluotoista 19 % oli korotonta maksuaikaluottoa ja 81 % pidennettyjä korttiluottoja eli korollista korttiluottoa. Tavanomaisia vakuudettomia kulutusluottoja[3] nostettiin pankeista tammi-toukokuun 2025 aikana 9 % vähemmän kuin vuosi sitten vastaavana aikana. Myös vakuudettomien kulutusluottojen kanta supistui toukokuussa. Suomessa toimivien pankkien myöntämistä kulutusluot

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye