The Bank of Italy published a readout from the Committee for Macroprudential Policies’ meeting in Rome, where members assessed that the main risks to Italy’s financial system still stem from an international environment marked by high uncertainty. The committee said the financial position of banks, households and firms is sound overall, although they remain exposed to global geopolitical risks, and it noted that financial markets have continued to function in an orderly way. Supporting that assessment, the committee pointed to elevated global equity valuations, especially in the technology sector, and said rapid advances in artificial intelligence are creating opportunities for financial operators while also increasing vulnerabilities, particularly operational and cyber risks. It said Italian authorities are closely assessing those risks and have highlighted their importance to supervised intermediaries. The committee also said it continues to monitor household investment in certificates, which remained broadly stable in the second half of 2025 but at high levels, and reviewed work by a Ministry of Economy and Finance group on household crypto-asset investment. It discussed possible EU-level and national initiatives to make more information available on the placement of those instruments. The committee also reviewed the analytical and operational framework supporting its work on benchmarks used in financial contracts, which is due to be completed in the second half of 2026. In addition, it examined possible ways to implement the preliminary recommendations on its activity prepared by the International Monetary Fund under Italy’s Financial Sector Assessment Program. Minutes of the meeting will be published later.
Bank of Italy2026-06-18
Bank of Italy macroprudential committee flags international uncertainty as the main risk to the Italian financial system
The Bank of Italy said its macroprudential committee sees international uncertainty as the main risk to Italy’s financial system, while judging banks, households and firms to be sound overall and markets to be functioning orderly. The committee also highlighted AI-related operational and cyber risks, kept household holdings of complex certificates and crypto-assets under review, and discussed steps to improve information on the placement of those instruments. It expects to complete its framework on financial-contract benchmarks in the second half of 2026.