The official site of Italy's central bank

Market and Payment system oversight

The functions of market and payment system oversight aim to promote the efficiency and reliability of the financial markets and the payment system in order to foster effective monetary policy, to contribute - by limiting the risk of systemic crises - to the stability of the financial system, and to maintain the public's confidence in the currency and in other payment instruments.

As far as market supervision is concerned, the Consolidated Law on Finance entrusts the Bank of Italy with supervisory responsibilities, in varying degree shared with Consob, in respect of markets relevant to monetary policy and clearing, guarantee, settlement and central depository systems for financial instruments (the so called post-trading infrastructures). The Bank of Italy has regulatory powers with regard to post-trading that are to be exercised in agreement with Consob, while the Bank has sole supervisory powers over the organized trading of interbank funds, it too relevant to monetary policy.

Payment system oversight is an integral part of the tasks assigned to the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) within the European institutional and legislative framework. In Italy the Consolidated Law on Banking formally assigns to the Bank of Italy the role of promoting the regular operation of payment systems and accordingly empowers it to issue regulations to ensure the efficiency and reliability of clearing and payment systems.

The efficiency and reliability of the several areas of interest to the Oversight - financial markets, post-trading, large-value and retail payment systems, infrastructures and payment instruments - are pursued by the Bank of Italy within the framework of guidelines, principles and standards that the Bank of Italy itself helps to set within the Eurosystem and international cooperative fora.