meta_id 3146213

On 12 May 2026, the European Banking Authority (EBA) provided its opinion to the European Commission regarding a macroprudential measure proposed by the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA). The EBA does not object to the Austrian FMA's intention to increase an existing sectoral systemic risk buffer to address risks in the Austrian commercial real estate market. The measure increases the systemic risk buffer rate from 1 percent to 3.5 percent for Austrian credit exposures to non-financial corporations operating in construction of buildings, specialised construction activities, and real estate services. Exposures to limited profit housing associations are exempt from the measure. For targeted exposures of a subset of banks, the combined rate of the other systemically important institutions (O-SII) buffer and the systemic risk buffer will exceed 5 percent. Institutions must apply the measure on a consolidated, sub-consolidated, and individual basis. The EBA acknowledges the ongoing macroprudential concerns of the Austrian FMA regarding commercial real estate exposures. The authority emphasises the importance of continued coordination and effective information sharing among relevant authorities to ensure the measure does not negatively affect the functioning of the internal market. The EBA also stresses the need for a holistic approach to monitoring existing measures to avoid unintended overlaps in capital requirements. The measure will be phased in, starting at 2 percent on 1 July 2026 and reaching the full 3.5 percent rate on 1 July 2027. The Austrian FMA notified the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) of its intention on 20 March 2026, pursuant to Article 133(11) of Directive 2013/36/EU (Capital Requirements Directive). REFERENCES: European Banking Authority. (2026). The EBA issues an opinion about an Austrian macroprudential measure. [Press Release]. Retrieved from https://www.eba.europa.eu/