A financial institution, sometimes called a banking institution, is a business entity that provides service as an intermediary for different types of financial monetary transactions. Broadly speaking, there are three major types of financial institution:
- Depository institution – deposit-taking institution that accepts and manages deposits and makes loans, including bank, building society, credit union, trust company, and mortgage broker;
- Contractual institution – insurance company and pension fund
- Investment institution – investment bank, underwriter, and other different types of financial entities managing investments.
Banking regulation and supervision refers to a form of financial regulation which subjects banks to certain requirements, restrictions and guidelines, enforced by a financial regulatory authority generally referred to as banking supervisor, with semantic variations across jurisdictions. By and large, banking regulation and supervision aims at ensuring that banks are safe and sound and at fostering market transparency between banks and the individuals and corporations with whom they conduct business.
The Financial Services Agency is a Japanese government agency and an integrated financial regulator responsible for overseeing banking, securities and exchange, and insurance sectors in order to ensure the stability of the financial system of Japan. The agency operates with a Commissioner and reports to the Minister of State for Financial Services. It oversees the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission and the Certified Public Accountants and Auditing Oversight Board. Its main office is located in Tokyo.
The Polish Securities and Exchange Commission,, (KPWiG) was the financial government agency responsible for supervising compliance with regulations governing honest trade and competition until 2006 when it was absorbed into the Polish Financial Supervision Authority.
The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, better known by its abbreviation BaFin, is Germany's integrated financial regulatory authority. Since 2014, it has been Germany's national competent authority within European Banking Supervision. It is an independent federal institution with headquarters in Bonn and Frankfurt and falls under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Finance. BaFin supervises about 2,700 banks, 800 financial services institutions, and over 700 insurance undertakings.
The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is South Korea's integrated financial regulator that examines and supervises financial institutions under the broad oversight of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), the government regulatory authority staffed by civil servants.
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) is a European Union financial regulatory agency. It was established in 2011 under Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010.
The Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) was an independent committee of European Securities regulators, in place from 2001 to 2010. On 1 January 2011, it was replaced by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).
The Committee of European Banking Supervisors (CEBS) was an independent advisory group on banking supervision in the European Union (EU), active from its establishment in 2004 to its replacement on 1 January 2011 by the European Banking Authority (EBA) which took over all its tasks and responsibilities following Regulation (EC) No. 1093/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010.
The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority is the Swiss government body responsible for financial regulation. This includes the supervision of banks, insurance companies, stock exchanges and securities dealers, as well as other financial intermediaries in Switzerland. FINMA's name and acronym are usually expressed in English so as to avoid the semblance of favouring any one of Switzerland's linguistic regions.
The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (DFSA) is the financial regulatory authority of the Danish government responsible for the regulation of financial markets in Denmark.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is an agency of the European Union located in Paris.
The European Banking Authority (EBA) is a regulatory agency of the European Union headquartered in La Défense, Île-de-France. Its activities include conducting stress tests on European banks to increase transparency in the European financial system and identifying weaknesses in banks' capital structures.
Foreign exchange regulation is a form of financial regulation specifically aimed at the Forex market that is decentralized and operates with no central exchange or clearing house. Due to its decentralized and global nature, the foreign exchange market has been more prone to foreign exchange fraud and has been less regulated than other financial markets.
The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) is the financial regulatory agency in Belgium.
European Banking Supervision, also known as the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM), is the policy framework for the prudential supervision of banks in the euro area. It is centered on the European Central Bank (ECB), whose supervisory arm is referred to as ECB Banking Supervision. EU member states outside of the euro area can also participate on a voluntary basis, as was the case of Bulgaria as of late 2023. European Banking Supervision was established by Regulation 1024/2013 of the Council, also known as the SSM Regulation, which also created its central decision-making body, the ECB Supervisory Board.
Amber Gold was a Polish financial institution founded on 27 January 2009 by Marcin Plichta and liquidated on 20 September 2012. It was a pyramid scheme. In 2014, the District Prosecutor's Office in Łódź estimated the losses caused by its illicit activities at almost 851 million złoty.
The Austrian Financial Market Authority is Austria's integrated financial regulatory authority and has been its national competent authority within European Banking Supervision since 2014. It is responsible for the supervision of credit institutions, payment institutions, insurance companies, pension funds, Fund managers, licensed securities service providers, and stock exchanges.
