## Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP)

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP)](https://www.imf.org/en/about/factsheets/sheets/2023/financial-sector-assessment-program-fsap)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/about/factsheets/sheets/2023/financial-sector-assessment-program-fsap/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/about/factsheets/sheets/2023/financial-sector-assessment-program-fsap/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/about/factsheets/sheets/2023/financial-sector-assessment-program-fsap/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Published: January 13, 2023

---

### What an FSAP is
- The Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) provides a comprehensive, in-depth analysis of the resilience of a country’s financial sector.
- The FSAP includes “stress tests” of financial institutions, an evaluation of the quality of supervision and regulation of the sector, and an assessment of the crisis management framework.
- To date, more than three-quarters of IMF’s member countries have undergone assessments.

### Purpose and institutional roles
- The purpose of an FSAP is to help countries minimize the occurrence and severity of financial crises.
- The FSAP was launched in 1999 with two goals: to gauge the stability and soundness of a country’s financial sector and assess how the financial sector can contribute to growth and development.
- FSAPs are done jointly by IMF and World Bank staff in developing and emerging market countries and by the IMF alone in advanced economies.
  - The IMF specializes in the stability aspects.
  - The World Bank focuses on the developmental needs of the financial system.

### Coverage of the FSAP stability assessment
- Whether joint or stand-alone, the stability assessment is produced by the IMF and covers three components:
  1. the source, probability, and potential impact of the main risks to macro-financial stability in the near-term;
  2. the country’s financial stability policy framework; and
  3. the authorities’ capacity to manage and resolve a financial crisis should the risks materialize.
- The key findings of the stability assessment are summarized in the Financial System Stability Assessment (FSSA), prepared by the IMF team.
- The FSSA is a key input to IMF surveillance.

### Integration into IMF policy advice and mandatory assessments
- FSAP findings provide input into the IMF’s broader surveillance and policy advice, known as Article IV consultations.
- When the FSAP began in 1999, assessments were voluntary.
- In 2010, the IMF made it mandatory for 25 countries with systemically important financial sectors to undergo FSAP assessments every five years.
- In 2013, the IMF’s Executive Board revised the methodology to place greater emphasis on interconnectedness, expanding the list of systemically important financial sector countries to 29.
- The 2021 FSAP Review found stakeholders highly valued the program and the Executive Board endorsed the 2013 methodology with minor adjustments, making mandatory financial stability assessment more risk-based.
  - The list of countries mandated to undergo FSAP assessments rose to 47.
  - Of these, 32 countries and the euro area are expected to participate once every five years.
  - The other 15—many of them emerging market economies—participate every 10 years.
- The 2021 FSAP Review emphasized further integration of FSAPs with Article IV consultations and the Comprehensive Surveillance Review.

---


## References

- [Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP)](https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/fssa)
- [stability and soundness of a country’s financial sector](https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/Financial-System-Soundness)
- [IMF surveillance](https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/IMF-Surveillance)
- [FSAP assessments every five years](https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2015/09/14/01/49/pr10357)
- [revised the methodology to place greater emphasis on interconnectedness](https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2015/09/14/01/49/pr1408)
- [2021 FSAP Review](https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/Policy-Papers/Issues/2021/05/28/2021-Financial-Sector-Assessment-Program-Review-Towards-A-More-Stable-And-Sustainable-460517)
- [Comprehensive Surveillance Review](https://www.imf.org/en/Topics/Comprehensive-Surveillance-Review)

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/about/factsheets/sheets/2023/financial-sector-assessment-program-fsap_