The European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) has published a report outlining the systemic implications of crypto markets and proposing policy options to address the risks stemming from crypto-assets and decentralised finance (DeFi).

The report finds that while this past year has been turbulent for cryptos and DeFi, the impact on the financial system was limited. The crypto market has few interlinkages with the traditional financial sector and the real economy, and none of those links are currently significant.

However, given the exponential growth and high volatility of cryptos, they need to be closely monitored as they may come to pose systemic risks. These risks could materialise if, for example, interconnectedness with the traditional financial system increases over time, new connections are not promptly identified, or if similar innovations – such as distributed ledger technology – are also widely adopted in traditional finance.

To better understand developments in crypto-assets and their potential financial stability implications, the report proposes a number of policy options. These policy options could also inform any future regulatory initiatives.

ESRB, May 2023 - Read the Report