Stacking risks: uncertainty requires a resilient and agile financial sector

Accumulation of risks exacerbates pressure on financial markets

Economic uncertainty, rapid technological advances and ongoing geopolitical tensions are becoming ever more interconnected. The situation surrounding Iran illustrates how quickly events can affect energy prices, inflation expectations and market dynamics. This creates an environment in which shocks follow one another at increasing speed—and often reinforce each other.

'We are dealing with an accumulation of risks, while in the past even one of these would have made us nervous. This has become our new normal: unpredictable, short cyclical and cumulative. In the coming period, we must be prepared for that. True stability lies not in trying to return to an old equilibrium, but in our ability to navigate this unpredictability, says Laura van Geest.
According to the AFM, this means that resilience and agility are more crucial than ever for the financial sector. Companies must be able to identify risks faster, maintain robust buffers and prepare for developments that no longer occur sequentially, but in clusters and at an accelerating pace. For the AFM as a supervisor, this requires a sharp focus on emerging risks, stronger cooperation within Europe and regulation that keeps pace with a world in which uncertainty has become the norm.

Homeowner vulnerable: provide responsible financing for foundation repair   

New research by the AFM sheds light on the scale of the repair and financing challenge facing homeowners with foundation problems. Half a million homeowners have a vulnerable foundation. More than 120,000 of them require foundation repair—an overall restoration task of 11 billion euros. Most homeowners cannot finance the repairs immediately, and for more than 25,000, taking out a loan does not appear to be a responsible option. According to the AFM, this is a complex challenge that the sector and relevant stakeholders must address together.

Good preconditions are crucial for the use of AI in capital markets

In an exploratory study on artificial intelligence (AI) in the capital markets, the AFM concludes that autonomous and self learning systems offer clear opportunities, such as more efficient pricing and better informed investment decisions. At the same time, as this technology continues to develop, more decisions are being made by AI while insight into the underlying decision‑making process is diminishing. This heightens the risk of sudden market volatility and the emergence of new, hard-to-detect forms of market abuse, and it complicates supervision. The AFM therefore emphasises that human involvement, the ability to intervene and clear responsibility remain essential preconditions.

More information

'Annual Report 2025' (pdf, 2 MB)
Webpage with annual reports AFM
News item regarding the report 'Foundation repair financeable for homeowners'
Report 'Foundation repair financeable for homeowners' (pdf, 1.5 MB)
News item regarding the report 'AI in Capital Marktes Balancing Innovation and Integrity'
Report 'AI in Capital Marktes Balancing Innovation and Integrity' (pdf, 700 kB)
Public Summary 'AI in Capital Marktes Balancing Innovation and Integrity' (pdf, 2.2 MB)