^aInternational Capital Markets Department, International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC, USA. E-mail: ghaeusler@imf.org

¹The views expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF or IMF policy.

Abstract

This paper asks whether the transfer of risk from banking to non-banking institutions, such as insurers, has reduced risk for the financial system as a whole or merely shifted it to less transparent sectors. If the latter is the case, then it may be that new forms of risk and vulnerability are being introduced into the global financial system.