Stress tests should be subject to stress tests. Would the banks that passed the version of the test imposed by Europe's financial regulators be able to fund themselves adequately if implicit or explicit state guarantees of their non-deposit liabilities were withdrawn? This further test should be applied to each bank individually, and for the group of systemically important banks as a whole. The outcome would indicate how far Europe's banks have progressed in being able to survive without public subsidy. Not far, I suspect.
压力测试本身也应该接受“压力测试”。如果政府撤销对其非存款债务的隐性或显性担保,那些通过了欧洲金融监管机构压力测试的银行,能够为自己融得足够资金吗?所有银行都应单独接受这种进一步的测试,而那些具有系统重要性的银行则应作为一个整体接受测试。测试结果将显示出,欧洲银行在不靠公共补贴维持存续方面有多大的进展。我估计,进展不大。