The issue of systemic importance has received particular attention since the recent financial crisis when it came to the fore that an individual financial institution can disturb the whole financial system. Interconnectedness is considered as one of the key drivers of systemic importance....

The Basel Committee introduced countercyclical capital buffers in order to mitigate the effects of bank capital procyclicality, which is to say the decrease in the capital adequacy of banks in economic downturns. The ratio of loans to GDP was taken as the proxy for the economic cycle signaling...