How the Riksbank is scrutinised

It is important that the Riksbank is evaluated and scrutinised effectively, as the Riksbank is an autonomous central bank with independent status. The Riksbank must therefore be as open as possible about the basis for its decisions and how its operations are conducted. This makes it easier for those who scrutinise the Riksbank.

Review of the Riksbank by the Riksdag, the General Council and the National Audit Office

The Riksdag’s scrutiny

In the Riksdag, it is the Committee on Finance that monitors and evaluates the Riksbank’s activities. The Riksbank shall regularly, or upon request, submit a report to the Riksdag’s Committee on Finance on its monetary policy operations and other activities. The Riksdag Committee on Finance’s follow-up and assessment is done partly through hearings with the Governor and other members of the Executive Board, partly through thematic follow-ups and evaluations and through annual assessments of monetary policy. Moreover, every year, the Committee on Finance commissions external experts to evaluate the Riksbank’s monetary policy decisions. Every few years, this review is carried out by foreign experts.

Scrutiny by the General Council of the Riksbank

The General Council of the Riksbank, which is appointed by the Riksdag and which in turn appoints the members of the Executive Board of the Riksbank, has, among other things, a control function. The General Council shall follow up the work of the Executive Board and the Riksbank’s operations. The General Council shall inform the Riksdag Committee on Finance of matters of major importance and shall report its observations to the Committee on a regular basis or upon request. 

The General Council has an audit function that scrutinises the work of the Executive Board in terms of, for example, cooperation and division of labour within the Executive Board, the efficiency and effectiveness of its meetings and the performance of its members’ official duties. The General Council of the Riksbank adopts an annual plan for the work of the audit function and reports its observations to the Committee on Finance.

Swedish National Audit Office scrutiny

The Swedish National Audit Office is tasked with annually auditing the Riksbank’s annual accounts and ensuring that its activities comply with applicable regulations. The National Audit Office can also decide to order a performance audit. 

Media scrutiny of the Riksbank

Media scrutiny is particularly important for the Riksbank to maintain public confidence. To achieve a high level of transparency towards both the media and the general public, we therefore have two keywords for our communication: open and clear.

Private financial information of Executive Board members is reported to the Riksdag

The Executive Board, that is to say the Governor, the First Deputy Governor and the Deputy Governors shall each report certain private financial information to the Riksdag in writing. The purpose of the reporting obligation is primarily to monitor compliance with the prohibition on insider trading but also to strengthen confidence in the Riksbank.

The information is public and what the members of the Executive Board must report is specified in the Sveriges Riksbank Act. It covers:

• holdings of financial instruments, such as shares and funds
• holdings of shares in a partnership or a cooperative association (apart from a cooperative housing association) and participations in an equivalent foreign legal person
• ownership of commercial property
• agreements of a financial nature with a former employer, such as a salary or pension benefits, provided during the period covered by their employment
• liabilities and the terms and conditions thereof. 

Members should make a report to the Riksdag at the start of their employment. Changes must then be reported on an ongoing basis (if they fulfil certain predetermined requirements) within four weeks of the change taking place. The Riksdag is responsible for checking that members comply with the reporting requirement. The General Council’s audit function confirms the accuracy of the data. The information can be requested from the Secretariat of the Chamber.

Members of the General Council also report personal financial data

The Chair and Vice-Chair of the General Council of the Riksbank are subject to the same notification obligation as the members of the Executive Board. Their information, like that of the members of the Executive Board, is public. The other members of the General Council of the Riksbank must report their holdings of financial instruments, such as funds and shares, and changes in such holdings. The other members' information is covered by the provision on confidentiality for information on holdings of financial instruments in Chapter 32, Section 6 of the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act (2009:400).

The Riksdag is responsible for checking that members of the General Council of the Riksbank comply with the reporting requirement.

Personal financial data reported by employees and contractors

Employees of the Riksbank are required to declare their holdings of financial instruments, such as funds and shares, and changes in such holdings. This information may also be subject to confidentiality under Chapter 32, Section 6 of the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act.

Where are the rules on what must be notified?

The provisions concerning the reporting obligation are contained in Chapter 7, Sections 20–22 of the Sveriges Riksbank Act. Further provisions on the obligation to report and on other principles that are central to the authority's employees in their role as civil servants can be found in the Riksbank's Code of Ethics. The corresponding provisions applicable to the General Council and the Executive Board are set out in the Code of Ethics for Members of the General Council and the Executive Board.