Recent structural changes of the global financial system have led to competing theories about whether this probability has increased or decreased. On one hand, industry consolidation, dramatic increases in capital mobility, relaxations in international lending restrictions, and changes in capital allocation rules have raised the specter that, for example, a credit crisis in emerging markets might bleed into developed credit markets via disruptions in local lending channels. Conceptually, a systemic failure in the global banking system could be defined as a failure (seizing) of the global inter-bank payment system or a loss of confidence in banks which results in a global „bankrun”. In this article, we discuss the definitions and sources of systemic risk, evaluate the regulations that bank regulators have adopted to reduce both the probability of systemic risk and the damage it causes when it does occur, and make recommendations for efficiently curtailing systemic risk in banking.