Basel III
Bahrain governor defends capital ratios
Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj argues capital requirements ‘are not arbitrary, or excessive or punitive’ as they are necessary to prevent excessive risk-taking
Poloz warns regulation could stifle credit to SMEs
Bank of Canada governor says new financial regulation likely to reduce the availability of credit to small companies by discouraging financial innovation
Basel Committee: US and EU capital rules still falling short
Basel Committee’s second assessment of compliance with Basel framework finds both EU and US are not complying in all areas, but both argue deviations are justified
Sweden's central bank and macro-prudential regulator clash over leverage ratio
Riksbank calls for stricter and earlier implementation of Basel III measure a day after Financial Supervisory Authority rejects proposals
Iceland introduces foreign currency funding rule based on Basel Committee's NSFR
Measure is intended to limit extent to which banks fund long-term lending in foreign currencies with unstable short-term funding; Three-year NSFR could be introduced in 2015
ECB research explores use of NSFR as macro-pru tool
Economists consider how the net stable funding ratio could be used to tackle the build-up of systemic liquidity risks; research is still at an early stage
Basel rate-risk project sets up scrap over deposit models
Attempts to set international capital rules for banking book interest rate exposures are hitting sensitive ground as banks warn lending will suffer if regulators cap deposit maturities
BIS' William Coen on Basel III and preventing the next crisis
William Coen, the secretary-general of the Basel Committee, speaks about the banking industry’s response to Basel III, supervision versus regulation and preventing the next crisis.
BIS paper warns Basel III likely to prove ‘challenging’ for emerging markets
Working paper points to a number of obstacles to implementing the Basel framework in emerging markets and developing economies, and suggests potential solutions
BIS paper finds leverage ratio more countercyclical than other capital ratios
Working paper finds evidence the leverage ratio is ‘significantly’ more countercyclical than ratios of capital to risk-weighted assets, although the effect is less powerful during crises
FSB unveils loss-absorbency standards
Minimum standard for total loss-absorbing capacity aims to end ‘too-big-to-fail’ and should reduce the funding advantage of globally systemic banks, FSB says, in consultation document
Ingves: Consistent implementation needed to bring about ‘full benefits' of Basel III
Basel Committee chair says regulators and supervisors now 'accountable for the outcomes' of Basel III as reform agenda draws to a close
Basel Committee adds final plank to Basel III
Committee unveils final version of the net stable funding ratio, bringing to a close the core of the Basel III standard-setting process
Mexican committee makes progress on bank liquidity rules
Bank of Mexico is setting up new rules on banking liquidity that will take effect in January 2015, in line with Basel III requirements; work progressed through new committee
Ingves: Equal implementation of Basel III a ‘major challenge'
Basel Committee chairman says Swedish banks' interconnectedness and reliance on wholesale funding justify higher capital requirements than Basel III minimum
Ingves outlines Basel Committee response to ‘excessive variation’ in risk-weighted assets
Basel Committee 'endorses' final details of NSFR and turns attention to comparability of risk-based ratios; expands membership to include ECB’s single supervisory mechanism
Barnier hints at longer pensions clearing exemption for OTC derivatives
The EC's outgoing head of internal markets, Michel Barnier, has hinted the Commission will extend a pension funds derivatives clearing exemption beyond 2015
World's biggest banks $60bn closer to Basel III target
Internationally active banks $20bn short of Basel III target, compared with $80bn six months earlier, according to Basel Committee review
Final liquidity rules issued for biggest US banks
‘More stringent' liquidity coverage ratio will come into effect in January 2017; Fed adopts final rule on supplementary leverage ratio, asks for input on swap margin rules
IMF hosts Middle East forum on Basel III compliance
Middle Eastern countries work together to ensure adequacy of local lenders' capital and liquidity; new report credits region's ‘strict capital quality rules'
Emerging market governors favour Fed policy normalisation, says MAS’ Menon
MAS head Ravi Menon says most emerging market central banks want to see the Fed normalise policy, China is at an inflection point and Singapore could lose out from new OTC derivatives rules
(Too) great expectations for macro-prudential?
Macro-prudential policies are a welcome response to the financial crisis, but not necessarily in their current incarnation. BIS economics head Claudio Borio highlights their limitations
Macro-prudential policies could ‘become part of the problem’, says BIS’ Borio
Weight of expectation on macro-prudential policies to address financial system stresses may be too great, says BIS economics head Claudio Borio; stress tests ‘woefully deficient’ in predicting crises
BoE's Andrew Bailey says Basel III will be more transparent in the future
Head of the Prudential Regulation Authority also argues level of ‘precision' for rules sought by banks and investors ‘is not realistic'