The international financial institution that the RBNZ ignored

Yesterday, the RBNZ announced the release of submissions on the last capital review paper. A whopping 161 submitters shared their views on the Reserve Bank’s capital proposals. This is significant for sure. It also confirms how interesting bank capital regulation is! I quickly found my own contributions. Three this time, but I wonder why the… Read More The international financial institution that the RBNZ ignored

Double leverage, a regulatory tribulation

Last week, the UK Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) published a consultation paper on group policy and double leverage, in which the PRA wants to limit the risks arising from excessive double leverage. The consultation paper and the associated speech by Sam Woods received some coverage, though the ECM addendum on Non-Performing Loans probably attracted more… Read More Double leverage, a regulatory tribulation

Comments on RBNZ’s second capital review paper: What should qualify as bank capital?

The RBNZ wants to redefine capital. My comments are below. In short: don’t let perfection be the enemy of the good. The RBNZ runs the risk of achieving just what it does not want by going it alone. A DIY-definition of capital makes the Reserve Bank vulnerable to structuring. Moreover, the problems signalled by the Reserve… Read More Comments on RBNZ’s second capital review paper: What should qualify as bank capital?

That feeling when you notice that EU leverage ratio requirements are at risk

This week, the EBA and BCBS published the Basel III monitoring results. They show a further improvement of European banks’ capital positions, largely fulfilling the future regulatory capital requirements, with only a very small number of banks suffering from potential capital shortfalls. I found Figure 9 of the EBA report interesting. It shows the evolution… Read More That feeling when you notice that EU leverage ratio requirements are at risk

Bank of America, nothing complex, it’s noblesse oblige!

What surprised me this week about the capital calculation cock-up of Bank of America Meryll Linch were the reactions of the press. The financial press responded to this gaffe by highlighting the difficulties of calculating capital. Reuters, for example wrote: “The announcement illustrates how difficult it is to determine appropriate capital levels for the biggest banks.” Capital… Read More Bank of America, nothing complex, it’s noblesse oblige!