Follow Us

Follow us on Twitter  Follow us on LinkedIn
 

22 November 2011

ECON Committee: MEPs debate credit rating agencies and bank recapitalisation with Almunia and Barnier


Default: Change to:


The many problems created by credit rating agencies include conflicts of interest, opaque methodology and possible market abuse, but there is no anti-trust issue with them, said Commissioner Almunia in reply to a question by Antolin Sànchez Presedo (S&D, ES).


Jean Paul Gauzès (EPP, FR) welcomed the fact that credit rating agencies are finally going to be supervised. Rapporteur on the future CRA Directive, Leonardo Domenici (S&D, IT), noted that the measures originally proposed had been weakened, and said that Parliament would seek to restore their bite.

Commissioner Barnier stressed that rating agencies are needed to measure risks, but accepted that their evaluations should be exact, transparent and credible, and that they should be able to explain their ratings. Clear rules will reduce the risk of them causing serious problems, he added.

Recapitalising banks

Banks must recapitalise without harming the real economy and resume lending to businesses, said Commissioner Barnier, adding that financial markets must accept the new rules, but will also benefit from having a stable framework to work in.

Press release



© European Parliament


< Next Previous >
Key
 Hover over the blue highlighted text to view the acronym meaning
Hover over these icons for more information



Add new comment