14 May 2009

McCreevy calls for solution on impaired assets problem

"Whether Governments decide to create bad banks, good banks, special vehicles or even nationalise them it is imperative that some solution is found to the non performing assets on banks balance sheet", McCreevy underlined.

Commissioner McCreevy reminded that while improving the regulatory framework there is a growing urgency to address the fundamental problem of impaired assets on many banks balance sheets. “Whether Governments decide to create bad banks, good banks, special vehicles or even nationalise them it is imperative that some solution is found to the non-performing assets on banks balance sheet”, he underlined.

 

Touching upon oversight and supervision, the Commissioner said that there is a wide consensus that a global integrated financial market cannot allow for a patchwork of national regulation and supervision. “There is a clear mismatch between the activity of global players trading and doing business across the globe and supervisors and rule makers overseeing those players whose powers stop at their national borders”, he said.

 

"We need global standards and much more co-operation among supervisors", Commissioner McCreevy said. "As the crisis has shown rather painfully, it is not enough to have good regulation and supervision in Europe".

 

Next to a European Systemic Risk Council to monitor systemic risk, the Commission aims at establishing colleges of supervisors for cross-border institutions to support EU wide financial regulation and supervision. “If colleges cannot reach an agreement, we are planning to boost the powers of the EU-level Committees”, McCreevy said. “Such Committees will work closely with national supervisors”, he explained.

 

Full speech

 

© European Commission