US Federal Reserve Board approved final rules on Basel II

The Federal Reserve Board approved final rules to implement new Basel II risk-based capital requirements in the United States for large, internationally active banking organizations. Basel II would be mandatory for large, internationally active core banking organizations with at least $250 billion in total assets or at least $10 billion in foreign exposure and optional for others.

Northern Rock will have to face EC's state aid inquisition

The European Commission has to date kept a low profile in its oversight of the UK government's bailout of Northern Rock, but the beleaguered bank and its current and potential backers will sooner or later have to face repaying billions of pounds in aid or a massive enforced restructuring of the bank's assets.

IPE: Pan-Euro funds should not be competitive - Gabellieri

There should be one EU legal framework with national varieties instead of various European countries rivalling for the best location to domicile pan-European pension funds, suggests Bruno Gabellieri, secretary general of the European Association of Paritarian Institutions of Social Protection (AEIP).

MTFs to take 20% of European trading volume

A new study from Aite Group expects to see a rapid pick-up of MTF adoption in the European market, which could account for more than 20% of European trade volume by the end of 2011. The report examines the existing exchange environment and its competitive landscape in the post-MiFID European market.

FSA update on funds of alternative investment funds

The FSA issued an update on its proposals to allow UK retail consumers to invest in funds of hedge funds and other alternative investments sold by firms authorised in the UK. The FSA identified a number of taxation issues involved in the operation of such a regime. HM Treasury is currently considering these issues in conjunction with the offshore funds regime.

ECB report on EU banking sector stability

The ECB published a report on EU banking sector stability. The report notes that the financial condition of the EU banking sector continued to develop positively throughout 2006. Among the main vulnerabilities for EU banking sectors is the likely evolution of the credit cycle and its impact on borrowers’ credit quality and banks’ credit risk.

IPE: "Too early" for IORP review - Verhaegen

Plans by the European Commission to review the IORP pensions directive next spring were "not a sign of good regulatory governance" as the full implementation was only finalised this summer, Chris Verhaegen, secretary-general of the EFRP has told IPE. Verhaegen said it would not be an act of good regulation or good governance to review a Directive which has not been in operation for more than six months.

IPE: Solvency II "will kill DB plans" - Blake

Applying Solvency II requirements to pension funding could be the “final nail in the coffin” for final salary schemes, director of the Pensions Institute Professor David Blake said. The diverse nature of how pensions operate in the UK and elsewhere in continental Europe means proposals designed to fit countries with insurance-driven pension plans will seriously damage the funding position of defined benefit plans.

CEIOPS papers on functioning of supervisory networks for insurance group supervision

CEIOPS published its Guidelines on information exchange between lead supervisors and other competent authorities within co-ordination committees and its Report on the functioning of the co-ordination committees. The Guidelines define a common list of items of information that are essential to be exchanged within each supervisory network. The Report underlines substantial improvement since 2004.

CFI postpones hearing for Nomura's appeal of Czech bank aid decision

The Court of First Instance in Luxembourg has postponed a hearing for an appeal by Nomura seeking to overturn a European Commission decision that allowed the Czech Republic to provide state aid to CSOB, a bank which took control of rival IBP. According to court documents, the contested decision determines that pre-accession aid measures that the Czech Republic granted to the bank were not subject to the commission's review for substantive conformity with the EU state aid rules.

Turquoise appoints Yann L'Huillier CTO

Bank-backed equities trading facility Turquoise has named Yann L'Huillier - currently chief information officer at the Boston Stock Exchange - as chief technology officer of the venture.

ECOFIN meeting

Council Conclusions on Lisbon Strategy: The new three-year cycle. The main focus of this new cycle should be on implementation and delivery of reform, acknowledging that more reforms are needed.

Commission scrutinises amendments in Hungarian company law

The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to the Hungarian government over the so-called 'lex MOL' legislation. The Commission is concerned that the law may contain unjustified restrictions on the free movement of capital and right of establishment, by introducing onerous requirements for public takeover bids.

BBA details next steps for regulators

The BBA published a written evidence to the Treasury Select Committee inquiry into the circumstances of the Northern Rock affair which notes that the tri-partite regulatory structure of HM Treasury, the FSA and the Bank of England needs to agree a clearer allocation of roles and responsibilities.

TRAX2 receives approval from AMF for MiFID reporting.

TRAX2 has received approval from the AMF in accordance with the MiFID Directive. TRAX2 is an Approved Reporting Mechanism (ARM) with the FSA and has been designed to report to multiple regulators through out Europe in accordance with Article 25 of MiFID.

CEBS contribution to Lamfalussy review

CEBS published its contribution to the Lamfalussy review calling for enhancements to its mandate and status to have a greater impact on national practices. “The lack of any reference to CEBS in Community legislation and the predominant focus on its advisory role do not adequately reflect the very high responsibility in fostering supervisory convergence and cooperation”, CEBS states.

Joint Statement on first Transatlantic Economic Council Meeting

In a joint statement the United States and the European Union welcome the Financial Markets Regulatory Dialogue’s consideration of how and in which areas to establish mutual recognition in the field of securities and identification of other approaches to facilitate cross-border trade in financial services.

CEIOPS comments to the Lamfalussy Review

CEIOPS published its latest comments to the Lamfalussy review. CEIOPS underlines the importance of discussing what the main objectives and mandates for supervisors on the European level should be and what natural tensions might arise between national objectives and a possible European mandate.

Dutch regulator demands funds step up work

The Dutch pension regulator and central bank DNB wants corporate pension funds to increase their efforts to secure durable pension systems, DNB director  Arnold Schilder has said. Schilder stressed the need for cost-saving measures and increased efforts to comply with governance requirements.

Pensionskassen growth stagnates - GDV

Germans remain cautious about investing money long-term despite good economic development, the association of German insurers (GDV) has found. "The remaining uncertainty, despite a drop in the jobless rate, means people are still reluctant to commit to retirement provision," the GDV noted in its nine-months interim report for 2007.

Commission launches infringement procedures on Transparency Directive

The Commission launched infringement procedures against seven Member States for their failure to implement the Transparency Directive. The Member States now have two months to reply to the Commission's concerns. 

EBS calls for smooth implementation of Basel II in the US

The EBF calls the Transatlantic Economic Council to provide their full political support to an agreement that would allow for the mutual recognition of Basel II implementation in the EU and the US.  “European banks are primarily concerned with the consistency of the new rules with the Basel II framework”, said Guido Ravoet, Secretary General of the EBF.

IFRIC update November

IFRIC issued its latest update on the November meeting in London. Items discussed include IAS 27 and IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement

CEIOPS survey on Insurance Undertakings

CEIOPS published its survey on insurance undertakings in the EU and EEA. The data received is summarised in form of an EXCEL sheet. 

NAPF publishes Myners Principles review and recommendations

The National Association of Pension Funds published its review of the 2001 Myners Principles. It concluded that overall standards of governance of UK pension schemes have continued to improve and that trustees’ compliance with the Principles has increased.

MLex: ECJ backs fresh claim on withholding tax

European pensions funds are now entitled to claim hundreds of millions of euros in tax from the Netherlands government, after the European Courts of Justice ruled against their application of withholding tax on dividends.

Visa to pay $2.25bn to settle American Express lawsuit

Visa has agreed to pay rival card operator American Express up to $2.25 billion to settle an anti-trust lawsuit filed in 2004 alleging collusion to block access to the bank-issued card market in the US.

Mandelson urges rules on foreign state investments into EU

Foreign state investments into European and US assets of strategic importance should be subject to new transparency rules, European trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson told US officials on Thursday. Set against comments from July apparently endorsing state-backed funds, the commissioner's call for regulatory intervention will be seen as something of a cooling towards such institutions, and could make action at the EU level more likely.

UK Government to implement covered bonds regime in March 2008

Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister, Kitty Ussher announced the intention to implement the new UK covered bonds regime on 6 March 2008. This revised timetable will allow for further engagement with stakeholders following earlier consultation.