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11 April 2013

This week in "Brussels"
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Banking Securities Insurance
Asset Management Corporate Governance/Accounting Financial Services Policy
International/G20 Graham Bishop’s Articles and Speeches About this email

Articles from 04 April 2013 - 11 April 2013

Banking

ECB publishes survey on correspondent banking in euro
The European Central Bank (ECB) has published for the first time its regular survey on correspondent banking in euro.  View Article
European Central Bank: Launch of the “Statistics Paper Series”
The ECB is launching the publication of a Statistics Paper Series. The objective of series is to inform the international statistics community and to help it improve methodological standards, ultimately leading to more comparable and higher quality statistics from all economic areas and countries.   View Article
BIS: Yves Mersch: The Banking Union – a European perspective: reasons, benefits and challenges of the Banking Union
Bank for International Settlements: Speech focuses on specific reasons for the establishment of a European Banking Union: delinking sovereigns and banks and fostering the reintegration of financial markets, avoiding national bias in supervision, restoring the proper transmission of monetary policy.  View Article
Antitrust: Commission opens investigation into MasterCard inter-bank fees
The Commission has concerns that some of MasterCard's inter-bank fees and related practices may be anti-competitive - especially inter-bank fees in relation to payments made by cardholders from non EEA countries and all rules on 'cross-border acquiring'   View Article
EPC: late movers: learn to love SEPA. There are ten months left to meet the 1 February 2014 migration deadline
The only party empowered to change the 1 February 2014 deadline is the EU legislator. The EU legislator has never indicated that it would consider such a motion. Consequently, there is only Plan A: get ready for SEPA in the euro area within the next ten months.  View Article
Reuters: UK banks must be tougher on quantifying risk - BoE
Britain's banks must address persistent doubts among both investors and regulators about their capital adequacy ratios by tightening up the way they quantify risk, the Bank of England said.  View Article
Reuters: Luxembourg calls time on bank secrecy with EU states
Luxembourg plans to lift bank secrecy rules for European Union citizens who have savings based in the country, the prime minister announced on Wednesday, marking a sharp shift in policy that will take effect from 2015.  View Article
FT: Cyprus crisis to hit European banks hard
According to a report from analysts at Barclays, the Cyprus banking debacle will strip €15 billion annually from the profits of Europe’s biggest banks.  View Article
Reuters: France wants banks to be core Euronext investors
The French government has approached the country's banks and insurers about forming a consortium to buy at least 34 per cent of the Euronext stock exchange, due to be spun off in a public offering, sources close to the matter said on Friday.  View Article
Finance Watch: Bank separation is essential for banking competition and the economy, the time for indefinite bank subsidies is over
Finance Watch, the public interest association, published a policy note “The importance of being separated – making the public interest sovereign over banks” on the benefits of separating trading from lending activities among Europe’s largest universal banks.  View Article
British Banker’s Association: A revolution in banking regulation
The FSA was closed down, and the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulatory Authority opened up. The new regime – far tougher than before – is part of a programme that the Chancellor said will “reset” the country’s banking system.  View Article

Securities

ESMA 2013 Regulatory Work Programme
ESMA has published its 2013 Regulatory Work Programme which is based on its 2013 Work Programme, published in October 2012, and provides a detailed breakdown of the individual workstreams as outlined in the 2013 Work Programme.   View Article
ESMA submits its technical advice to the Commission on Fees for Trade Repositories
ESMA consulted market participants regarding the proposed fee structures for registration, supervision and recognition of TRs. Respondents to this consultation were encouraged to provide the relevant data to support their arguments or proposals.  View Article
ICMA publishes 2013 legal opinions on global master repo agreement
ICMA has today published the 2013 legal opinions which support the Global Master Repurchase Agreement, (GMRA), the standard agreement used for international repo transactions.  View Article
ICMA European Repo Council calls for exemption of repo transactions from FTT
According to a study commissioned by the European Repo Council of ICMA, the proposed EU Financial Transaction Tax would cause the short-term repo market in Europe to contract by an estimated amount of at least 66%, with serious negative consequences for other financial markets and the real economy.  View Article
IPE: ESMA offers clarification on role of central securities depositories
ESMA has reiterated the need for clearing houses to hold non-cash collateral posted by derivatives users such as pension funds with securities settlement systems, as opposed to traditional custodian banks, but has allowed some room for manoeuvre.  View Article
FT: GFI seeks to mitigate derivatives regulation
GFI Group, the US interdealer broker, has applied to regulators to become a futures exchange amid concern that incoming regulation overhauling derivatives markets could damage its business.  View Article
ICMA: Economic importance of the Corporate Bond Markets
This paper talks about why corporate bond markets are so important for economic growth, for investors, for companies, and for governments, around the world; and why it is essential that laws and regulations that affect them avoid any unintended adverse consequences that could inhibit those markets.  View Article

Insurance

EIOPA: Discussion Paper on standard formula design and calibration for certain long-term investments
The European Council of June 2012 expressed its determination to stimulate smart, sustainable, inclusive, resource-efficient and job creating growth, in the context of the Europe 2020 Strategy, and initiated Compact for Growth and Jobs.   View Article
Bank for International Settlements: Insurance and financial stability: a Basel view
BIS General Manager Jaime Caruana speaks about the importance of the work that the IAIS and the supervisory community are undertaking. He highlights three major challenges: cooperation among different supervisors; the conceptual challenge of coping with systemic risk; and the economic environment.   View Article
Commercial Risk Europe: New capital to usher in more aggressive reinsurance pricing and boost primary cat market
A 'wave' of new capital entering the reinsurance market saw prices stagnate in April, with more aggressive pricing predicted at coming renewals, according to reinsurance brokers.  View Article
GFIA: comments on the “IRDA’s (Life Insurance-Reinsurance) Regulations, 2013”
Global Federation of Insurance Associations (GFIA) wants it known that it supports the proposed reduction in mandatory non-life cession to GIC from 10 per cent to 5 per cent. GFIA believes this is a move in the right direction and encourages the IRDA to consider abolishing this regime entirely.  View Article
Commercial Risk Europe: Freedom of choice a concern as France adopts mandatory health insurance
French companies fear a new law set to make complementary health insurance mandatory for all employees in the private sector could restrict their freedom to choose insurers for the provision, the country's risk management association AMRAE told Commercial Risk Europe.  View Article
IAIS: Turkey joins international information exchange agreement
Peter Braumüller, Chair of the Executive Committee of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), announced that the insurance supervisor of Turkey has joined an international supervisory cooperation and information exchange agreement.   View Article

Asset Management

EIOPA: Preliminary results of the QIS on IORPs
This document provides the preliminary results of the quantitative impact study (QIS) conducted by EIOPA on Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision (IORPs).  View Article
Reuters: European pension proposals could cost UK business £450 billion
British businesses could face a £450 billion bill as a result of plans to force pension funds to protect themselves from risk with extra capital, data from Europe's insurance and pensions watchdog showed.  View Article
IPE: UK minister repeats call for Brussels to drop Solvency II rules for pensions
UK pensions minister Steve Webb said that UK pension funds could face a €530 billion deficit if they were required to comply with solvency-type rules, basing his warning on the benchmark scenario used by European schemes to assess the impact of the revised IORP Directive.  View Article
IPE: UK government's 'cavalier' attitude to state pension reform criticised
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has a "clear responsibility" to help defined benefit (DB) sponsors deal with the end of contracting out after it brought forward state pension reforms by a year.  View Article
EDHEC: An Analysis of the Convergence between Mainstream and Alternative Asset Management
This EDHEC paper examines the convergence between the mainstream and the alternative asset management industry, as well as shedding light on the drivers of performance and risk for different types of UCITS funds.  View Article

Corporate Governance/Accounting

EU adopted amended IFRS 10 transition guidance
The EU published a Commission Regulation endorsing 'Consolidated Financial Statements, Joint Arrangements and Disclosure of Interests in Other Entities: Transition Guidance’ (Amendments to IFRS 10, IFRS 11 and IFRS 12).  View Article
IASB/Hoogervorst: Accounting and long term investment – 'Buy and hold' should not mean 'buy and hope'
Speaking at an event in London jointly hosted by the ICAEW and the Trustees of the IFRS Foundation, the IASB chairman addressed the relationship between long-term investing and financial reporting.   View Article
FEE: Main matters of the accountancy profession on the EC Proposals for the recast of the 4th and 7th Accounting Directives
FEE issued its comment letter on main matters that would help adopting a useful Accounting Directive for Europe. FEE hopes this will help close the gap between the differences of views in the European Parliament and the Council.   View Article
ESMA's report of the 13th extract from the EECS's Database of Enforcement
The ESMA published extracts from its confidential database of enforcement decisions on financial statements by individual European enforcers, with the aim of providing issuers and users of financial statements with relevant information on the appropriate application of the IFRS.  View Article
ESMA´s response to the IASB´s ED Novation of Derivatives and Continuation of Hedge Accounting: Proposed amendments to IAS 39 and IFRS 9
ESMA published its comment letter to the IASB on ED Novation of Derivatives and Continuation of Hedge Accounting: Proposed amendments to IAS 39 and IFRS 9. ESMA comments are aimed at improving the decision-usefulness of financial statements and the transparency and enforceability of lFRSs.  View Article
Deloitte commented on conflict between IFRS 10 and IAS 28 in relation to elimination of profits
Deloitte’s IFRS Global Office issued a letter on the IASB’s ED/2012/6 'Sale or Contribution of Assets between an Investor and its Associate or Joint Venture'. The proposals seek to address the conflict between the requirements IFRS 10 and IAS 28 (2011) in respect of the elimination of profits.  View Article
ACCA: New competency framework for complete finance professionals
ACCA has introduced an interactive checklist of 10 key competencies which business leaders require from aspiring finance professionals.  View Article
FRC: Statement following Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards' report into failure of HBOS
The FRC will consider the report from the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards and the forthcoming PRA report to identify whether there is a case for an investigation under FRC's powers.  View Article

Financial Services Policy

Commissioner Barnier meets US Treasury Secretary Lew: strengthen the US - EU financial market and regulatory dialogue.
Joint statement reaffirmed their strong determination to co-operate closely in strengthening the global financial system; ensuring a level playing field; minimising conflicts, and where appropriate, regulatory overlaps; and supporting the principle of non-discrimination.   View Article
IPE: FTT runs counter to freedom of capital movement
A new report by brokerage firm ICAP has warned that the proposed financial transaction tax (FTT) risks running counter to the EU's freedom of movement of capital.  View Article

International/G20

Lagarde sets out global policy actions to stay ahead of crisis
In a speech at the Economic Club, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde called upon global policymakers to act to get ahead — and stay ahead — of the crisis.  View Article
President Van Rompuy meets new US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew
HvR delivered a primer on what the EU is doing to solve its problems and underlined the importance of the Single Supervisory Mechanism to repairing the EU.  View Article

Graham Bishop’s Articles and Speeches

Graham Bishop: Britain must not get left behind the rest of the EU
Yesterday the European Commission published an 'In Depth Review' of the UK. We have been reading about the same problems for the last 40 years – why can't we fix them? But this is a little unfair – criticism of high UK household debt/mortgages has been highlighted by Vince Cable for only a decade.  View Article
Graham Bishop's Blog: Deutsche Bank's Forsa poll: 69% of Germans want to keep the euro – nearly 80% at top of society
Deutsche Bank has just published a survey that sets the record straight on what Germans think about the euro. Despite all the adverse publicity, support remains rock solid.  View Article





© Graham Bishop

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