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17 December 2010

Association of German Banks welcomes adoption of Basel III: private banks can meet standards


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Michael Kemmer, the Association's General Manager, stressed that the rules should be seen both in a national and a global context so that German banks were not overburdened and the supply of credit in the economy remained intact.


"The rules are a major step towards more stability in the global banking sector," said Michael Kemmer, the Association's General Manager. "Basel III is rightly the centrepiece of financial market reform, even if not all measures are appropriate – take the planned introduction of a leverage ratio, for example." A leverage ratio would, he explained, have a seriously negative impact on both banks and the economy in general and could undermine the risk-based capital standards. "This is not acceptable," Mr Kemmer commented. Moreover, key issues such as the treatment of systemic risk and systemically important financial institutions were still largely unsettled.

The results of the quantitative impact study (QIS) also released already showed that a substantial amount of additional capital – nearly € 600 billion – would be needed in the global banking sector. Strenuous efforts would be required to meet the new standards in this area on schedule. "The private banks have already made considerable progress towards improved capital adequacy. They have sustainable business models and can therefore implement the new rules," Mr Kemmer said.

"The most important thing is that Basel III is introduced simultaneously across the globe – also by the US, which has yet to implement Basel II", Mr Kemmer concluded. Further development of the European directives (CRD IV) therefore had to be coordinated internationally.

 





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