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Germany's Schaeuble calls on U.S. to stick to Basel III decision

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble speaks during a news conference in Berlin November 27, 2012. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble speaks during a news conference in Berlin November 27, 2012.

Credit: Reuters/Thomas Peter

BERLIN | Thu Jan 3, 2013 9:25am EST

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble urged the United States to stand by its political decision for tougher bank capital rules and said he was confident Europe would complete the necessary details this year.

"I am confident that in the course of the year we will complete (the details) in time to be able to start building up the additional capital required in the timeframe set by Basel III," Schaeuble wrote in an essay seen by Reuters on Thursday.

"I also expect from our American partners that they too stick firmly to the political decision to introduce the new set of rules," he added.

Major financial centers like the United States and the European Union are delaying the start of the world's main regulatory response to the 2007-09 financial crisis, which requires banks to triple their basic capital buffers in stages.

(Reporting by Matthias Sobolewski, writing by Annika Breidthardt)
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Comments (1)
George_Lekatis wrote:
According to Mr Stefan Ingves, (Chairman of the Basel Committee, at the 7th High-Level Meeting jointly organised by the Association of Supervisors of Banks of the Americas, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and the Financial Stability Institute, Panama City, Panama, 15 November 2012), even strong international regulations will be ineffective if they are not implemented fully or if the associated supervisory regime is weak.

Hence, the Basel Committee is raising the bar in all three areas.

First, it is obvious that we have been working to strengthen the regulatory framework. This is not just in the form of Basel III, but also the work we have completed on SIBs, and the work still in train on the trading book, securitisation and large exposures.

Second, we have been much more proactive in making sure that the international agreements are implemented in full, on time and in a consistent manner.

And, finally, we have used the revisions to the Core Principlesto also raise the bar for supervision.

Doing one is not enough; neither is doing two. We need to raise the bar in all three areas if we are to achieve a robust and resilient financial system for the future.

George Lekatis
Basel iii Compliance Professionals Association (BiiiCPA)

Jan 05, 2013 7:29am EST  --  Report as abuse
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