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Regulators bemoan the lack of comparability in capital standards — the main point of the leverage ratio, and Basel IV, is allegedly to make the capital ratios of different banks more comparable — but the easiest fix to the problem is disclosure, not output floors. Here are GlobalCapital’s suggestions:
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The European Central Bank’s decision to curtail wind down entities' access to repo liquidity materially increases the risk of a covered bond maturity extension or default, and is not consistent with its mission as lender of last resort or its previously benign approach to the asset class.
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The European Banking Authority (EBA) is probably worrying too much when it says that banks could struggle to find buyers for their loss-absorbing debt.
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Anglian Water, priced a £250m eight year green bond on Monday. The size and tenor are unremarkable, and in a generation of sustainability and responsibility, a green bond should cause similarly few ripples. However, this was the first sterling-denominated green bond issued by a corporate borrower since 2015. -
Covered bond issuers in Europe’s periphery should wake up to the fact that current spread levels are artificially tight and unsustainable. The first bank that recognises and takes advantage of this will have a distinct advantage over its competitors.
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It’s hard to attack green finance, because its aims are so noble. But when institutions use environmental aims to argue they deserve special subsidies, it tarnishes the whole market. Prudential regulation should stick to being prudential.
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When Popular was sold to Santander on June 7, in the first resolution under the new bank resolution and recovery directive (BRRD), the outcome was regarded as a success — but potential problems have arisen.
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Socially conscious investing in Asia has so far concentrated on green bonds and little else. But SRI financing is not just limited to green bonds. By taking a broader approach, Asian borrowers — including sovereigns — can reap serious benefits.
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When it comes to Banking Union, national priorities always trump European ones.
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On Wednesday, RBS announced it was settling one of its subprime RMBS lawsuits, for a chunky $5.5bn. The shares plunged to the depths of last Monday on the news, and the market mostly yawned — RBS had provisioned nearly everything, leaving only a £151m earnings charge for Q2.
