E.U. proposing new bank regulations
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Renita Jablonski: We know Europe’s been struggling with its own bank failures. Now, the E.U. wants to overhaul banking regulations. Megan Williams reports.
Megan Williams; If the E.U. proposal flies, European banking will be regulated by the country the bank is based in. About a quarter of European banking business is now cross-border. The E.U. also wants banks to put aside more capital and cash and put a cap on lending to keep balance sheets strong.
E.U. expert Giles Merritt calls the move a bit like closing the barn door after the horses have fled.
Giles Merritt: The real problem is now not whether or not banks are going to go bust, but how you coordinate European government management of a crisis.
Merritt says putting order into the wide range of European banks and financial institutions won’t be easy. But it is, he says, a necessary — albeit slow — process. This one has been in the works for 10 years, and if the E.U. gets its way, will be passed tomorrow.
I’m Megan Williams for Marketplace.
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