LONDON, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- The head of a panel charged with updating and coordinating world capital regulations wants Washington to stop delaying implementation of new rules.
In June 2004, officials of the world's largest banks finalized plans for a global framework for regulating their capital. Known as Basel II, the framework seeks improved risk management by using past performance to help set the amount of capital banks are required to hold.
Some U.S. critics say Basel II would put U.S. banks at a disadvantage over non-U.S. banks, and that big banks would gain an edge over smaller ones because Basel II it has the effect of lowering capital requirements.
Sentiments such as those caused U.S. regulators to delay implementing Basel II, which was supposed to be globally implemented by 2008, by at least a year.
That sparked criticism from the head of a committee of the Institute for International Finance, which represents the world's 320 biggest banks, that is responsible for seeing Basel II get implemented, the Financial Times said Tuesday.
Daniel Bouton said U.S. delays were "regrettable," as were inconsistent adoptions of Basel II among other nations.
