This speech, given at the Institute for Law and Finance Conference in Frankfurt, outlines different resolution strategies and notes FSB’s planned peer reviews.

This consultation sets out a revised market risk framework and proposes a number of specific measures to improve trading book capital requirements. Key elements of the proposals include: a more objective boundary between the trading book and the banking book that materially reduces the scope for regulatory arbitrage - feedback is sought on two alternative approaches; moving from VAR to expected shortfall, a risk measure that better captures "tail risk"; calibrating the revised framework in both the standardised and internal models-based approaches to a period of significant financial stress, consistent with the stressed VAR approach adopted in Basel 2.5; comprehensively incorporating the risk of market illiquidity, again consistent with the direction taken in Basel 2.5; measures to reduce model risk in the internal models-based approach, including a more granular models approval process and constraints on persification; and a revised standardised approach. Responses to the consultation should be received by 7 September 2012.

Mervyn King discusses the causes and lessons of the financial crisis and reforms which affect the banking sector, advocating “regulation, resolution and restructuring of the banks” as “the three Rs of a new approach to make banking, and so our economy, safer”. He argues: “we believe that successful regulation means understanding and guarding against the big risks, not compliance with ever more detailed rules. That means focusing on the wood not the trees, looking not just at inpidual banks but also at how their fortunes are tied together with other banks and with the rest of the economy … We don’t build nuclear power stations in densely populated areas; nor should we allow essential banking services and risky investment banking activities to be carried out in the same ‘too important to fail’ bank.. It’s vital that Parliament legislates to enact [Independent Banking Commission recommendations] sooner rather than later”.

Following the publication of the 2011 EU-wide stress test results in July 2011, EBA issued a Recommendation to national supervisory authorities (NSAs) to ensure that appropriate mitigating actions were put in place with respect to (i) banks with a core tier 1 capital ratio below 5% in the adverse scenario and (ii) to banks with core tier ratio close to 5% in the adverse scenario and with sizeable exposures to sovereigns under stress. According to information provided to EBA, mitigating measures have been put in place for all banks with a post stress capital ratio below 5%, and were deemed sufficient by EBA to comply with its Recommendation. EBA notes that it is, in general, satisfied with progress in the fulfilment of the Recommendation.

This press release notes that, at its meeting on 2 May 2012, the Council carried out a detailed examination of CRD 4 proposals and that there is support of a qualified majority of delegations in favour of a provisional compromise text. With the agreement of the Council, the presidency decided to add the dossier to the agenda of its meeting on 15 May, so as to enable a technical verification to be completed, with a view to confirming the Council's agreement on the overall package.

This reports that new Consumer Focus research shows that banks’ customer service advisers are unclear of the rules around Continuous Payment Authorities (CPA) and could be giving customers incorrect advice as a result. A mystery shopping survey found that 44%f of advisers gave the wrong answer or could not give an answer, when asked how to cancel a CPA.

This report was presented at a joint EC/ECB conference in April 2012. It presents an account of the main market trends and developments in 2011 that had a direct impact on financial stability and integration; sets out the major policy steps taken in 2011 to redress the crisis situation and provide the foundations for more stable and sustained growth; provides an overview of broad trends in the evolution of the structure of the EU banking sector; gives an assessment of the impact of the crisis and regulation on the insurance sector; and considers how household sector financial wealth and household borrowing evolved in the crisis.

FOS has published this online technical note on its current approach to considering – where it upholds a complaint wholly or partly – whether it will tell a business to pay compensation for any distress, inconvenience or other non-financial loss that it caused the consumer. (2/05/12) compensation for distress, inconvenience or other non-financial loss

EIOPA has published an Opinion on the evaluation of internal models for calculating capital requirements.