BASEL, Switzerland (MNI) – The following is the second half of the
full text of the press statement issued Sunday by the Group of Governors
and Heads of Supervision to announce higher global minimum capital
standards.

The text can be viewed at http://bis.org/press/p100912.htm, where
tables detailing the ratios, the phase-in arrangement and other aspects
of the new standards are also available.

“The Governors and Heads of Supervision also agreed on transitional
arrangements for implementing the new standards. These will help ensure
that the banking sector can meet the higher capital standards through
reasonable earnings retention and capital raising, while still
supporting lending to the economy. The transitional arrangements, which
are summarised in Annex 2, include:

* National implementation by member countries will begin on 1
January 2013. Member countries must translate the rules into national
laws and regulations before this date. As of 1 January 2013, banks will
be required to meet the following new minimum requirements in relation
to risk-weighted assets (RWAs):

– 3.5% common equity/RWAs; – 4.5% Tier 1 capital/RWAs, and – 8.0%
total capital/RWAs.

The minimum common equity and Tier 1 requirements will be phased in
between 1 January 2013 and 1 January 2015. On 1 January 2013, the
minimum common equity requirement will rise from the current 2% level to
3.5%. The Tier 1 capital requirement will rise from 4% to 4.5%. On 1
January 2014, banks will have to meet a 4% minimum common equity
requirement and a Tier 1 requirement of 5.5%. On 1 January 2015, banks
will have to meet the 4.5% common equity and the 6% Tier 1 requirements.
The total capital requirement remains at the existing level of 8.0% and
so does not need to be phased in. The difference between the total
capital requirement of 8.0% and the Tier 1 requirement can be met with
Tier 2 and higher forms of capital.

* The regulatory adjustments (ie deductions and prudential
filters), including amounts above the aggregate 15% limit for
investments in financial institutions, mortgage servicing rights, and
deferred tax assets from timing differences, would be fully deducted
from common equity by 1 January 2018.

* In particular, the regulatory adjustments will begin at 20% of
the required deductions from common equity on 1 January 2014, 40% on 1
January 2015, 60% on 1 January 2016, 80% on 1 January 2017, and reach
100% on 1 January 2018. During this transition period, the remainder not
deducted from common equity will continue to be subject to existing
national treatments.

* The capital conservation buffer will be phased in between 1
January 2016 and year end 2018 becoming fully effective on 1 January
2019. It will begin at 0.625% of RWAs on 1 January 2016 and increase
each subsequent year by an additional 0.625 percentage points, to reach
its final level of 2.5% of RWAs on 1 January 2019. Countries that
experience excessive credit growth should consider accelerating the
build up of the capital conservation buffer and the countercyclical
buffer. National authorities have the discretion to impose shorter
transition periods and should do so where appropriate.

* Banks that already meet the minimum ratio requirement during the
transition period but remain below the 7% common equity target (minimum
plus conservation buffer) should maintain prudent earnings retention
policies with a view to meeting the conservation buffer as soon as
reasonably possible.

* Existing public sector capital injections will be grandfathered
until 1 January 2018. Capital instruments that no longer qualify as
non-common equity Tier 1 capital or Tier 2 capital will be phased out
over a 10 year horizon beginning 1 January 2013. Fixing the base at the
nominal amount of such instruments outstanding on 1 January 2013, their
recognition will be capped at 90% from 1 January 2013, with the cap
reducing by 10 percentage points in each subsequent year. In addition,
instruments with an incentive to be redeemed will be phased out at their
effective maturity date.

* Capital instruments that no longer qualify as common equity Tier
1 will be excluded from common equity Tier 1 as of 1 January 2013.
However, instruments meeting the following three conditions will be
phased out over the same horizon described in the previous bullet point:
(1) they are issued by a non-joint stock company 1 ; (2) they are
treated as equity under the prevailing accounting standards; and (3)
they receive unlimited recognition as part of Tier 1 capital under
current national banking law.

* Only those instruments issued before the date of this press
release should qualify for the above transition arrangements.

Phase-in arrangements for the leverage ratio were announced in the
26 July 2010 press release of the Group of Governors and Heads of
Supervision. That is, the supervisory monitoring period will commence 1
January 2011; the parallel run period will commence 1 January 2013 and
run until 1 January 2017; and disclosure of the leverage ratio and its
components will start 1 January 2015. Based on the results of the
parallel run period, any final adjustments will be carried out in the
first half of 2017 with a view to migrating to a Pillar 1 treatment on 1
January 2018 based on appropriate review and calibration.

After an observation period beginning in 2011, the liquidity
coverage ratio (LCR) will be introduced on 1 January 2015. The revised
net stable funding ratio (NSFR) will move to a minimum standard by 1
January 2018. The Committee will put in place rigorous reporting
processes to monitor the ratios during the transition period and will
continue to review the implications of these standards for financial
markets, credit extension and economic growth, addressing unintended
consequences as necessary.

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision provides a forum for
regular cooperation on banking supervisory matters. It seeks to promote
and strengthen supervisory and risk management practices globally. The
Committee comprises representatives from Argentina, Australia, Belgium,
Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong SAR, India, Indonesia,
Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, Russia, Saudi
Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the
United Kingdom and the United States.

The Group of Central Bank Governors and Heads of Supervision is the
governing body of the Basel Committee and is comprised of central bank
governors and (non-central bank) heads of supervision from member
countries. The Committee’s Secretariat is based at the Bank for
International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland.”

END

–Frankfurt bureau tel.: +49-69-720142. Email: frankfurt@marketnews.com

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