Overly Restrictive

Overly Restrictive

Parents of young adults might be familiar with this dilemma: there are certain ways you don’t want your kids to get in trouble, so you can either outright ban the behavior with a very high likelihood the young’uns are going to do it anyway but (try to) keep it from...
The End of the BINO

The End of the BINO

Can a financial institution call itself a bank without having a banking license, that is, be a Bank In Name Only (BINO)? Recently, the central bank of Brazil announced that using the word bank in the name requires permission and the fulfillment of particular capital...
Circles of Risk

Circles of Risk

As the great philosopher Post Malone states: Run away, but we’re running in circles Run away, run away —Circles (2019) It seems like a magic trick. A bank issues loans to consumers and businesses, and each of these loans has an expected credit loss. The bank is...
Bank Regulation Is Just Right!

Bank Regulation Is Just Right!

Said no one ever. Regardless of where you live or which team you are on, bank or regulator, you are probably never completely satisfied with global bank regulation. Granted, the regulation was not made to make anybody happy, but to curb systemic risk, especially in...
Same Buffer, Different Take

Same Buffer, Different Take

We recently mentioned that the US regulators have asked the large banks to comment on a proposal to recalibrate—and most likely lower—what is called the supplementary leverage ratio. The supplementary leverage ratio determines the extra capital buffer large banks have...