HSBC and StanChart call for Basel III rewrite

Some of the biggest trade finance providers, led by HSBC and Standard Chartered, are lobbying in the autumn of 2010 to have tough capital rules toned down, warning that if they are not, world trade could be severely hampered.

HSBC, among the banks that dominate the trade finance market, said last week that it was not prepared to forecast its future capital ratios under the Basel III regime, mainly because of the unfairness of the rules’ treatment of trade finance, one of its core businesses.

US: Congressional Research Report: The Status of the Basel III Capital Adequacy Accord, 2010 (via OpenCRS) http://opencrs.com/document/R41467/

ESO: Background Information: Brussels urged to ‘fine-tune’ Basel III rules http://www.europeansources.info/record/brussels-urged-to-fine-tune-basel-iii-rules/

ESO: Background information: Bankers poised for Basel III accord http://www.europeansources.info/record/bankers-poised-for-basel-iii-accord/

Wikipedia: Basel III http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basel_III

Website: Bank for International Settlements (BIS) http://www.bis.org/

Website: Bankers’ Association for Finance and Trade http://www.baft.org/jsps/

Wikipedia: Trade Finance http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_finance

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