Political

Nick Clegg and Vince Cable push for more banking reform

Via the Financial Times:

Nick Clegg and Vince Cable are leading a push to reopen talks on UK banking reforms in a move that could stoke coalition tensions.

The Liberal Democrat deputy prime minister and business secretary want to re-examine whether banks’ retail operations should be allowed to market complex derivative products.

The Financial Times has also gone on to report,

How seriously should banks take this new threat? Is it merely a piece of political positioning from the Lib Dems, who are keen to appeal to their base in the wake of their failure to enact Lords reform?

The answer is that Clegg, and Cable even more so, are definitely serious. They know that this is a technical debate, unlikely to inflame the passions even of their most devoted supporters.

They could launch a full attack on the banks by calling for higher capital ratios – something that would be fought even harder by the square mile. Instead, they are focusing on a relatively unknown but significant piece of regulation.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

All comments and data you submit with them will be handled in line with the privacy and moderation policies.