April 14, 2003 News Archive

Governor Ferguson Presents a Realist's Approach to Basel II
On April 9, Governor Ferguson addressed the Risk Management Association's Conference on Capital Management, providing his perspective on how "the Basel II proposals represent a truly significant step in the evolution of bank regulation."

Regulatory Agencies Issue Paper on Sound Practices to Strengthen U.S. Financial System Resilience
The Fed, OCC and SEC issued an "Interagency Paper on Sound Practices to Strengthen the Resilience of the U.S. Financial System." The paper (PDF) identifies three business continuity objectives that are applicable to all financial firms, and four sound practices applicable to core clearing and settlement organizations and firms playing significant roles in critical wholesale financial markets. The paper, which was drafted in the period following the September 11th terrorist events, was issued for public comment and is now being released in its final form. Full text of bill.

Deposit Insurance Reform Bill Sails Through House
The House passed deposit insurance reform legislation (H.R. 522) by a vote of 411-11 on April 2. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), would raise the insurance coverage for individual accounts to $130,000. Other provisions of the bill include merging the Bank Insurance Fund and the Savings Association Insurance Fund, giving the FDIC more flexibility in establishing a reserve ratio for deposit insurance premiums and doubling the insurance coverage for retirement accounts.