RBA sidesteps on capital question
An opinion on the central policy options advanced by David Murray's Financial System Inquiry is shadily included in the Reserve Bank of Australia's second submission.Financial stability and macroprudential and a caution on Murray's and small ADIs' wish for lower capital ratios on housing are all carefully addressed.Payments policy receives a long priority treatment.But the suitability of yet one more layer of capital gets lost in the paean to international consistency and Australian engagement in the process of wide-reaching financial regulatory reform."Because of the cyclical nature of risk-taking and the large social and economic costs of instability in financial systems, it is crucial that institutions' capital be allocated according to risk," the RBA said, recycling text from its first submission.The central bank then engages with the small ADI wish list rather than the Murray panel's idea of yet one more capital layer for bigger banks."Changes to the capital framework on competitive grounds should not come at the expense of greater risk, and should not amount to a weakening relative to global regulatory minima."