Too big to fail: Six most important banks identified

Government committee identifies Danske Bank, Nordea, Nykredit, Jyske Bank, Sydbank and BRFkredit as ‘systematically important financial institutions’

A government committee has identified Denmark’s six most important financial institutions and recommended them for additional oversight and regulation.

The six banks are Danske Bank, Nordea, Nykredit, Jyske Bank, Sydbank and BRFkredit

The list of systematically important financial institutions, or SIFI, was handed to the growth and business minister, Annette Vilhelmsen (Socialistisk Folkeparti), who wrote in a press release that the government would take the recommendations under consideration.

“The government broadly backs the committee’s findings,” Vilhelmsen wrote. “A strengthened regulation of the SIFI is essential in order to minimise the risk of future financial crises. These institutions are so large that they can affect the whole financial system and economy if they end up in trouble.”

The committee recommended that the SIFI be subject to extra safeguards, such as increased demands for capital and liquidity, demands for good leadership, crisis plans and increased oversight.

The committee also recommended that new tools be developed to tackle SIFIs that end up in trouble in order to minimise the damage.

Vilhelmsen added that the increased regulation of the SIFIs was in line with new banking regulations recently agreed upon by European finance ministers.

The committee’s report will now be sent for public consultation with a deadline of April 19.

The committee was composed of members of Nationalbanken, the Business and Growth Ministry, the Finance Ministry, the financial oversight agency Finanstilsynet, and independent experts.




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