JOHANNESBURG Oct 16 (Reuters) – South Africa’s bank
regulator said on Tuesday it will require lenders to hold
capital ratios of up to 14 percent by 2019, a requirement they
will likely meet and above an internationally agreed minimum.
Countries around the world are due to begin adopting in
January the new Basel III banking regulations that form the
world’s regulatory response to the financial crisis.
By the start of next year, South African banks will have to
hold capital buffers equivalent to 9.5 percent of their riskier
assets, according to documents released by the Registrar of
Banks.
Additional requirements will be phased in over time. For
so-called “systemically important banks” – those considered “too
big too fail” – the requirement will increase to as much as 14
percent.
Analysts have said that South Africa’s big banks – Standard
Bank, FirstRand, Absa and Nedbank
Group – are well capitalised, but will struggle to meet
other requirements on liquidity.
“The industry is around 15 percent and this requirement is,
therefore, below where the banks are already. It doesn’t look
like an issue at all,” said one analyst about the South African
capital requirements.
The Reserve Bank has approved a facility starting in 2013 to
help them meet the liquidity coverage ratios in the coming
regulations.
(Reporting by Helen Nyambura-Mwaura; editing by David Dolan)
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