Resources for Basel II Capital Accord (Basel II)

Basel II about to descend on banks

www.thestar.com

In their biggest undertaking since preparations for Y2K, Canada's banks are busy implementing tough new international standards designed to beef up risk and capital management practices.

Included in the Basel II Accord are revamped rules governing the banks' sponsorship of asset-backed commercial paper, an $85 billion market for short-term debt that's had some difficulty attracting buyers because of the credit crunch.

Those troubles prompted suggestions from one analyst yesterday that the Bank of Montreal, which has more exposure to asset-backed commercial paper than its peers, could record "significant writedowns" during the fourth quarter because of a recent increase in debt securities on its balance sheet.

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