Sitting on the Fence: Bank Structural Reforms

2020 ◽  
pp. 91-110
Author(s):  
Scott James ◽  
Lucia Quaglia
Keyword(s):  
Moral Hazard ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Structural Reforms ◽  
Financial Industry ◽  
The Us ◽  
Bank Of England ◽  
Bank Structure ◽  
Main Driver ◽  
Independent Commission ◽  
The Eu

The main driver of new, stringent rules on bank structure was not pressure from elected officials, as the two largest UK political parties were ambiguous about the benefits of separating retail and investment banking. Instead, we argue that regulators in the Bank of England pushed strongly for ‘ring-fencing’ to address moral hazard concerns caused by too-big-to-fail banks. Despite fierce opposition from the financial industry, regulators were determined to trade up rules by actively cultivating political support through the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) and in Parliament. At the international and EU levels, UK regulators acted as fence-sitters on banking reform for two reasons. First, unilateral reform by the US meant that it was not possible to push for an international solution with its traditional ally. Second, resistance to major structural reforms amongst several member states limited the scope for harmonization across the EU.

scholarly journals Factors of mass support for government in the times of structural reforms

2021 ◽  
pp. 73-104
Author(s):  
Boris Sokolov ◽  
Emil Kamalov
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Media Framing ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Structural Reforms ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Approval Ratings ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Times

Any country in order to stay afloat sooner or later is forced to undertake large-scale internal reforms in various policy areas. However, structural reforms often bear adverse consequences for the population. As the studies of the US and European states show, one of the most crucial negative consequences is the decrease in mass support for the government that has initiated the reform. The latter manifests itself in a drop of approval ratings, trust in government, propensity to vote for the incumbent at the forthcoming elections. Such a decrease may lead to decreased legitimacy of the political power, thereby destabilizing the current political system. Is it possible to strike the balance between the necessity of reform and upholding trust on the society’s behalf? Can a government carry out painful reforms without provoking hatred? What conditions facilitate such balance? Although the factors of mass support play the central role in nowadays’ political science, the answers to the questions mentioned above remain unanswered. This article examines different options available to governments in order to preserve their mass support and legitimacy when conducting unpopular reforms, with a special emphasis on media framing. Using various theoretical sources and the recent literature on political support in Russia, it identifies various factors that may facilitate the use of the latter option in the Russian context.

EU-Iran payment scheme to focus on humanitarian trade

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Member States ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Payment Scheme ◽  
Special Purpose Vehicle ◽  
Comprehensive Plan ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Eu

Subject EU-Iran humanitarian trade. Significance Following the US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the EU is close to launching a mechanism to facilitate trade with Iran in spite of stringent US sanctions. This special purpose vehicle (SPV) is likely to be released in the coming weeks. Its scope will be less ambitious than originally conceived and will, in its initial version, be restricted to trade in humanitarian and sanctions-exempt goods. Impacts The SPV may strengthen political support in Iran for continued participation in the JCPOA. Unity within the EU will be tested as some member states are more hesitant about disrupting the transatlantic partnership. As the humanitarian impact of US sanctions increases, pushback from the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives is more likely.

Lessons from EU Peace Operations

2011 ◽  
Vol 15 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 200-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Keohane
Keyword(s):  
Crisis Management ◽  
Political Support ◽  
The Political ◽  
Peace Operations ◽  
European Security ◽  
International Crises ◽  
The Us ◽  
Defence Policy ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Eu

In 1999, few people would have predicted that the EU would send ships to Somalia, police to Afghanistan, judges to Kosovo and soldiers to Chad. Yet, that is exactly what the EU has been doing. The European Security and Defence policy (ESDP) –since renamed the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) – was launched shortly after NATO’s war in Kosovo in June 1999, to ensure that Europeans could respond to international crises, including launching operations, without depending on the US (via NATO). Since 2003 the EU has initiated some 24 peace-support operations in Europe, Africa and Asia, using both civil and military resources, and some of these missions have had impressive results. However, at times there have been some real difficulties with CSDP operations, ranging from resource shortages, intermittent political support from Member States, and a lack of coordination between EU actors. Lessons already identified in the crisis management debate point to two fundamental factors of success. First, a comprehensive approach that brings together the different actors deployed in the field. Second, the resilience of the political and material commitment of crisis management actors, possibly over many years. Both these factors pose important questions for the future of EU peace operations.

Brexit vote will keep global markets volatile

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Spillover Effects ◽  
Government Bonds ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
Bank Of England ◽  
Systemic Crisis ◽  
Bank Funding ◽  
Japanese Yen ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

Significance The UK vote on June 23 to leave the EU ('Brexit') startled global financial players, putting pressure on leading central banks to stabilise markets and keep bank funding flowing. The Bank of England (BoE) announced that it was ready to provide an extra 250 billion pounds (341 billion dollars) to ease liquidity conditions while the ECB is also ready to deploy significant funds to avert a liquidity squeeze. Impacts Market conditions will remain volatile, but there is little sign that markets are treating the vote as a systemic crisis. Investor demand for safe-haven assets will spike; assets such as gold, the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen will appreciate. The ECB's QE programme could help insulate euro-area peripheral government bonds from the spillover effects of Brexit. Having been surprised by the UK referendum, markets will become more sensitive to political risk ahead of the US election.

Sanctions of the USA and the Policy of Bank of Russia:double Blow to the National Economy

2014 ◽  
pp. 13-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Glazyev
Keyword(s):  
National Security ◽  
Economic Sanctions ◽  
Capital Flight ◽  
Practical Advice ◽  
The Us ◽  
Monetary Authorities ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Simultaneous Adoption ◽  
The Eu

This article examines fundamental questions of monetary policy in the context of challenges to the national security of Russia in connection with the imposition of economic sanctions by the US and the EU. It is proved that the policy of the Russian monetary authorities, particularly the Central Bank, artificially limiting the money supply in the domestic market and pandering to the export of capital, compounds the effects of economic sanctions and plunges the economy into depression. The article presents practical advice on the transition from external to domestic sources of long-term credit with the simultaneous adoption of measures to prevent capital flight.

Russian Policy of Agriculture Support and the Necessity of Its Modification after WTO Accession

2012 ◽  
pp. 132-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Uzun
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
World Trade Organization ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
World Trade ◽  
The Us ◽  
The World ◽  
Wto Accession ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Agriculture Support

The article deals with the features of the Russian policy of agriculture support in comparison with the EU and the US policies. Comparative analysis is held considering the scales and levels of collective agriculture support, sources of supporting means, levels and mechanisms of support of agricultural production manufacturers, its consumers, agrarian infrastructure establishments, manufacturers and consumers of each of the principal types of agriculture production. The author makes an attempt to estimate the consequences of Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization based on a hypothesis that this will result in unification of the manufacturers and consumers’ protection levels in Russia with the countries that have long been WTO members.

Isoglucose – How significant is the threat to the EU sugar industry?

2013 ◽  
pp. 770-777
Author(s):  
Yelto Zimmer
Keyword(s):  
Market Share ◽  
Sugar Industry ◽  
Quota System ◽  
Strong Incentive ◽  
Major Market ◽  
The Us ◽  
Sugar Market ◽  
Extreme Scenario ◽  
Competitive Product ◽  
The Eu

The EU is about to abolish the sugar – and the isoglucose – quota system in 2016/17. Isoglucose made from corn occupies about 50% of the US sweetener market while its market share in the EU caloric sweetener market is less than 5%. Against this background, this paper analyses the economics of isoglucose production in Europe in order to understand its competitiveness vis-à-vis sugar. Key results: (1) Isoglucose will become a rather competitive product. The EU sugar industry will have to give up about 40% of its current processing and profit margin in order to sell sugar at the same price as isoglucose will be traded; (2) Once industrial sugar users move to isoglucose, they will tend to be “hooked-in,” giving the sugar industry a strong incentive to defend its market share; and (3) Since only about 30% of the current sugar market is able to switch to isoglucose, the sugar industry has the option to practice a mixed calculation. In an extreme scenario, the industry may even opt to cross-subsidize sales. Therefore it’s not clear whether investors in isoglucose will be able to gain a major market share in Europe.

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