The Basel Committee’s risk weighted capital requirements for banks, is one cultural genocide of the western world

Frequently we read about how the destruction of monuments amounts to cultural genocides. But are monuments all there is about cultural heritages? No! Also such heritages as a cultural willingness to take risks.

In 1988, with the Basel Accord, Basel I, regulators introduced risk based capital requirements for banks; which were further amplified in 2004 with Basel II.

That regulation allows banks to earn higher risk adjusted returns on equity when holding “safe” assets, than when holding “risky” assets.

The layer of regulatory risk aversion it introduced, made banks abandon financing the riskier future, in order to just refinance the safer past and present.

The willingness to take risks is part of the cultural heritage of my western world, in churches we sang a psalm that prayed for “God make us daring”.

The willingness to risk making mistakes, has provided the western economies with the raw material necessary for the successes that helped to buildup its economy.

“A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are for.” John A Shedd

But now: “If God can’t make our bankers sufficiently coward, then we have to!” Bank regulators

In short, the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision’s regulatory imposed risk aversion, constitutes a destruction of a cultural heritage of our western world.

And all for nothing! The regulators justified it with that it would make our banks safer. What nonsense! Major bank crises never ever result from excessive exposures to something ex ante perceived as risky; these always result from either unexpected events, or excessive exposures to what was ex ante perceived as very safe, but that ex post turned out to be very risky.

“May God defend me from my friends, I can defend myself from my enemies” Voltaire

PS. Actual risk weights: AAA to AA rated 20%, Below BB- 150%. Can it be more loony than that?