Regulators are therefore examining ways to lower the burden on banks when the UK adopts new international capital rules in 2025.
In November, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) published a consultation suggesting British lenders will be forced to hold back billions of pounds more than their EU rivals. And while the PRA is still insisting on robust implementation, regulators are said to be seeking a “middle ground” on small business lending involving a transition period from the current framework.
According to the Telegraph, it’s also considering “grandfathering” existing loan arrangements and adopting a commonsense approach towards risks high street banks say will tie-up less money on balance sheets they will use to boost the economy.
The news comes ahead of the full implementation of the Basel 3.1 reforms, which go live at the start of 2025. It’s an international regulatory accord that introduced a set of reforms designed to mitigate risk within the international financial banking sector by outlining the amount of capital needs to hold against the risk they take.