Saturday, December 12, 2020

Basel Committee’s members, when will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?

On their own, banks would naturally charge higher interest on residential mortgages to those with higher loan to value ratios (LTV) than to those with lower LTVs. 

But with Basel III, the first will be charged even higher rates, in order to compensate for the fact that banks are now allowed to leverage more with lower LTVs; which means it's easier for banks to obtain higher risk weighted returns on equity with “safer” lower LTVs.

That makes the riskier even more risky, and, by lowering the risk adjusted interest rate they would pay without this regulatory distortion, could even turn the “safer” into becoming very risky. 

When will the Basel Committee ever learn that any risk, even if perfectly perceived, will lead to the wrong responses, if excessively considered?

When will the Basel Committee ever learn that what’s dangerous to our bank system is not what’s perceived as risky, but what’s perceived as safe?