April 25, 2015

Margrethe Vestdager, Europe’s competition commissioner, dare to confront your technocrat colleagues in Basel Committee

Sir, Mario Monti raves about the policies imposed by the European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestdager, “The bold Brussels ‘eurocrats’ who command the world’s respect” April 25.

Indeed, taking on Goggle and Gazprom, is unquestionably a sign of great daring. Still I wonder if Commissionaire Vestdager has what it takes to stop her colleagues, other technocrats/bureaucrats , from hindering competition.

Banks are currently required by the Basel Committee to hold more equity against those perceived as risky than against those perceived as safe. And in doing so they odiously discriminate directly against those who anyhow have less access to bank credit, and anyhow need to pay higher interests, precisely because they are perceived as risky.

In other words the regulators have given those perceived as “safe”, an unfair huge competitive advantage when it comes to accessing bank credit.

@PerKurowski