Big insurers tell anyone who will listen that they pose much less risk to the financial system than banks, and should not be hit by bank-like capital charges. The message is getting through.The Financial Stability Board, an international watchdog, is due to publish a list of systemically important insurers in the summer. At a meeting in Basel on March 20th the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (iais) reassured industry observers that it would no longer consider applying an additional "systemic risk" capital charge to the entire balance-sheet of these big insurers. If more capital is needed, it will be calculated only against those activities judged to be "non-traditional".
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