The recent collapses of banks such as Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in the United States and Credit Suisse in Switzerland have put bank supervisors to work to avoid similar episodes, especially with regard to aspects such as liquidity and the speed with which deposits can evaporate in a matter of hours.
During his speech at IESE Banking 18, held yesterday in Madrid, the Governor of the Bank of Spain, Pablo Hernández de Cos, indicated that the Basel Committee has begun an "analysis of recent developments" to "extract lessons." This international organization, in charge of the solvency of the banks, is chaired precisely by De Cos and is preparing new measures to contain a crisis like that of Credit Suisse.
Spanish banks, according to sources in the sector, are waiting for the committee to promote transparency criteria to force them to report the "granularity" of their deposits. Granularity is understood to mean many small clients, that is, a wide diversification, which prevents accelerated withdrawals of deposits, compared to what happened with SVB, which had a very concentrated clientele and which in a few hours suffered a hollowing out.
The vice president of the ECB, Luis de Guindos, highlighted at the same conference the "resilience" of European banks, capable of "weathering the storm with high capital and liquidity ratios", but also defended measures in the EU: "If complete banking union, the ability to withstand a crisis like Credit Suisse's will be reduced. The ECB urges to finish off the Basel regulatory framework and also to implement measures that provide liquidity to banks in case of resolution.
“The SVB crisis has left a message: how quickly you can empty a bank by taking deposits with one click on your app. The conclusion is that European banks have nothing to do with SVB, but liquidity has now become a much more important value”, warned Guindos.
Spanish banks start with higher liquidity levels and a greater diversification of deposits than the European average, which protects them from turbulence. "The granularity of the deposits and the low concentration in them is a guarantee of sustainability," said the president of Abanca, Juan Carlos Escotet, at the same meeting.
Like Guindos, the governor of the Bank of Spain defended “the creation of a fully mutualized European deposit guarantee fund”. His message to the Spanish banks was that they should carry out a "prudent provision and capital planning policy".
Last year, he indicated, Spanish banks distributed 7.5 billion euros in dividends, 40% of profits, a level similar to that before the pandemic. This year they will also have to face the new government tax, which will reduce their benefit "in an amount equal to 5% of the consolidated net result of 2022".
The big Spanish banks insisted yesterday on their high levels of liquidity and diversification. They also had an impact on aspects such as digitization, sustainable financing or the international commitment. The CEO of Santander, Héctor Grissi, defended the strong internationalization of the bank, "with more than 80% of operating profits and employees outside Spain" and "an effort to integrate into the culture of each region".
The CEO of CaixaBank, Gonzalo Gortázar, emphasized "technology at customer service". “The vast majority of our clients are related in an omnichannel way” and the bank is working on strengthening its physical and digital networks, ”he said. “We make a tailored suit for our clients,” he added.
The CEO of BBVA, Onur Genç, and the president of the AEB, Alejandra Kindelán, focused their interventions on green finance. They agreed to defend an "aligned" regulation at the international level and information obligations "that do not discourage banks." “It's not so much investing in green as making businesses green,” Kindelán said.
David Vegara, executive director of Sabadell, described the "very active policy of his bank in recognizing the new needs of customers" through technology, while the CEO of Bankinter, María Dolores Dancausa, complained about the problems of image of the sector and insisted that "the raw material of the banking business is trust".
