1. Banking on McCreevy.
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FINANCIAL services policy , *INTERNATIONAL markets , *FINANCIAL institutions , *GOVERNMENT policy - Abstract
The article details financial-services regulations proposed by the European Union. Charlie McCreevy, the former Irish finance minister and now the EU's internal-market commissioner, is regarded as both a sensible champion of capitalism and a bureaucrat who has slowed the march towards a single market. McCreevy is likely to be on display in a new financial-services plan for the next five years, due to be laid out by the European Commission on December 5th in the "White Paper". Hitherto, the commission has focused on harmonising wholesale financial services, such as inter-bank payment systems, and on areas in which benefits could be won fairly quickly, such as government-bond and equity markets. To rectify this, the new plan pays more attention to retail financial services. For instance, the commission wants to make it easier for people to open and close bank accounts across borders, and to transfer money between accounts in different countries without hitting big obstacles or incurring high fees. The White Paper also calls for plans to harmonise asset management, credit intermediaries and banking supervision.
- Published
- 2005