AUB: What's New NBU can prevent the creation of a free trade zone with the EU

The planned increase in capital requirements for banks may become an obstacle to the creation of a free trade zone between Ukraine and the European Union (EU), according to the Association of Ukrainian Banks (AUB). "Banking innovation (bill number 0884 - ed.) May be an obstacle to creating a free trade zone between Ukraine that the EU", - reported on the website of the association. The report stresses that this bill provides, among other things, an almost sevenfold increase in minimum capital requirements established banks in Ukraine - from 75 million to 500 million hryvnia hryvnia. As a result of the increase, according to AUB, pan-European requirements will be exceeded by almost 10 times. AUB appealed to the European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Fule, which is a two-day visit to Ukraine, to comment on the standards bill number 0884. In this case, AUB notes that established in Ukraine in 2006 with legal requirements regarding the minimum capital established banks in the amount of EUR 10 million has already twice higher than EU-wide requirements (5,000,000 euros). The association also said that bill number 0884 provides for the NBU right to determine capital requirements for existing banks: this initiative could lead to an increase in regulatory capital requirements for existing banks. "The previous practice of setting a minimum size of regulatory capital for existing banks showed that as the basis for these requirements, the National Bank of Ukraine took certain statutory minimum charter capital required to create a bank", - explained in AUB. According to the Association, in case the bill number 0884 in the current edition of a threat for the future work of about 120 of the 175 operating commercial banks in Ukraine. As reported, the Association of Ukrainian Banks opposes raising capital for banks to 500 million hryvnia. On materials the Interfax-Ukraine