sp.a : Start van een nieuw banklandschap

[Politics.be]

De banken worden in de toekomst veel strenger gereguleerd. Ze mogen geen bonussen uitkeren als ze staatssteun krijgen, ze moeten een rampenplan hebben om in geval van nood hun spaarbank af te splitsen van hun zakenbank en ze moeten voor elk spaarproduct of belegging de risico’s duidelijk aangeven. “Dit is een verregaande hervorming, die een nieuwe bankencrisis en een nieuwe redding door de belastingbetaler moet vermijden“, zeggen Bruno Tobback en John Crombez.

De onderhandelaars raakten het vandaag eens over een sterkere regulering van de financiële sector. sp.a deed na de bankencrisis van 2009 al een reeks wetsvoorstellen, maar die bleven dode letter. “Het Dexia-fiasco heeft nog maar eens bewezen dat er nood is aan strenge regels”, zegt John Crombez. “Het is cruciaal dat we nu ingrijpen om een nieuwe bankencrisis te vermijden.”

- Banken die staatssteun krijgen, mogen geen bonussen meer uitkeren aan hun managers.Ook niet in de vorm van aandelen of andere voordelen.
- Elke bank moet voortaan een zogenaamd ‘bankentestament’ opmaken, een rampenplan om snel en kordaat in te grijpen als ze grote verliezen lijden. Dat plan zorgt ervoor dat de spaarbank bij financieel onheil kan afgescheiden worden van de zakenbank, zodat de overheid alleen het spaargedeelte moet beschermen. De verplichte opmaak van zo’n plan dwingt de banken om voorzichtiger te werk te gaan.
- Financiële producten krijgen allemaal een label mee dat aangeeft welk risico de spaarder loopt. Zo is hij zich bewust van de mogelijke gevolgen van de belegging die hij kiest.
- De nieuwe regering zal op Europees niveau actief ijveren voor de invoering van een financiële transactietaks om speculatie in te dijken. Ze zal ook pleiten voor een Europees ratingagentschap en een Europese regulering van de financiële sector.

“sp.a heeft van de sterkere regulering van de financiële sector een absolute topprioriteit gemaakt”, reageert Bruno Tobback. “Als we kijken naar de schade die de banken ons land hebben berokkend, kan het belang van deze hervorming nauwelijks onderschat worden. Zowel de klanten als de overheid worden in de toekomst veel beter beschermd.”

Meer info
Johan Van Hoecke

Bron: politics.be

[roger verhiest]

What is Islamic Banking?

Islamic banking refers to a system of banking or banking activity that is consistent with the principles of the Shari'ah (Islamic rulings) and its practical application through the development of Islamic economics. The principles which emphasise moral and ethical values in all dealings have wide universal appeal. Shari'ah prohibits the payment or acceptance of interest charges (riba) for the lending and accepting of money, as well as carrying out trade and other activities that provide goods or services considered contrary to its principles. While these principles were used as the basis for a flourishing economy in earlier times, it is only in the late 20th century that a number of Islamic banks were formed to provide an alternative basis to Muslims although Islamic banking is not restricted to Muslims.

Islamic banking has the same purpose as conventional banking except that it operates in accordance with the rules of Shari’ah, known as Fiqh al-Muamalat (Islamic rules on transactions). Islamic banking activities must be practiced consistent with the Shari’ah and its practical application through the development of Islamic economics. Many of these principles upon which Islamic banking is based are commonly accepted all over the world, for centuries rather than decades. These principles are not new but arguably, their original state has been altered over the centuries.

The principle source of the Shari’ah is The Qur’an followed by the recorded sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) – the Hadith. Where solutions to problems cannot be found in these two sources, rulings are made based on the consensus of a community leaned scholars, independent reasoning of an Islamic scholar and custom, so long as such rulings to not deviate from the fundamental teachings in The Qur’an.

It is evident that Islamic finance was practiced predominantly in the Muslim world throughout the Middle Ages, fostering trade and business activities. In Spain and the Mediterranean and Baltic States, Islamic merchants became indispensable middlemen for trading activities. It is claimed that many concepts, techniques, and instruments of Islamic finance were later adopted by European financiers and businessmen.

The revival of Islamic banking coincided with the world-wide celebration of the advent of the 15th Century of Islamic calendar (Hijra) in 1976. At the same time financial resources of Muslims particularly those of the oil producing countries, received a boost due to rationalisation of the oil prices, which had hitherto been under the control of foreign oil Corporations. These events led Muslims' to strive to model their lives in accordance with the ethics and principles of Islam.

Disenchantment with the value neutral capitalist and socialist financial systems led not only Muslims but also others to look for ethical values in their financial dealings and in the West some financial organisations have opted for ethical operations.
Origin

The origin of the modern Islamic bank can be traced back to the very birth of Islam when the Prophet himself acted as an agent for his wife's trading operations. Islamic partnerships (mudarabah) dominated the business world for centuries and the concept of interest found very little application in day-to-day transactions.

Such partnerships performed an important economic function. They combined the three most important factors of production, namely: capital, labour and entrepreneurship, the latter two functions usually combined in one person. The capital-owner contributed the money and the partner managed the business. Each shared in a pre-determined share of the profits. If there was a loss, the capital-provider lost his money and the manager lost his time and labour.


Commercial Banks in Muslim Lands

Western commercial banks date from about two and a quarter centuries ago, when the western world was dispensing with moral and ethical considerations in economics. When the Muslim world came into contact with the west, Muslims had two choices:

a) To accept commercial banking, arguing that the interest charged by them did not contain the element of riba prohibited in the Qur'an; or,

b) To accept that interest charged was riba and try to develop an alternative system of banking.

But ancient Muslim institutions, such as the Shari'ah courts, had been made ineffective by the colonial powers. Muslims had no alternative but to work with the colonial institutions, including commercial banking.

Nevertheless, during the 19th century, several religious scholars argued that the term riba referred to loans for consumption, which people found it difficult to repay, and not to commercial banking loans, where the debtor can repay from the profits.

But the Qur'an makes no distinction between loans for consumption and loans for productive purposes. So their views were rejected. As a consequence, modern commercial banking did not make much headway in Muslim countries and to this day the presents of the conventional framework still dominates the national financial system.

Early Western PLS Proposals

Equity-participation systems had been proposed at various times of economic crises in the United States and Latin America. The most ardent proponent of these was American Economist, Henry Simons (1899 – 1946), who, in the 1930s, argued that the traditional fractional reserve banking system was inherently unstable and should be replaced by two separate financial institutions:

Deposit banks, which would maintain 100% reserves. They could not fail the depositors and could not create or destroy effective money. They would simply accept deposits.
Investment trusts, which would perform the lending functions of existing banks. Such companies would obtain funds for lending by selling their own stock.
Simons' call for a distinction between the payments and portfolio functions of banks, and for 100% reserve requirement in the former, was rejected at the time, but interest in Simons' ideas has remained.

Many reasons have been advanced for the possible instability of the traditional banking system. Simons suggested that the basic flaw was that as a crisis develops and earnings fall, banks make loans to increase reserves. However, each bank can do so only at the expense of other banks and thus some banks become insolvent.

The bank failures in the U.S. during the 1980s revived interest in equity-based proposals and the separation of the payment of deposits from the portfolio activities of banks. The proposals made were strikingly similar to the Islamic systems now being implemented, at least on the deposit side. But the Islamic system goes further, requiring that loans made by banks should also be equity-based.

Islamic Banks in the 20th Century

When, in the1960s, Muslim thinkers began to explore ways and means of organising commercial banking on an interest-free basis, economists dismissed their work as wishful thinking.

But, in 1963, in Mit Ghamr, in Egypt, the first Islamic interest-free bank came into being. Mt Ghamr was a rural area and the people were religious. They did not place their savings in any bank, knowing that interest was forbidden in Islam. In these circumstances, the task was not only to respect Islamic values concerning interest, but also to educate the people about the use of banking.

The following types of accounts were accepted:

a) Savings accounts
b) Investment accounts
c) Zakat accounts

No interest was paid on savings accounts, but withdrawals could be made on demand. Small, short-term, interest-free loans for productive purposes could be made. Funds in investment accounts were subject to restricted withdrawals and invested on the basis of profit- sharing. The zakat account attracted the official amount of zakat.

The Mit Ghamr project was successful, as deposits increased from 1963 to 1966. The bank was cautious, rejecting about 60% of loan applications and the default ratio was zero in economically good times. But project was eventually abandoned for political reasons. Nevertheless, it had shown that commercial banking could be organised on a non-interest basis.

[hurricane]

Het zal Jean luc Dehaene worst wezen. Hij heeft zijn schaapjes op het droge.
Dit soort maatregels komt, zoals steeds in dit land, te laat.

[eno2]

[quote]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door Politics.be

De banken worden in de toekomst veel strenger gereguleerd. Ze mogen geen bonussen uitkeren als ze staatssteun krijgen, ze moeten een rampenplan hebben om in geval van nood hun spaarbank af te splitsen van hun zakenbank en ze moeten voor elk spaarproduct of belegging de risico’s duidelijk aangeven. “Dit is een verregaande hervorming, die een nieuwe bankencrisis en een nieuwe redding door de belastingbetaler moet vermijden“, zeggen Bruno Tobback en John Crombez.

hoera

[eno2]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door roger verhiest

What is Islamic Banking?

Islamic banking refers to a system of banking or banking activity that is consistent with the principles of the Shari'ah (Islamic rulings) and its practical application through the development of Islamic economics. The principles which emphasise moral and ethical values in all dealings have wide universal appeal. Shari'ah prohibits the payment or acceptance of interest charges (riba) for the lending and accepting of money, as well as carrying out trade and other activities that provide goods or services considered contrary to its principles. While these principles were used as the basis for a flourishing economy in earlier times, it is only in the late 20th century that a number of Islamic banks were formed to provide an alternative basis to Muslims although Islamic banking is not restricted to Muslims.

Islamic banking has the same purpose as conventional banking except that it operates in accordance with the rules of Shari’ah, known as Fiqh al-Muamalat (Islamic rules on transactions). Islamic banking activities must be practiced consistent with the Shari’ah and its practical application through the development of Islamic economics. Many of these principles upon which Islamic banking is based are commonly accepted all over the world, for centuries rather than decades. These principles are not new but arguably, their original state has been altered over the centuries.

The principle source of the Shari’ah is The Qur’an followed by the recorded sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) – the Hadith. Where solutions to problems cannot be found in these two sources, rulings are made based on the consensus of a community leaned scholars, independent reasoning of an Islamic scholar and custom, so long as such rulings to not deviate from the fundamental teachings in The Qur’an.

It is evident that Islamic finance was practiced predominantly in the Muslim world throughout the Middle Ages, fostering trade and business activities. In Spain and the Mediterranean and Baltic States, Islamic merchants became indispensable middlemen for trading activities. It is claimed that many concepts, techniques, and instruments of Islamic finance were later adopted by European financiers and businessmen.

The revival of Islamic banking coincided with the world-wide celebration of the advent of the 15th Century of Islamic calendar (Hijra) in 1976. At the same time financial resources of Muslims particularly those of the oil producing countries, received a boost due to rationalisation of the oil prices, which had hitherto been under the control of foreign oil Corporations. These events led Muslims' to strive to model their lives in accordance with the ethics and principles of Islam.

Disenchantment with the value neutral capitalist and socialist financial systems led not only Muslims but also others to look for ethical values in their financial dealings and in the West some financial organisations have opted for ethical operations.
Origin

The origin of the modern Islamic bank can be traced back to the very birth of Islam when the Prophet himself acted as an agent for his wife's trading operations. Islamic partnerships (mudarabah) dominated the business world for centuries and the concept of interest found very little application in day-to-day transactions.

Such partnerships performed an important economic function. They combined the three most important factors of production, namely: capital, labour and entrepreneurship, the latter two functions usually combined in one person. The capital-owner contributed the money and the partner managed the business. Each shared in a pre-determined share of the profits. If there was a loss, the capital-provider lost his money and the manager lost his time and labour.


Commercial Banks in Muslim Lands

Western commercial banks date from about two and a quarter centuries ago, when the western world was dispensing with moral and ethical considerations in economics. When the Muslim world came into contact with the west, Muslims had two choices:

a) To accept commercial banking, arguing that the interest charged by them did not contain the element of riba prohibited in the Qur'an; or,

b) To accept that interest charged was riba and try to develop an alternative system of banking.

But ancient Muslim institutions, such as the Shari'ah courts, had been made ineffective by the colonial powers. Muslims had no alternative but to work with the colonial institutions, including commercial banking.

Nevertheless, during the 19th century, several religious scholars argued that the term riba referred to loans for consumption, which people found it difficult to repay, and not to commercial banking loans, where the debtor can repay from the profits.

But the Qur'an makes no distinction between loans for consumption and loans for productive purposes. So their views were rejected. As a consequence, modern commercial banking did not make much headway in Muslim countries and to this day the presents of the conventional framework still dominates the national financial system.

Early Western PLS Proposals

Equity-participation systems had been proposed at various times of economic crises in the United States and Latin America. The most ardent proponent of these was American Economist, Henry Simons (1899 – 1946), who, in the 1930s, argued that the traditional fractional reserve banking system was inherently unstable and should be replaced by two separate financial institutions:

Deposit banks, which would maintain 100% reserves. They could not fail the depositors and could not create or destroy effective money. They would simply accept deposits.
Investment trusts, which would perform the lending functions of existing banks. Such companies would obtain funds for lending by selling their own stock.
Simons' call for a distinction between the payments and portfolio functions of banks, and for 100% reserve requirement in the former, was rejected at the time, but interest in Simons' ideas has remained.

Many reasons have been advanced for the possible instability of the traditional banking system. Simons suggested that the basic flaw was that as a crisis develops and earnings fall, banks make loans to increase reserves. However, each bank can do so only at the expense of other banks and thus some banks become insolvent.

The bank failures in the U.S. during the 1980s revived interest in equity-based proposals and the separation of the payment of deposits from the portfolio activities of banks. The proposals made were strikingly similar to the Islamic systems now being implemented, at least on the deposit side. But the Islamic system goes further, requiring that loans made by banks should also be equity-based.

Islamic Banks in the 20th Century

When, in the1960s, Muslim thinkers began to explore ways and means of organising commercial banking on an interest-free basis, economists dismissed their work as wishful thinking.

But, in 1963, in Mit Ghamr, in Egypt, the first Islamic interest-free bank came into being. Mt Ghamr was a rural area and the people were religious. They did not place their savings in any bank, knowing that interest was forbidden in Islam. In these circumstances, the task was not only to respect Islamic values concerning interest, but also to educate the people about the use of banking.

The following types of accounts were accepted:

a) Savings accounts
b) Investment accounts
c) Zakat accounts

No interest was paid on savings accounts, but withdrawals could be made on demand. Small, short-term, interest-free loans for productive purposes could be made. Funds in investment accounts were subject to restricted withdrawals and invested on the basis of profit- sharing. The zakat account attracted the official amount of zakat.

The Mit Ghamr project was successful, as deposits increased from 1963 to 1966. The bank was cautious, rejecting about 60% of loan applications and the default ratio was zero in economically good times. But project was eventually abandoned for political reasons. Nevertheless, it had shown that commercial banking could be organised on a non-interest basis.

off course

[ViveLaBelgique]

Hoog tijd dat het testament van Ethias wordt opgemaakt. Het is niet enkel door een bonusbeleid dat er mismanagement ontstaat. Ook door de klassieke indekking via vriendjespolitiek waar het management van financiële spelers van overal beschermd worden terwijl ze helemaal niet bekwaam zijn. Dit heeft bij Ethias ook geleid tot de noodzaak om ze van overheidswege overeind te houden.

[Xenophon]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door eno2

hoera

Zie maar dat je niet te vroeg juicht, want de goede verstaander die de bankiers gisteren op Terzake bezig hoorde die weet dat ze de bonus nu gelijk in de vorm van loon krijgen.

[eno2]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door Xenophon

Zie maar dat je niet te vroeg juicht, want de goede verstaander die de bankiers gisteren op Terzake bezig hoorde die weet dat ze de bonus nu gelijk in de vorm van loon krijgen.

Mij maakt de techniciteit niet uit, als het maar aan 95% belast wordt.

[Frans Oghtendlicht]

Nemen alle SP.A politiekers nu ontslag?

[Sfax]

Tiens, laten ze dergelijke mededelingen niet meer doen door bonus-Tuybens