Swan against global bank levy
Treasurer Wayne Swan continues to oppose against a global bank levy that aims to modify institutions against future credit crises and fund bailouts of financially-challenged nations.
Mr. Swan addressed finance ministers and central bankers during a G20 meeting in Busan, South Korea, that the Australian bank sector has no need to increase its banking systems and regulations.
"Australia has a really strong banking system. Our financial system is strong and, of course, our fiscal position in Australia is very strong," he told the delegates.
"So what will necessarily suit Australia won't necessarily suit other countries in different circumstances.
His comments came before a statement released during the G20 meeting that it failed to agree on a global tax on banks that should make financial institutions handle the burden of bailout funds.
Mr. Swan suggested that a common set of guidelines and principles should be made that will fit a variety of circumstances and options across different economies and nations.
Nations like Canada, China, and Brazil, whose banks suffered less during the global crisis, may avoid introducing a bank levy.
Europe and the US have called on for a universal levy to prevent loaners relocating to jurisdictions that do not depend on bank levy.
In an interview with CNBC Asia Pacific, Mr. Swan confirmed that some reforms were discussed with the Financial Stability Board and other international organizations during the G20 meeting.
"Reforms to do with the quantity of capital and the quality of capital and liquidity -- those reforms are quite advanced.
"We will see some of that when the leaders meet in Toronto and the rest of it will be progressed by year's end."
The two-day G20 meeting held in Busan, was an introduction for a G20 leaders summit in Toronto this month. Busan's meeting ended yesterday.
Mr. Swan stressed that the G20 meeting discussed heavily on two or three-speed global economy.
He added that developing and already developed nations have a need for a structural reform to uplift their growth potential since some economies were not able to grow strongly.
"If it wasn't for the actions of the G20 to intervene at that critical time at the end of 2008, early 2009, we could have well seen a global depression.”