The Basel Committee and ICBS
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision provides a forum for regular cooperation on banking supervisory matters. Its objective is to enhance understanding of key supervisory issues and improve the quality of banking supervision worldwide.
It seeks to do so by exchanging information on national supervisory issues, approaches and techniques, with a view to promoting common understanding.
At times, the Committee uses this common understanding to develop guidelines and supervisory standards in areas where they are considered desirable.
In this regard, the Committee is best known for its international standards on capital adequacy; the Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision; and the Concordat on cross-border banking supervision.
The Committee's members come from Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Countries are represented by their central bank and also by the authority with formal responsibility for the prudential supervision of banking business where this is not the central bank. The present Chairman of the Committee is Mr Nout Wellink, President of the Netherlands Bank.
The Committee encourages contacts and cooperation among its members and other banking supervisory authorities. It circulates to supervisors throughout the world both published and unpublished papers providing guidance on banking supervisory matters.
Contacts have been further strengthened by an International Conference of Banking Supervisors (ICBS) which takes place every two years.