should keep in mind. first, the eba ’ s estimate for eu banks is based on fairly conservative assumptions – the actual impact is expected to be somewhat lower than 24 %. and second, only some banks will face significant increases in capital requirements. for some banks the requirements will even decrease. we should not forget the rationale behind basel iii. the aim is to preserve risk - sensitive regulation and, at the same time, reduce excessive variability of risk - weighted assets. this is reflected in the design of basel iii. take the output floor. it sets a lower limit for the risk - weighted assets that banks calculate with their internal models, giving them the freedom to use internal models while at the same time introducing a safeguard. the very same idea appears in other parts of the basel iii framework – the operational risk framework has been simplified, for instance. internal models can no longer be used to assess operational risks ; it had become clear that they were too complex and led to excessive variability in risk - weighted assets and insufficient levels of capital for some banks. in their place, a new 1 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches standardised approach has been introduced, which combines simplicity and risk sensitivity. we agree with the basel committee on banking supervision and the eba on the design of this approach – we recognise the benefit of including past losses in the new standardised approach to make it risk sensitive. this feature also helps to maintain a direct link between risk measurement and risk management – good risk management will keep losses at bay and thus result in lower capital requirements. to sum up : basel iii will change capital requirements, making crises less likely and thus supporting the euro area economy. so we think that the benefits of a faithful, consistent and timely implementation of basel iii will outweigh the costs. and we also think that banks will be able to manage its full impact. i know that some would like to reopen the basel package before implementing it. in my view, this would not serve anyone ’ s needs ; it would just prolong the period of regulatory uncertainty. the only sensible next step is to implement basel iii in all jurisdictions, including the european union. by sticking to what was agreed we underline that we continue to feel committed to a multilateral framework of standard - setting, which is superior to bilateral agreements and clearly preferable to any kind of trade war. that said, i am aware that basel iii comprises a vast and complex set of standards. we will need to continue evaluating these standards

mark carney : opening remarks to the “ empowering productivity : harnessing the talents of women in financial services ” report launch opening remarks by mr mark carney, governor of the bank of england and chairman of the financial stability board, at the gadhia review launch, bank of england, london, 22 march 2016. * * * good morning and welcome to the bank of england. it ’ s a pleasure for us to host the launch of the “ empowering productivity : harnessing the talents of women in financial services ” report. a series of transformations are sweeping financial services. first, since the crisis, a comprehensive series of reforms have strengthened the resilience of banks. capital requirements are now seven times the old standards for most banks. for global systemically important banks ( g - sibs ), they are more than ten times higher. for uk banks, liquid asset holdings have tripled. trading assets are down by a third and inter - bank exposures have shrunk by two thirds. second, the aftermath of the crisis exposed serious deficiencies in the conduct of many market participants. now, the tide of ethical drift is being reversed and trust in our institutions is beginning to be rebuilt as a result of the conclusion of the fair and effective markets review, the launch of the banking standards board and the ficc markets standards board, as well as the start of the senior managers regime, and the embedding of new compensation regimes that better align rewards with risks taken. third, the disruptive possibilities of the fintech revolution are beginning to touch the core of the financial sector. now it is time for a similar transformation of the diversity of one of the most important sectors of the uk economy. in many respects, jayne - anne gadhia ’ s report is long overdue. for too long the representation of women in middle and senior tiers of management has lagged that in other leading sectors. for too long, results have fallen short of good intentions. and for too long the financial sector has suffered the economic consequences of this inequality while society has borne the broader costs. greater diversity – in all its forms, cognitive, gender, background, ethnicity, religion – can help transform the financial sector. research has shown that companies with a significant proportion of women in senior management positions perform better in part because of some leadership behaviours that women exhibit more consistently than their male colleagues. 1 in particular, women are found to excel at people development, participative decision making