Dutch banks were put under heavy strains early in the global downturn and have comparatively weak financial buffers to … adverse shocks. Banks are very large relative to the size of the domestic economy, have sizeable cross-border exposures and … taxpayer and the regulator’s tools available to reduce risks should be expanded. In particular, banks should set aside …

banking sector is sufficiently capitalised in the short term, banks are deleveraging by cutting down their dependence on cross … ban on foreign currency lending for mortgages, future uncertainties about parent banks’ funding and undermined creditors … while weakening banks’ solvency. The mid-December 2011 agreement between the government and the banking sector was a welcome …