German government approves plan for levy on banks to cover cost of future crises
By APWednesday, March 31, 2010
Germany approves plan for bank fund
BERLIN — The German government has approved a plan to have banks pay into a fund to cover the costs of future financial crises — a proposal welcomed by France’s visiting finance minister.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said his government expects that the levy would raise between euro1 billion and euro1.2 billion ($1.35 and $1.6 billion) per year.
He said the government expects to draw up detailed legislation by this summer.
The Cabinet meeting Wednesday that decided on the bank levy was attended by French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde — whose country also is considering what measures to take to avert future crises.
A joint Franco-German statement said the German proposals are “a very useful contribution to the international debate.”
