Top financial panel discusses G-20, markets

A meeting of the High Level Coordination Committee on Financial Markets  was held today at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), New Delhi. Dr. D. Subbarao, Governor, Reserve Bank of India chaired the meeting.

The meeting was held to appraise the financial committee of the discussions held in the recent G-20 meeting of the finance ministers and the central bank governors, the Reserve Bank of India said in a release.

The committee, among others, deliberated on the regulatory framework for the credit rating agencies, the steps to be taken for developing the corporate bond market and introduction of interest rates futures.

The meeting was attended by finance secretary Arun Ramanathan, economic affairs secretary Ashok Chawla,  Securities and Exchange Board of India chairman CB Bhave, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority chairman J Hari Narayan, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority chairman D Swarup and other senior officials of the finance ministry, RBI, SEBI and IRDA.

The High Level Coordination Committee on Financial Markets is a high level forum for interface among the financial sector regulators.

The meeting assumes significance in the backdrop of the Financial Stability Forum (FSF) deciding at its plenary meeting in London on 11-12 March 2009 to broaden its membership and to invite India as a new member.

Apart from India, the FSF has invited Argentina, Brazil, China, Indonesia, Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa,Turkey, Spain and the European Commission to become its new members.

The FSF was established by the G7 finance ministers and central bank governors in 1999 to promote international financial stability through enhanced information exchange and international cooperation in financial market supervision and surveillance. The current FSF comprises national financial authorities (central banks, supervisory authorities and finance ministries) from the G7 countries, Australia, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Singapore and Switzerland, as well as international financial institutions, international regulatory and supervisory groupings, committees of central bank experts and the European Central Bank. The FSF Secretariat is based at the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland.