Banks need closer watch, says DIFC

The Gulf needs a new regional supervisory framework for banks that goes beyond measures being discussed by world leaders in Pittsburgh, according to the chief economist of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

Barack Obama, the US president, and his counterparts in the Group of 20 (G20) developed and emerging nations gathered in the US city on Thursday to discuss a plan to reform the global financial system and force banks to reduce leverage to avoid a repeat of the worst financial crisis in 70 years.

The fallout from the debt restructuring of the Saad and Al Gosaibi groups of Saudi Arabia has shown that the Gulf region would benefit from a regional framework for regulation, said Dr Nasser Saidi, the DIFC chief economist.