Eurozone banks more able to absorb headwinds than in 2012: ECB

[FRANKFURT] The euro area bank sector is more resilient than at the height of Europe's crisis in 2012 and lenders are more capable of absorbing any unexpected headwinds, Daniele Nouy, the European Central Bank's top banking supervisor said on Tuesday.

"The banking sector is much more resilient, as Common Equity Tier 1 ratios of the significant institutions increased on average from approximately 9 per cent in 2012 to about 13 per cent following our Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process, also known as "SREP"," Nouy told the economics committee of the European Parliament.

"In addition, the quality of the banks' capital has also been substantially improved," she said. "Thus, the sector is much more able to absorb unexpected financial or economic headwinds than a few years ago."

REUTERS