E.U. leaders are attempting to come to agreement on the amount of capital banks would have to set aside as a precaution against losses, with Britain and Sweden seeking even larger percentages than rules already being discussed.
Reuters reported Wednesday that the 27 members of the European Union had different ideas about how much bank capital should be set aside to cover potential losses, with the lessons of the financial crisis spurring some countries to demand more stringent regulation.
Denmark, the present occupant of the six-month rotating presidency of the group, is trying to find consensus among countries about proposed new capital rules so that an accord can be reached with the European Parliament by the end of June. It has pressed members to find common ground, which thus far has been unsuccessful.
The end goal is to take Basel Committee regulators' higher capital standards for banks and make them into law so that banks must begin to abide by the new regulations by the beginning of 2013.
