The Impact on Long-Term Capital Investment of Accounting and Prudential Standards for European Financial Intermediaries

The aim of this paper 1 ?is to explain why there is insufficient long-term capital investment despite the abundant savings collected by a booming financial sector. Special attention is given to understanding the role of today?s accounting and prudential requirements, to grasping their limitations and to underscoring the need for reform to foster long-term capital spending in Europe. This paper shows that International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) can affect different financial intermediaries in different ways, and that current prudential rules are likely to prove even more detrimental to long-term investment financing.