Europe Offers Relief to Banks Still Hurting From Last Crisis
- Bank of England cuts rates, lowers some capital buffers
- Germany mulls similar steps; Italy boosts stimulus again
The European Central Bank headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.
Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Europe moved to provide relief for its ailing banks as efforts to combat the coronavirus threaten to push more borrowers into default and disrupt lending.
The Bank of England on Wednesday announced a package of emergency measures, including a 50 basis point rate cut and a lower capital buffer to free up cash for lending. Germany’s banking watchdogs earlier discussed easing such buffers while the European Central Bank, which holds its policy meeting tomorrow, is expected to present its own crisis measures.