Volcker Committee Calls For National Regulation Of Insurance

In a report on global financial reform the Washington-based think tank, Group of Thirty, calls for the creation of a national regulator for banking and insurance in nations like the United States where no such regulator exists.

The report, titled "Financial Reform: A Framework for Financial Stability," calls on those nations that lack a "framework for national-level, consolidated, prudential regulation and supervision over large, internationally active insurance companies" to be established.

Group of Thirty is a private, nonprofit, international body composed of senior representatives from the private and public sectors and academia, supported by contributions from private sources: foundations, banks, non-bank corporations, central banks and individuals.

A major focus of the group's latest report is on national banking systems, concentrating on the need for greater involvement by nations in their banking and financial system.

The report was produced by the Group of Thirty steering committee on financial reform, headed by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul A. Volcker.

According to a note from the committee, the report "is intended to be useful to policymakers in all the countries whose financial systems have been disrupted in this [financial] crisis. The report is focused on "the safety and soundness aspects of financial regulation."