September 29, 2009

The long fight over bank capital standards can begin now that the G20 speeches are done, with U.S. and French industry lobbyists already digging in.In a struggle that will unfold at least through 2012, bankers will grapple with national authorities working to implement G20 goals set last week by leaders in Pittsburgh.EU banks will have a tougher time of it than their U.S. peers in meeting and managing new rules on capital, liquidity and leverage, said Morgan Stanley analysts on Monday.

"We believe U.S. large cap banks are far along in the restructuring of their balance sheets for the new regulatory environment outlined at G20," said the report from Morgan Stanley banking analysts Betsy Graseck and Huw van Steenis."The U.S. banks are currently better capitalized than their European peers," they said.The report's top large-cap U.S. stock picks included Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of New York Mellon, Wells Fargo and PNC Financial.