Such measures inevitably led to increases in fiscal deficits and government debts. It is in this context that the crisis in Greece spread to some peripheral European countries, such as Ireland and Portugal, which were perceived to have relatively greater difficulties in proceeding with fiscal consolidation and/or economic reforms.
While my remarks today and these following recommendations highlight issues for community banks, the framework for analyzing bank mergers for large banks also needs to be updated. The goal should be to apply a transparent, dynamic framework that allows the industry to evolve with market conditions and apply sensible regulatory oversight. Size should not be the controlling factor.