1 Introduction Before moving to the main topic, I would like to reinforce remarks made last week by Chairman Bernanke on the recent turbulence in financial markets. In the United States we have seen a fairly sharp downturn in housing markets, and in recent weeks there have been growing investor concerns about mortgage credit performance, particularly with subprime mortgages.
However, they sometimes face obstacles in the form of inadequate national legislation and national judicial frameworks, as described in the stocktake of national practices we published in September. Here, policymakers can play an important role by reforming relevant legislation. As supervisors, we can assist the banks by pointing out best practices and ensuring that they are applied.