The first of two articles on Basel II in the context of the current crisis and providing updates on proposals by the Basel Committee to improve the framework.

It has been a couple of years since Basel II was last discussed in this column.
“Basel II” is of course shorthand for the revised international capital-adequacy standard for banks developed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, which was implemented in Hong Kong on 1 January 2007.
We were among the first jurisdictions to adopt this standard.
However, not long after its implementation, we witnessed a “once-in-a-century” financial crisis which has swept around the globe.
Some of the most illustrious names in the financial industry have been overwhelmed and government intervention, on a previously unimaginable scale, has resulted.
All of this has, not surprisingly, prompted criticism and questions about the credibility of Basel II, including why it did not help avert the crisis and, indeed, whether it contributed to the crisis.