The result will be that RBS's core capital ratio hits a whopping 12.4%, about double the level at JPMorgan Chase, America's soundest big bank.

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The big banks will breathe a sigh of relief that 10% is expected to emerge as the new norm for their core capital ratio - partly because they have taken pre-emptive action and already meet that target.

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Michael Trippitt of Oriel Securities said HSBC had been looked at unfairly by the market for having a relatively low core capital ratio, a key measure of a bank's reserves to back up its lending and investment portfolio.

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By the end of June 2012, banks are expected to establish a core-capital ratio of 9%.

ECONOMIST: Economic crisis

Banks will also be forced to increase their core tier 1 capital ratio to 9% by the end of 2011 and 10% by 2012, according to a note by Nomura.

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The bank's so-called core Tier 1 capital ratio under new regulations known as Basel III rose to 8% from 6% a year earlier, then dropped to 7.8% after the bank provisioned for legal costs.

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The bank's profit number beat consensus forecasts by about 5 per cent, and the core tier one capital ratio -- a key measure of financial strength -- was also slightly ahead of expectations at 12.3 per cent.

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While the bank reported that its core Tier 1 capital ratio grew to 10.5% from 9.4%, it dedicated a large chunk of its report to the proposed Basel III and the negative repercussions it would have on its business.

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Analysts believe the lender could have a core tier one capital ratio of close to 20 per cent initially, falling to 9 per cent -- the level required by the troika agreement -- in three years' time once losses have been incurred and recognised.

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By raising money, BoCom's core Tier-1 capital ratio will jump from a barely adequate 8% to more than 10.4%.

ECONOMIST: Chinese banks

The bank had a tier 1 capital ratio of 11.3% at the end of the second quarter, while its core tier 1 ratio, which excludes hybrid capital instruments, stood at 7.5%.

FORBES

On Dexia, it was only on July 15 that the European Banking Authority disclosed that this retail and public-sector finance bank would have a ratio of core Tier One capital to assets of 10.4%, even after incurring notional losses from harsh simulated financial and economic conditions.

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Mr Miles said that the optimal ratio of core tier one equity capital to risk-weighted assets would be 19%.

BBC: Sants: We wanted banks to hold more capital