SIFMA today issued the following statement from Ken Bentsen, executive vice president, public policy and advocacy in support of H.R. 940, the United States Covered Bond Act of 2011, which faces a vote in the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises of the House Financial Services Committee.
“Covered bonds are an effective vehicle for infusing long-term liquidity into the financial system. By using covered bonds to more closely match the maturities of their assets and liabilities, financial institutions are able to reduce refinancing risks that can have a destabilizing influence on the banking system more broadly. In our view, the dedicated covered-bond legislation and public supervision created by H.R. 940 creates a degree of legal certainty that regulatory initiatives cannot replicate. We urge members of the Subcommittee to vote in favor of this legislation.”