Editorial Note

Saludos from the Chairman

In March 2006, after 30 years at the Federal Reserve Board, including nearly 15 as Director of Banking Supervision and Regulation for the U.S. Federal Reserve System, I announced that I will be retiring at the end of June of this year. I am looking forward to the next chapter in my life and am grateful for the opportunity to have made so many friends over the years in the international supervisory community, including members of ASBA. It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve as Chairman of the Association and to work with you over the past three years and I greatly appreciate all of your contributions to the work of the Association during this time.

ASBA has accomplished a lot over the last several years. In 2003, the Association emerged as an active participant in the international dialogue on supervisory policies when it submitted its response to the Basel Committee’s Third Consultative Paper on the New Capital Accord. Earlier this year, the Association submitted a response to the Consultative Document on the (revised) Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision. The responses reflect the views of the Association’s diverse membership and emphasize that while the Association supports current efforts to improve the quality and effectiveness of bank supervision standards, individual countries should be encouraged to implement the New Capital Accord and the Basel Core Principles at their own pace.

In addition, during my tenure as Chairman, ASBA continued to make important contributions to regional efforts to enhance supervisory and regulatory regimes through the Association’s “core” activities. ASBA sponsored numerous training programs, reaching hundreds of supervisors in most members’ countries, under the Continental Training Program and cosponsored several international seminars on important supervisory issues. The Association also continued to participate frequently in other international forums and information sharing activities and deepened its productive working relationships with international financial institutions and other international organizations.

Through all of these activities, the Association sought to conduct meaningful regional dialogue regarding banking supervision -- both among countries in the region and between member countries and the international banking supervisory community. I believe ASBA achieved this objective and in doing so, has proven its valuable role in the region.

Other important milestones in the evolution of the Association that have occurred over the last several years include the relocation of the Association’s headquarters from the Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission to new offices in Mexico City in 2003. Since then, ASBA has expanded its staff and other operational capacities to support the increasing work of the Association. In addition, in furtherance of ASBA’s longstanding objective of fostering sound, internationally recognized standards for banking supervisors, ASBA developed its first four-year Strategic Plan. The 2004-2008 Strategic Plan emphasizes ASBA’s vision to be recognized by its members and the international banking supervisory community generally as an effective promoter of sound banking regulation and supervision practices throughout the Americas and sets the goals for the Association:

• To promote the implementation of regulatory and legal frameworks in member countries in line with international standards;

• To advance banking supervisory policies, procedures, and programs in line with international best practices;

• To support Associate Members’ efforts to develop sufficient skilled and capable supervisory resources to enable them to fully carry out their banking supervisory responsibilities; and

• To develop an internal and external network that will benefit the Association’s advancement, international recognition, and representative capabilities.

While much has been accomplished by the Association over the last three years, much more remains to be done. The release of the New Basel Capital Accord and the new draft of the Basel Core Principles will continue to represent significant opportunities for the Association to demonstrate its value as a forum for discussion and a facilitator for regional feedback as part of the process of developing international standards in the field of bank supervision and regulation. In the years ahead, it will be important for supervisors to get together frequently, in meetings such as ASBA sponsored forums, to assess the impact of Basel II and progress in enhancing arrangements for coordination and cooperation. Similarly, the release of the new Basel Core Principles will give rise to regional discussions on issues related to compliance with the new principles and the process of conducting self-assessments.

ASBA is a dynamic Association that understands its challenges and opportunities and continually seeks to develop its abilities. ASBA’s success will continue to be a function of the commitment and support of its member countries and the individuals who actively participate in carrying out its agenda. I am confident that ASBA will continue to find new and better ways to successfully deliver on its critical mission of promoting high supervisory standards and cooperation among supervisors. I believe the Association’s best years and achievements are yet to come and wish you the very best in the months and years ahead!

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