The Role of Central Banks and Competition Policies in the Rescue and Recapitalisation of Financial Institutions During (and in the Aftermath of) the Financial Crisis

Recent years have witnessed a change in focus from considerations of factors which could impede competition, for example over-regulation, to the need to strike a balance between over-regulation and insufficient regulation – in order to provide the right level of safety for consumers (such that they are protected from risky investments). A driving force behind the need for deregulation over the past two decades has been the objective and desire to foster competition. Re-regulation thereafter assumed centre stage in some jurisdictions in response to the need to manage cross sector services' risks more efficiently. Rescue cases involving guarantees (contrasted with restructuring cases) during the recent Financial Crisis, have illustrated the prominent position which the goal of promoting financial stability has assumed over that of the prevention or limitation of possible distortions of competition which may arise when granting State aid. The importance attached to maintaining and promoting financial stability - as well as the need to facilitate rescue and restructuring measures aimed at preventing systemically relevant financial institutions from failure, demonstrate how far authorities are willing to overlook certain competition policies. However increased government and central bank intervention also simultaneously trigger the usual concerns – which include moral hazard and the danger of serving as long term substitutes for market discipline. An interesting observation derives from the relationship between State aid grants, competition, and the potential to induce higher risk taking levels. Whilst the need to promote and maintain financial stability is paramount, safeguards need to be implemented and enforced to ensure that measures geared towards the aim of sustaining system stability (measures such as lender of last resort arrangements and State rescues) do not unduly distort competition as well as induce higher risk taking levels. This paper will draw attention to safeguards which have been provided by the Commission where approval is considered for the grant of State aid to financial institutions whose problems are attributable to inefficiencies, poor asset liability management or risky strategies. Whether the distinction drawn by the Commission – with regards to the preferential grant of recapitalisation packages to fundamentally sound banks (which require less restructuring measures)is justified, will also be considered. How far central banks and governments should intervene and how far distortions of competition should be permitted ultimately depends on how systemically relevant a financial institution is

Quantitative trait loci for head-bug resistance in sorghum

QTLs were mapped in F2 progeny derived from a cross between the head-bug resistant sorghum cultivar Malisor 84-7 and susceptible S 34. The phenotypic evaluation was conducted in Mali. The mapped population consisted of 217 F2 plants, with 345 homologous and heterologous RFLP probes and 49 microsatellite markers tested. Eighty-one RFLP markers revealed polymorphism between the two parents, and 14 microsatellite markers gave usable amplification products. A genetic map including 92 loci distributed over 13 linkage groups, and covering a total distance of 1160 cM was built. Three significant and seven putative QTLs were detected and placed on the ma

Quantitative trait loci for head-bug resistance in sorghum

QTLs were mapped in F2 progeny derived from a cross between the head-bug resistant sorghum cultivar Malisor 84-7 and susceptible S 34. The phenotypic evaluation was conducted in Mali. The mapped population consisted of 217 F2 plants, with 345 homologous and heterologous RFLP probes and 49 microsatellite markers tested. Eighty-one RFLP markers revealed polymorphism between the two parents, and 14 microsatellite markers gave usable amplification products. A genetic map including 92 loci distributed over 13 linkage groups, and covering a total distance of 1160 cM was built. Three significant and seven putative QTLs were detected and placed on the ma

Quantitative trait loci for head-bug resistance in sorghum

QTLs were mapped in F2 progeny derived from a cross between the head-bug resistant sorghum cultivar Malisor 84-7 and susceptible S 34. The phenotypic evaluation was conducted in Mali. The mapped population consisted of 217 F2 plants, with 345 homologous and heterologous RFLP probes and 49 microsatellite markers tested. Eighty-one RFLP markers revealed polymorphism between the two parents, and 14 microsatellite markers gave usable amplification products. A genetic map including 92 loci distributed over 13 linkage groups, and covering a total distance of 1160 cM was built. Three significant and seven putative QTLs were detected and placed on the map

Quantitative trait loci for head-bug resistance in sorghum

QTLs were mapped in F2 progeny derived from a cross between the head-bug resistant sorghum cultivar Malisor 84-7 and susceptible S 34. The phenotypic evaluation was conducted in Mali. The mapped population consisted of 217 F2 plants, with 345 homologous and heterologous RFLP probes and 49 microsatellite markers tested. Eighty-one RFLP markers revealed polymorphism between the two parents, and 14 microsatellite markers gave usable amplification products. A genetic map including 92 loci distributed over 13 linkage groups, and covering a total distance of 1160 cM was built. Three significant and seven putative QTLs were detected and placed on the map

Quantitative trait loci for head bug resistance in sorghum

An experiment was conducted during the 1997/99 cropping seasons, in Mali, France, to study the inheritance for resistance to head bug (Eurystylus oldi) of sorghum progenies using quantitative trait loci (QTL) maps. Cultivars Malisor 84-7 (resistant) and S 34 (susceptible) were used as parents. To build the sorghum genetic map, 345 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) probes in combination with 6 restriction enzymes (BamHI, DraI, EcoRI, EcoRV, HindIII and SstI) were screened for their ability to reveal polymorphism. Thousand kernel weight (TKW) and germination rate at grain maturity were measured. Head bug damage was assessed visually on a 1 to 9 scale on the infested part of the panicle (NOTF2). Among the 345 RFLP probes, 81 revealed polymorphism between the parents. Additionally, 14 microsatellite markers gave amplification products. The genetic map based on Malisor 84-7 × S 34 includes 13 linkage groups (LGs) covering a total distance of 1160 cM. Three significant and 7 putative QTLs were detected. One QTL for TKW reduction that accounted for 13% of the phenotypic variation was detected on LG C2. For this QTL, resistance is conditioned by the Malisor 84-7 allele and is dominant. Two QTLs were detected on LG D and LG E for visual damage score under natural head bug infestation, explaining 16 and 26% of the phenotypic variation for this trait, respectively. Resistance from the QTL on LG D is conditioned by the S 34 allele, whereas resistance from the QTL on LG E is provided by the Malisor 84-7 allele. In both cases, resistance is recessive. No significant QTLs were detected for NOTF2 and germination rate, but co-localization of 2 putative QTLs for these traits was observed on LG G2, and in both cases, resistance is conditioned by the S 34 allele

Patterns of Chemical Diversity in the Mediterranean Sponge Spongia lamella

The intra-specific diversity in secondary metabolites can provide crucial information for understanding species ecology and evolution but has received limited attention in marine chemical ecology. The complex nature of diversity is partially responsible for the lack of studies, which often target a narrow number of major compounds. Here, we investigated the intra-specific chemical diversity of the Mediterranean sponge Spongia lamella. The chemical profiles of seven populations spreading over 1200 km in the Western Mediterranean were obtained by a straightforward SPE-HPLC-DAD-ELSD process whereas the identity of compounds was assessed by comparison between HPLC-MS spectra and literature data. Chemical diversity calculated by richness and Shannon indexes differed significantly between sponge populations but not at a larger regional scale. We used factor analysis, analysis of variance, and regression analysis to examine the chemical variability of this sponge at local and regional scales, to establish general patterns of variation in chemical diversity. The abundance of some metabolites varied significantly between sponge populations. Despite these significant differences between populations, we found a clear pattern of increasing chemical dissimilarity with increasing geographic distance. Additional large spatial scale studies on the chemical diversity of marine organisms will validate the universality or exclusivity of this pattern