Basel III responded to the financial crisis by redefining and expanding the capital requirements for risk-weighted assets and by proposing the introduction of a leverage ratio which sets a minimum level of capital for banks in relation to total exposures. The capital requirement is being increased primarily through the active use of macroprudential capital buffers. As a result, it was proposed that the leverage ratio requirement should also take into account the level of capital buffers and thus become a macroprudential policy tool. This article examines the relationship between capital and leverage ratios and discusses the options for, and effects of, introducing a macroprudential leverage ratio. We find that the capital and leverage ratios complement each other and that the introduction of a macroprudential leverage ratio could, under certain circumstances, enhance the effectiveness of a macroprudential policy.Web of Science67429927
