What¡¯s a Slovenian with several hundred thousand euros in the bank supposed to do? Spread it out among at least a few different banks, that¡¯s what. Or move the money out of the country, while it¡¯s still possible.
Imagine what must be on the minds of any savvy depositors still left at Nova Kreditna Banka Maribor d.d., now 79 percent-owned by Slovenia¡¯s government. It was one of only four lenders in October that failed the European Banking Authority¡¯s latest capital-adequacy test, a ritual best known for how lax its standards are. One that flunked was Bank of Cyprus Pcl, where uninsured depositors face 40 percent losses as part of the country¡¯s bailout terms. Another was Cyprus Popular Bank Pcl, also known as Laiki Bank, where uninsured deposits will fare far worse and the bank is being shut.
Cypriot banks¡¯ customers were complacent after uninsured deposits went unscathed in Ireland, Greece, Spain and Portugal, the first euro-area countries to seek international rescues. Slovenians won¡¯t have that excuse should their country be next.
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