Crisis commission finishes hearing

Friday 05 February 2010

The government commission investigating the cause and effect of the economic crisis in the Netherlands completed a three week session of public hearings on Thursday, having interviewed 42 people in 50 hours.

And according to the Volkskrant, the most interesting details emerged in questioning over the break up of ABN Amro, which had little to do with the crisis itself.

Former ABN Amro CEO Rijkman Groenink told the commission the finance ministry and several bank should never have allowed the bank to be broken up after its takeover by the Royal Bank of Scotland-led consortium. And, Groenink said, he should probably have resigned over the issue.

But Nout Wellink, central bank president, said he had been powerless to act, and finance minister Wouter Bos blamed Groenink himself for ABN Amro's problems.

Icesave

The bankruptcy of Iceland's Icesave also came under the spotlight, with both former central bank director Arnold Schilder and Wellink accusing the Icelandic authorities of lying about the stability of the bank.

'I had long hoped he [Iceland's regulator] had not seen it,' Wellink told the inquiry on Thursday. 'But then I thought 'we are being lied to'.'

The eight-strong inquiry team, under the leadership of Socialist MP Jan de Wit, was set up last June and will present the first part of its findings probably in early April. The second part of its work, which the Financieele Dagblad says is more politically sensitive, will be completed later in the year.

More on this
Central bank could not top ABN Amro split
Finance minister made no mistakes
Iceland to investigate Dutch liar claims
Ex ABN Amro boss slams split up go ahead
Central bank could have cut bonuses: Zalm
Economic crisis a many headed monster

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