Zalm DSB row, ex AFM boss weighs in

Monday 08 March 2010

The former head of the financial services authority AFM has called for changes to the law following divisions over the role of Gerrit Zalm in the bankruptcy of DSB bank last year.

Arthur Docters van Leeuwen told tv show Buitenhof that the AFM and central bank's opinions should be given equal weight.

Zalm's role as DSB chief financial officer was investigated by both organisations on behalf of the government. The central bank said he had done nothing wrong, while the AFM said had not carried out his role with sufficient care.

ABN Amro

Finance minister Jan Kees de Jager sided with the central bank and Zalm, who was finance minister himself for 12 years, was allowed to keep his new job as CEO at ABN Amro.

In a statement De Jager said the AFM 'fully respected' the central bank's judgement and 'in no way whatsover distances itself from the central bank's final position.'

But Docters van Leeuwen said it was unacceptable that the central bank has an effective veto over AFM decisions.

Third report

He also criticised a third report, by professor Michiel Scheltema, which De Jager had commissioned to evaluate both the central bank and AFM reports.

Scheltema said the AFM's conclusions were not convincing and unsupported by evidence and recommended Zalm stay on at ABN Amro.

But Docters van Leeuwen told Buitenhof he did 'not understand' Scheltema's conclusions. And he called for the results of the two reports to be made public.

A Financieele Dagblad reader points out that Scheltema and Zalm are well known to each other and that Zalm gave the farewell speech when Scheltema left the government's academic advisory council WRR in 2004.

© DutchNews.nl

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