Bundesbanker expects Basel III to take effect mid-2013

An international agreement on bank capital rules known as Basel III may not be implemented until the middle of next year, Handelsblatt reported, citing a member of the German Bundesbank's board.

It is unrealistic to expect the Basel III rules, designed to make the global banking system more resilient in the aftermath of the financial crisis, to take effect on time in January, the newspaper quoted central banker Andreas Dombret as saying.

Dombret, in charge of financial stability on the board of the Frankfurt-based Bundesbank, said he was "very confident" that the United States would implement the new set of Basel rules, according to Handelsblatt.