‘No immediate plans’ to bring case against U.S. over Volcker rule: Oliver

Following a speech on Tuesday at the Toronto Board of Trade as part of a conference organized by the Private Capital Markets Association of Canada, Mr. Oliver said he hopes “there is no need” to launch a challenge under the North American Free Trade Agreement, adding that “We’re not looking to have a dispute here.”

In a recent speech in New York, Mr. Oliver called for the U.S. to amend the Volcker rule, part of the post-financial crisis legislation regarding financial services, to allow U.S. banks to buy Canadian government bonds for their own trading accounts. Under the current rules, American banks trading their own book are prohibited from buying any securities other than U.S. government bonds.

“We want to come to a solution that we genuinely believe is in the interest of both countries,” said Mr. Oliver. “It’s clearly in the interest of Canada to have its securities market as broad as possible, and it’s in the interest of the U.S. to have access to top credit securities, which Canadian securities are.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/no-immediate-plans-to-bring-case-against-us-over-volcker-rule-oliver/article24486971/