Template:AI Risk-weighted assets

Risk-weighted assets — it’s a plural noun, in that there’s not much sense talking about one — are used to determine the “capital adequacy ratio” (“CAR”) minimum capital a bank must hold given the assessed risk of its lending activities and other assets. This is meant to reduce the risk of insolvency and protect depositors and, er, shareholders, but really, unless you are Swiss and your shareholders are from Saudi Arabia, no-one cares less about bank shareholders, which is one of the enduring mysteries of the financial markets. Why anyone would be a bank shareholder. Excuse me if I seem a bit bitter: I have just broken off a long and disappointing relationship with Credit Suisse.