The Evolution of US Bank Capital around the Implementation of Basel III

Following the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2008, the capital standards for banks operating in the United States were tightened as US banking regulators implemented the Basel III framework. This Economic Commentary briefly presents the key elements of Basel III relevant to bank capital and analyzes the timing of the evolution of regulatory capital ratios for US bank holding companies during that time. It shows that, on average, banks’ capital ratios increased notably between 2009 and 2012, plateauing before the new rules came into force. While larger and better-capitalized banks increased capital ratios soon after the financial crisis, it took smaller and less-well-capitalized banks longer on average to start that process.