APAC Banks: A Review/Forecast of Basel 4 Impact

APAC Banks have been leading the implementation timelines of the final Basel 3 reforms (also known as Basel 3.1 or Basel 4). Australia, Indonesia and South Korea adopted full or parts of Basel 4 since Jan-23, followed by China, Japan and Singapore in 2024, and Hong Kong and Malaysia in Jan-25. In contrast, the timeline for US banks remains uncertain, which forms part of the reasons that the Bank of England has delayed its implementation date to 1 January 2027.

Canada is holding the Basel 3 floor at 67.5% till further notice, and the EU has postponed the implementation date from 1 January 2023 to 1 January 2025 with the application of the Fundamental Review of the Trading Book (FRTB) further delayed by one year to 1 January 2026. Within the APAC region, Thailand and India have yet to announce their timelines for implementing the final Basel 3 reforms.