The Budget Commission working on the Financial Supervisory Authority at the last minute

The Budget Commission of the Chamber of Deputies has added two new members to the leading commission of the Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF), besides the 15 members it was initially stipulated to have, according to yesterday's amendments.

The ASF will take over the supervision of the stock market (CNVM), of the insurance industry (CSA) and of pensions (CSSPP). The deadline for the creation of the new institution is April 15th, 2013.

Dan Radu Ruşanu, the president of the Commission for Budget, Finance and Banks of the Chamber of Deputies, seems to be the one who is getting ready to take over the helm of the Authority. The BURSA newspaper reported, in the edition of December 12th, 2012, that the PNL favors Dan Radu Ruşanu, vice-president of the PNL as the head of the ASF.

The first name thrown around for the ASF was that of Florin Georgescu, the first deputy governor of the NBR. Then, other names made the rounds, including Mircea Ursache, the former president of the AVAS, economist Daniel Dăianu, banker Nicolae Dănilă, the president of SIF Transilvania, Mihai Fercală, or the former chairwoman of the CNVM, Gabriela Anghelache.

It would seem that the leadership of the ASF has led to talks within the USL, as the liberals do not agree to hand over this position as well, after the members of the PSD received key positions in the current government.

The management of the ASF will have a president, which must have at least ten years of work experience in the financial sector, a prime vice-president and three vice-presidents, who need to have at least seven years of experience, according to the amendments brought about by the deputies of the Budget Commission.

The other members will need to have an expertise of at least five years in the financial sector.

Last week, the Legal Commission of the Chamber of Deputies has proposed its own amendments to the project for the creation of the Unified Authority.

The Legal Commission wanted the members of the ASF to be appointed exclusively based on their experience and professional qualification of at least 10 years in the banking and non-banking financial activity.

According to the amendments brought about by the Legal Commission, the new Supervisory Authority will be rid of the problem of compensating the investors in the FNI, according to the amendments brought by the Legal Commission of the Chamber of Deputies: "The authority for the Management of the State's Assets will take over without payment all the rights and obligations of the CNVM, resulting from the legal acts by which the CNVM was required, as a legally liable civil party, to pay compensations to the investors of the National Investment Fund".

The stock market regulator - CNVM - was forced by the courts to compensate the former investors in the FNI, by paying them an amount rumored to be in the hundreds of millions of Euros. The representatives of the CNVM warned that the budget of the Commission does not include that much money and that the institution is at risk of being unable to continue its operation.

At the end of last year, the Government approved the emergency ordinance for the creation of the Financial Supervisory Authority, but the market is betting on the fact that it will not be applicable until the act goes through the Parliament.

It would seem that the Parliament is moving quickly, and the deadline by which the report needs to be submitted to the Permanent Office is February 25th.