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UPDATE 1-Polish c.bank head urges steps vs "speculator" banks

Published 03/04/2009, 11:09 AM
Updated 03/04/2009, 11:16 AM
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(Adds other details, background)

By Karolina Slowikowska

WARSAW, March 4 (Reuters) - The governor of Poland's central bank said on Wednesday he wants talks with the European Central Bank and European Commission on ways of denying public funds to banks he says speculate at the expense of new EU member states.

"Our aim should be to implement measures that would limit incidence of granting public help to financial institutions that speculate on financial markets of the new member states and emerging economies," Slawomir Skrzypek said in a statement.

"I shall endeavour to initiate a discussion on this subject within the ECB and the European Commission."

Skrzypek, who is often at odds with Poland's centre-right government over policy, added that he had already raised the issue of speculation against emerging markets in recent discussions with the U.S. Treasury.

Analysts were sceptical such a move could gain any ground, particularly with western EU members scrambling to uphold their banking sectors with billions of euros in capital injections and in some cases the outright nationalisation of flagging lenders.

But the issue of banks, especially Western ones, speculating against the zloty and other east European currencies during the global financial crisis has begun to stir anger in local media.

Polish tabloid Fakt, which has the biggest circulation in the country, recently dubbed one foreign bank analyst a "vampire", saying his manipulative play on the zloty had helped push the currency to multi-year lows against the euro.

"Because of people like him and their speculative actions Polish families are suffering and paying higher loan payments," it said next to a photograph of the banker in question.

Marcin Mroz, chief economist at Fortis Bank in Warsaw, said bankers and economists had taken on the role of the proverbial messenger bearing ill tidings.

"Killing the messenger undoubtedly improved the mood of the king, prince or ruler, but it did not affect the substance of the message being delivered," Mroz said.

"Today the economist can feel like such a messenger. All it takes is for him to show worse growth, unemployment or zloty forecasts."

Some other analysts said the demonisation of bankers and economists can be bad for business.

"Publishing negative bank forecasts about the Polish economy or the zloty can translate into less business from the government, for example when it looks for advisers on privatisation projects," said an analyst at one international bank who asked to remain anonymous.

This, in turn, could lower the quality and integrity of forecasts as banks strive to retain corporate and other clients in an economy where cash has become scarce, he said.

"I have the impression that Polish media are out to get 'speculators', particularly those abroad," said Radoslaw Markowski, a sociologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences.

"Funnily enough, this happens to be good for the government, which should probably be the target of such articles," he added.

(Editing by Patrick Graham)

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