Investors would be able to make a more accurate assessment of how well banks manage risks on their books under proposals published by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) on Thursday. Risk management has risen to the top of the regulatory agenda for banks after the 2007-09 financial crisis left taxpayers having to bail out lenders who failed to disclose potential problems on their balance sheets. Banks hold large amounts of loans, derivatives and other assets and liabilities that are at the mercy of unexpected shifts in interest rates, requiring constant hedging or insurance to maintain profitability. Banks in Europe, Canada and parts of Asia and Latin America have to use standards written by the IASB and are required to account for hedging on an item by item basis, a complex undertaking. The rule restricts banks' ability to offset positions in portfolios, which leads to accounting discrepancies, prompting the European Union to introduce an exemption in 2005 so
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