Dutch in bid to clean up financial system

Amsterdam Dutch bankers and insurers will have to pledge an oath to put their clients' interests first in a government bid to improve confidence in the financial sector.

"With these measures, we're taking an important step in the right direction to restore the moral authority of the sector," Dutch Finance Minister Jan Kees de Jager wrote in a letter to parliament yesterday.

The oath, which will be enforced by regulator AFM, is part of new financial regulations scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2013.

The Dutch spent about ¤30 billion on the 2008 bailout of Fortis's Dutch units, including its stake in ABN Amro Holding. Separate aid for ING Groep, SNS Reaal, Aegon and the collapse of DSB Bank and Landsbanki Islands's Dutch Icesave unit drove up costs for the state and the banking sector, respectively.

A parliamentary committee on April 11 concluded that the previous Dutch government made "large errors" in its bailouts.

Separately, De Jager said he will expand government supervision to include hedge funds and credit-rating companies. The measures also include a ban on banks paying bonuses to executives while receiving state aid.