EU to Push Levies on Banks, Financial-Transaction Tax at G-20

European Union leaders vowed to push for global taxes on banks and financial transactions, setting the stage for a conflict over worldwide regulation at next week’s Group of 20 meeting.

With Germany, Britain and France pledging to impose levies on their own banks and to clamp down on financial speculation, the EU called for global taxes that have run into opposition from G-20 powers such as China.

“We want a system of levies and taxes for financial institutions to ensure fair burden-sharing and rein in systemic risks,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters after an EU summit in Brussels yesterday. “We also want a global system.”

EU to Push Levies on Banks, Financial-Transaction Tax at G-20 - BusinessWeek