Radio Netherlands Worldwide

The bank branches in question were in the UK and the Netherlands, and should have been regulated by the authorities of those countries.

If the US division of a Canadian bank fails, it should not fall to Ottawa to be responsible for reimbursement, it falls to the FDIC in the USA.

If the UK or Dutch division of an Icelandic bank fails, it should fall to the UK and Dutch regulators who provided it with a domestic bank charter to cover its failure under their deposit insurance system. Under no circumstances should it be the responsibility of the Icelandic government or the citizens of Iceland to cover the costs of the collapse of a banking operation driven to collapse by the greed of Dutch and British speculators.