Far-right leader Le Pen has said that if she becomes president she would call a referendum on ditching the euro, dubbed "Frexit", finance state spending through central bank money-printing, force commercial banks to lend small firms and halve the maximum rates that banks can charge clients.
Opinion polls indicate she has a good chance of coming out on top of the first round of voting on April 23, with her share of the vote projected at 25-30 percent. But they see her losing to centrist Emmanuel Macron in a May 7 runoff.
After French bond yields spiked in February on poll gains by Le Pen, ECB supervisors have sought to ensure banks have fully sized up the risks of the unexpected, four senior bankers told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the political sensitivity of the matter.
One scenario lenders have been asked about is the possibility of Le Pen scoring higher than predicted in the first round, thus increasing her chances of winning the presidency in the runoff two weeks later.
"For a fortnight we'd be absolutely fine to get through any difficulties," said a second banking executive, speaking about a possible short-term liquidity squeeze in credit markets. The industry could easily weather a bout of brief volatility, the banker added.
Reference: Reuters
Thai
Eng