ECB to give banks 48 hours to review health checks: sources

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank aims to give banks 48 hours to review the results of detailed health checks before making them public in October, putting the euro zone?s new super-regulator on a collision course with bankers who say they need more time, two persons familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.

The comprehensive assessment, conducted by the ECB before it starts supervising the euro zone?s top 120 banks from Nov. 4, will examine banks? balance sheets and weigh up their ability to withstand shock and stress.

The assessment includes an asset quality review, or AQR, and a stress test that runs banks' books through tough scenarios to check their robustness.

Banks delivered preliminary results of the stress tests conducted with the London-based European Banking Authority to the ECB around two weeks ago, said one person attending the ECB meeting in Frankfurt.

?As a consequence, most banks should know whether they face problems at the stress test or not,? he said.

ECB officials proposed revealing the results to banks for accuracy checks 48 hours before making them public in October, raising the ire of some bankers who say they need more time, according to two bankers who attended the meeting.

?Banks can't comprehend this highly complex AQR process within 48 hours in a way that they can sign it off in good conscience,? said one person familiar with the matter.

The review, unprecedented in Europe for its complexity and breadth, is designed to ensure the health of the euro zone?s financial system and restore confidence in it.

The ECB said the 48-hour deadline was one element in an ongoing dialogue with the 128 banks it was reviewing.

?We will communicate with the banks directly concerning exact timelines for the disclosure of the final result of the Comprehensive Assessment closer to the end of the process,? said a spokesman in an emailed statement.

The ECB aims to publish figures for each bank including total assets, risk exposure and a widely used gauge of balance sheet muscle called CET1, or common equity tier one capital, said one banker attending the meeting.

(Additional reporting by Andreas Framke and Laura Noonan; Editing by Robin Pomeroy and Hugh Lawson)

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