15/09/23 (Agence Europe) – On Friday 15 September, the Belgian Finance Minister, Vincent Van Peteghem, noted that several Member States, including Belgium, were taking action to tackle the issue of “excessive profits” in the banking sector. The sector is benefiting from the record rises in key ECB interest rates to increase its profitability by raising interest rates on loans granted to economic operators, but it is not so quick to pass on this rise in interest rates on bank savings accounts. Referring to Belgium’s recent government bond issue, which attracted “€22 billion” in private savings, Mr Van Peteghem said that this was a “clear signal” from citizens that they wanted to be treated in the same way as banks respect their shareholders. (MB)