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Since the subprimes crisis, the bank regulatory framework has undergone substantial changes with the release, in December 2010, of the Basel 3 document. The new framework reintroduces a simple capital ratio, the leverage ratio, which is added to the more sophisticated capital standards introduced under Basel II. This note outlines the theoretical foundations of the return of the leverage ratio and how its implementation is expected to complement the more complex risk-adjusted capital ratios. Lessons are also drawn from US and Canadian experiences that had already seen both types of standards jointly implemented. Finally, the implementation process under the Basel 3 framework is also discussed.Classification  JEL:G21, G28