A global regulatory body representing the central banks of the world's biggest countries has warned the International Accounting Standards Board against forcing banks to value assets using the much-maligned fair value method, which has been criticised for adding to the stress on banks’ balance sheets over the past two years.

The IASB, the global standard-setter for financial accounting, proposed drastic changes to its IAS 39 principles in July. IAS 39 includes four categories of assets - those that are valued using the fair value method, those that are held to maturity, loans and receivables and assets that are available-for-sale.