Africa
A quarter of central banks have insufficient financial stability powers
Some respondent institutions need new powers urgently
Middle income countries more likely to report rising NPL levels
Most high income respondents say NPL levels have fallen in last five years
Banking resolutions are rare events in most countries
Two jurisdictions account for 77.9% of resolutions reported by sample
Reserve requirements most commonly used macro-pru tool
Responses show differences in measures favoured by high and middle income economies
Most central banks do not want more macro-pru powers
But minority of benchmark participants want governments to adopt measures in use elsewhere
Central banks rarely administer deposit guarantee schemes
Lower-middle income countries less likely to have such schemes
Richer nations less likely to have central banks as sole macro-pru authority
Respondents from lower-middle income countries more likely to be only macro-prudential body
Central bank boards often used for stability decisions
Institutions from high income countries most likely to give stability remit to boards
South Africa risks FATF sanction as legacy of state capture endures
Central bank finds thousands of bank clients have missing citizenship and incorporation data
East African states clash over location of regional central bank
‘Verification exercise’ gave Tanzania the highest score, prompting Uganda and Kenya to object
Kenyan governor denies shortage of small-denomination notes
Interior minister had claimed that politicians were draining supply to pay election bribes
Monetary policy set a maximum of 12 times a year
Frequency of meetings highest on average in upper-middle income economies
Monetary policy press conferences more common than minutes
High income institutions trail behind middle income banks on minutes publication
Monetary policy and ops divisions mostly segmented
Nine in 10 institutions separate units in the Americas, Asia and Europe
Covid impacting monetary policy most in middle income countries
Most central banks report shifting stance at the height of pandemic, but some have since reverted
Gender equality is key to sustainable development
Bank of Zambia deputy governor Rekha Mhango sets out the central bank’s strategy on financial inclusion
Understanding informal remittances
Better tracking of remittance flows could give central banks valuable insights to support policy, say Deepali Fernandes, Amil Aneja and Azar Sultanov
People: April to June 2022
A round-up of central bankers in the news and on the move during the past three months