Articles by Central Banking staff
Paper-based banknotes still outnumber polymer substrates
Most banks do not plan adoption of new substrates
Cash usage drops further to an average of 42.5% across jurisdictions
Just one African institution and a European jurisdiction experience growth in cash payments
Fewer central banks report climate strategy
Incineration still most common practice among institutions recycling banknotes
Central banks have fewer cash distribution centres on average
However, some have added processing facilities in last five years
Most central banks do not own their own printworks
Fewer than a quarter report operating printing plants and two-thirds say they outsource
Monetary Policy Benchmarks 2022 – presentation
Central Banking’s economics subject matter specialist Daniel Hinge discusses monetary policy after Covid-19
Most central banks plan no new banknotes in near future
Fewer than a quarter of banks plan new notes in next five years
Reserve Benchmarks 2022 charts
Take a deep dive into the Reserve Benchmarks charts, which have just been released for 2022
Reserve Benchmarks 2022 report – executive summary
Findings on strategies to tame the impact of inflation and geopolitical risk, technology resources and green investments
Payments Benchmarks 2022 – presentation
Central Banking’s payments subject matter specialist Riley Steward speaks with Chris Jeffery about digital currencies, payments oversight and more
Share of reserve managers investing in green and social bonds declines
Share of portfolios allocated to these assets grow modestly
Average central bank equity allocations at 11.9%
Despite higher volatility, high income central banks increase their investments in equities
Asset diversification and staff training main goals for external contracts
All non-high income central banks aim to offer training to staff, high income jurisdictions focused on diversification and market intelligence
Fed announces climate test for some large banks
US central bank will test six major banks but says results will not have capital consequences
Most central banks expect sanctions on Russia to have a long-term effect
Trend is weaker in Europe than in the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Africa
Over 90% of central banks trim duration as protection against inflation
Fewer institutions increased US Treasuries (18.75%), reduced exposure to unconventional assets (6.25%)
Central banks’ coverage ratio drops by 23%
Reserves buffers to cover monthly imports decline to 6.9 months
Central Bank of Kenya orders digital credit firms to ‘cease and desist’
Backlog of 278 applications pending while central bank awaits paperwork
Digital dollar could reduce unbanked in US by 93% – Dallas Fed paper
Inclusion need not come at the cost of disintermediation, researchers find
Staff salaries at reserves departments increased 17.6% from last year
Total staff numbers declined by 10% to 27
World Bank president under fire over climate comments
David Malpass seemed unsure about man-made climate change
More central banks expand existing liquidity swap lines
More than 23% of participating countries gained access to IMF facilities over past year
Share of central banks screening ESG risks declines slightly
Central banks in Europe in top slot for including ESG criteria on their benchmarks
Central banks divided on how Russia sanctions will hit reserve currencies
Non-European central banks more likely to expect a growing role for renminbi in reserves portfolios