Articles by Central Banking staff
Reserve coverage remains at adequate levels despite Covid
FX interventions to tackle capital outflows have not meaningfully reduced portfolios globally
Central banks divided on liquidity stress tests
Central banks with lower reserves more likely to forgo the measure
People: Portugal reappoints board member two years late
Second woman to join Paraguay board; Central Bank of Russia appoints government official to lead financial ombudsman; and more
One in ten central banks opened new liquidity swap lines
Benchmarking participants expanded lines in dollars, euro and renminbi
Securities lending prevalent in European central banks
Monetary policy, market maturity and currency variation may limit adoption in other regions
National income not only determinant of reserve management staff numbers
Salaries ranged between $11,968–$138,768 among benchmark participants
Payments Benchmarks 2021 – presentation
Central Banking’s payments subject matter specialist Rachael King speaks with Christopher Jeffery about payments, staffing and salaries, mandates, oversight, and RTGS renewal
Most central banks invest in derivatives
External managers facilitate wider use of these instruments
External asset manager use on the rise
Central banks in upper-middle income countries allocated a higher share of reserves to external managers
Emerging nations turned to FX interventions during pandemic
Central banks in emerging nations were twice as likely to implement FX interventions than their peers in advanced economies
Reserve managers prioritise liquidity tranches during pandemic
Central banks increased this part of their portfolios in the wake of US Treasury disruptions
Summers: digital yuan unlikely to threaten US dollar
Traceability of Chinese CBDC amid “financial thunderbolts” from Beijing may limit appeal, says former top US economics policy-maker
Social bonds gain importance as a reserve asset
More than two-fifths of benchmark respondents invest in social bonds
Summers fears for Fed’s ability to remove ‘punchbowl’
Central banks may not be able to counter inflation threat amid possible return to 1960s economics, says former US Treasury secretary
Climate risk becomes more relevant to reserve managers
More central banks invest in green bonds and include climate risks in their benchmarks
Most respondents externally accountable on financial stability
All responding central banks said they publish a financial stability report at least once a year
Financial stability powers are sufficient, say most central banks
Two African central banks say they urgently need more powers over financial sector
Pandemic is top stability concern for benchmark respondents
House prices, cyber crime and crypto assets are also major worries for central banks
Many benchmark respondents concerned over AML/CFT risks
Participants based in Americas especially concerned over rise in money-laundering risks
Stark differences between financial stability department resources
Powers may be more important than staff numbers and budget to carry out function
More macro-pru tools needed, say some central banks
Some benchmark respondents say they lack legal framework for macro-prudential powers
Emerging market central banks regulate more sectors
A higher proportion are the sole banking, non-bank and micro-finance sector regulators
Emerging nations favour different macro-prudential tools
Respondents from richer countries use counter-cyclical buffers more than emerging market peers
Many central banks are sole macro-pru agency
Two-thirds of respondents say central bank alone can impose macro-prudential restrictions