Articles by Central Banking staff
G+D and CPS are ‘most approved’ for banknote sorting
Just over half of survey sample endorses Munich-based manufacturer
Websites are top currency communication tool
More than two thirds of currency managers use social media; regional disparities emerge on preferred communication tools
Printing is the most outsourced area of the cash cycle
Just over 60% of survey respondents contract out currency printing; lower-income countries most likely to outsource
Watermarks and intaglio printing remain top security features
Increasing the number of security features does not necessarily reduce counterfeiting
Currency managers eschew big data and long-term forecasts
Most popular banknote forecast period is one to three years
Only 25% of central banks operate own printworks
Larger central banks from high income countries are more likely to print notes in-house
Central banks show wide variation in cash department staffing
Different staffing levels driven in part by which institutions run their own printworks
Cash volumes rise in most jurisdictions
Annual growth in banknotes in circulation was 6.2%; or 5.2% on a weighted basis
‘Wear and tear’ the main reason for banknote exchange
Covid-19 raised fears of banknote contamination, but historical exchange is mostly due to worn notes
Reserve Benchmarks 2020 – presentation
Central Banking’s reserves subject matter specialist Victor Mendez-Barreira speaks with Chris Jeffery about tranching trends, euro stutters, climate and ESG, external managers, liquidity stress tests and coverage ratios
Counterfeits rise with issuance on multiple substrates
Average percentage of counterfeits per total volume in circulation is around 0.01%
The Central Banking Awards 2020 virtual ceremony
View the trophy presentations and acceptance comments from all the winners recognised in the seventh annual Central Banking Awards
European central banks remain leaders for gold
Average gold holdings on the continent stand at 10.6 million ounces
Advanced economy central banks use more custodians
Reserve managers in advanced economies work on average with 5.6 custodians
One third of reserves staff work in front-office roles
Average reserve management team size is less than 30 employees
Advanced economies take the lead in securities lending
Nearly 60% of reserve managers lend out assets that are in high demand
Boards are the main authority for benchmark approvals
Risk management teams tend to lead effort to propose new benchmarks
Lower-income countries generate highest reserves growth
Most reserves portfolios appear to have weathered the Covid-19 crisis well
Few central banks consider climate risk within benchmarks
Despite central banks supporting mandatory climate risk disclosures, very few account for it in their benchmarks
Asia tops rankings for reserves coverage ratios
Asia leads across three main metrics, but the region may be moderating its holdings
Europe leads on reserve manager salaries
Central banks pay a wide range of salaries to their reserve managers
Many Paris Agreement signatories do not use ESG screens
Most reserve managers fail to take environmental factors into account for FX portfolios