Financial Stability
Portugal downgrade reignites sovereign debt fears
Moody’s downgrades Portugal’s credit rating four notches to junk status; decision sends shudders through European markets as contagion spreads across periphery
Romania joins Target2
National Bank of Romania moves step closer to euro adoption with launch of national component of large-value euro payments system
Flight-to-safety common feature of crises: BIS paper
Bank for International Settlements study shows banks' flight-to-safety is a common feature in crises; says central banks were able to provide more liquidity this time round
BoE urges expansion of Chaps membership
Bank of England executive director of banking services Chris Salmon calls for broader membership of UK large-value payments system
Minneapolis Fed’s Kocherlakota urges review of US tax code
Minneapolis Federal Reserve president Narayana Kocherlakota says US lawmakers must reduce incentives by households and financial institutions to overleverage
Brazilian reserve requirements inefficient liquidity tool: Fed paper
Federal Reserve study says reserve requirements failed to provide adequate liquidity provisions in Brazil
Central Bank of Chile – Financial Stability Report (June 2011)
Central Bank of Chile June Financial Stability report identifies vulnerabilities in Chilean financial system
RBNZ: liquidity measures limited crisis damage
Reserve Bank of New Zealand study highlights effectiveness of emergency liquidity measures
Australian banknote makers charged with bribery
Securency and Note Printing Australia face bribery and corruption charges from Australian authorities; Reserve Bank of Australia cleared of any wrongdoing
Tucker hints at shifting BoE attitudes and policies
Paul Tucker, deputy governor at the Bank of England hints he might vote to raise interest rates; calls for new “social contract” with banks
FSB probes deposit insurance response to crisis
Financial Stability Board launches peer review of deposit insurance systems; highlights cross-border relations and crisis response
Fed extends temporary dollar swap lines again
Canada, UK, Switzerland and ECB prolong arrangements; Japan to decide soon
Eurozone authorities are losing credibility – CNB’s Singer
Credibility is key in crisis resolution and European authorities are failing to achieve, warns Miroslav Singer, the governor of the Czech National bank
Basel Committee will not impose CoCo requirement for Sifis
Basel Committee proposes a staggered common equity capital surcharge for systemically important banks, but steers clear of contingent capital
Kenya overnight lending rate leaps in unscheduled move
Overnight lending rate raised to 8%, 175 basis points above the benchmark central bank rate
Strong financial conditions ease sale declines: Fed paper
Federal Reserve study shows firms in good financial condition experience a smaller decline in sales during the crisis
Norges Bank - Payment Systems Annual Report (2010)
Norges Bank 2010 Payment Systems Annual Report says payments should be made more swiftly, securely and at a lower cost
Regulation reform dominates British Bankers’ Association conference
Regulatory reform causing concern for all involved; any changes made must be the right ones, say speakers at the BBA Annual International Banking Conference
NY Fed’s Dudley on development of bank stress tests
New York Federal Reserve president William Dudley says development of stress tests is an ongoing process
OECD says crises will continue to occur
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development report warns crises are likely to repeat themselves as the global economy becomes more interconnected
Buba paper identifies inconsistencies in central bank risk forecasts
Bundesbank study raises concern over systematic connection between risk assessments and central bank forecasts
RBA’s Debelle calls for greater focus on banks’ asset quality
Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor Guy Debelle says greater weight should be placed on asset quality rather than funding structure of banks
Fed’s Hoenig says Sifis are at odds with values of capitalism
Kansas City Federal Reserve president Thomas Hoenig says systemically important financial institutions inconsistent with capitalism
BIS Annual Report highlights action needed in key global economies
General theme of Annual Report is of slow global recovery; the United Kingdom, the United States and China all pinpointed for action