Currency
Domestic euro users bear highest shoe leather costs, Bank of Italy paper finds
Euros circulate widely outside the eurozone, transferring some costs to foreigners – but the effect is small relative to the popularity of the euro as a global currency
ECB welcomes draft Portuguese law on banknote production
Proposals would remove requirement that Bank of Portugal must own 51% of legal entity responsible for banknote production; could pave way for closer co-operation with other NCBs
China permits central banks to trade forex derivatives based on Isda agreements
China allows derivatives trading based on international standard agreement for the first time; applies only to sovereign investors and foreign exchange derivatives
Bank Indonesia asks citizens to 'show rupiah some love'
Central bank arranges festival to 'nurture feelings of affection' for currency and encourage Indonesians to start using e-money instead of cash
Lagarde declares support for RMB inclusion in SDR basket
IMF managing director endorses inclusion in currency basket after staff report deems Chinese currency 'freely usable'; executive board decision expected on November 30
Challenging crosscurrents from divergent monetary policy
Divergent monetary policies around the world and challenges linked to China’s economic rebalancing present central bankers with some opportunities as well as numerous threats
Improving banknote efficiency in India
The RBI manages nearly 80 billion banknotes in circulation – a number set to grow by more than 5% per annum. Vijay Shekhawat explains how the central bank is optimising its banknotes business
Bank of Namibia defends currency deal with Angola
Namibia's central bank addresses stakeholders' concerns over its currency conversion agreement with the National Bank of Angola, including the latter’s ability to buy back kwanza
Zhou expects RMB to account for one-third of global payments in 2020
PBoC governor outlines economic objectives over coming five years in sweeping article; looks to 'phase out' quota system and improve reserve management
Belarus to re-denominate its currency from July 2016
Ruble to be cut to one ten-thousandth of its value when new series rolled out; new banknotes printed years ago, but delay saw them stashed in central bank vault
Swaziland currency drops under Fed decision pressures
Delayed Fed rate rise put pressure on Swaziland lilangeni, central bank says, and more moves are likely
Bank of England expands swap line with China
The BoE and PBoC strike a deal to increase the swap line to RMB350bn and extend it by three years; seen to support London as an offshore centre
US softens discourse on renminbi ahead of SDR review
Treasury drops 'significantly undervalued' reference in flagship report to Congress on foreign exchange rate policies ahead of IMF review next month
Ireland to move to euro rounding next week
Shoppers in Ireland will have transactions rounded to nearest five cents, Central Bank of Ireland says; scheme to be voluntary and apply only to cash payments
Namibia removes security feature from two banknotes
Central Bank of Namibia removes OVI diamond from N$10 and N$20 notes; hopes to reduce costs while preserving security
Fiji laments 'torn and burnt' polymer banknotes
Central bank governor urges Fijians to stop ironing polymer notes which can 'cause them to melt and shrink'
Colombia doubles value of largest banknote
Colombian central bank will issue new 100,000 note for the first time alongside five redesigned denominations in 2016
BoE says cash unlikely to ‘die out’
An article in the Bank of England's quarterly bulletin illustrates the continuing use of cash in the UK, despite the introduction of new payment technologies over the last decade
RBA economist proposes ‘survival model’ of banknote life
The research discussion paper outlines an alternative method of predicting how long banknotes will last, finding the ‘survival model’ produces less volatile estimates
BoE reveals new £20 note will be polymer
Next series of £20 banknotes will feature polymer substrate, in line with £5 and £10 notes; as yet unnamed visual artist will be included in design
New Zealand's colour-changing banknote feature hailed as world's first
A colour-shifting bird within a holographic window is main new security feature of the country's first banknote series in 16 years
SNB reveals launch date for delayed banknote series
Roll-out of ninth banknote series to begin next year; new notes believed to include unique security features but central bank is being tight-lipped in the run up to the launch
PBoC revamps 100 yuan note
New versions of China’s highest denomination note include improved security features to fight counterfeiting and improve machine-readability
Riksbank launches app as drive to publicise new notes and coins accelerates
Central bank’s first smartphone app helps public identify counterfeit banknotes and features voice-over by Stefan Ingves; part of communications push ahead of new banknote and coin series