Financial Stability
Iceland offers pension funds relief from capital controls
Pension funds will have access to a limited amount of foreign currency in an effort to smooth the transition as controls are lifted
Fed economist sees gaps in CCP risk management
Quant Congress USA: CCPs struggle to model conditional losses and auction behaviour
IMF economists release study on LTV and DTI limits in six countries
Working paper studies the implementation and effectiveness of loan-to-value and debt-service-to-income limits in Brazil, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Poland, Romania and South Korea
ECB lifts veil on ELA as it raises Greek cap
No action on monetary policy but governing council extends further lifeline to Greek banks; Draghi admits policy of keeping emergency liquidity secret is unnecessary in a systemic crisis
Israel’s Flug wants to shine light on ‘grey market’
The alternative financing market, composed of both law-abiding and criminal elements, needs to be shrunk and brought under the supervisory spotlight, says Bank of Israel's governor
BoE’s Miles cautions against use of policy rate for financial stability ends
Use of monetary policy to tackle financial stability goals is less efficient than setting higher capital requirements, outgoing MPC member says
IMF calls for Greek debt relief ‘far beyond’ EU plans
Memo warns public debt is ‘highly unsustainable’ and European leaders will need to provide much greater debt relief than they have discussed up to this point
UK’s Treasury Committee raises concerns over FPC accountability
MPs question whether Financial Policy Committee discussions are adequately represented by meeting records; wide-ranging discussion takes in liquidity issues, 'too big to fail' and stress testing
Greek bank holiday sparks swaps contract chaos
Extended bank closure leaves derivatives payments by end-users in limbo
US report finds ‘no single cause’ of October 15 volatility in Treasury market
Staff from five bodies, including the Fed board of governors and New York Fed, analyse data from unusual bout of volatility in the US Treasury market last year
Kuwaiti banks perform well under stress, report shows
Banks in Kuwait showed resilience during stress tests and strengthened their balance sheets in 2014, financial stability report shows; conventional banks more cost-efficient than Islamic
Dutch bulletin: T2S can only succeed if ‘many’ CSDs sign up
The Netherlands Bank's latest bulletin highlights the importance of more CSDs in Europe signing up to the Target2-Securities platform since the initial migration in June
Zimbabwean governor says banks more stable
John Mangudya says the banking sector ‘remains safe and sound’ after the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe moved to address credit risk and liquidity constraints
European leaders strike Greek deal but hurdles remain
All-night session ends in Greece agreeing to a tough reform package, but finance ministers continue to debate possible bridge financing and national parliaments must still give green light
IMF wants new fund with ability to extend ELA in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Staff suggest creating financial stability fund that can provide liquidity support to stressed but solvent banks, which the currency board arrangement prohibits the central bank from doing
CPMI and Iosco launch first consistency assessment of FMI principles
'Level three' assessment will examine the consistency with which the Principles for Financial Market Infrastructures have been applied to central counterparties
Greek crisis enters critical weekend
Negotiations enter final days, with European authorities scrambling to assess whether new proposals go far enough; Greece has backers, but Germany must still be persuaded
Fed’s Brainard ponders whether systemic banks could choose to downsize
Governor Lael Brainard says systemically important institutions may choose to ‘reduce their systemic footprint’ as regulation kicks in and impacts cost-benefit analysis
De Grauwe says Greek crisis has shaken OMT credibility
Belgian economist says ECB’s decision not to use OMTs because of fears over Greek solvency may have fatally damaged the policy’s credibility and consequently the stability of the eurozone
New swaps margin hub aims to solve disputes pre-call
Matching up risk factors should avoid collateral headaches, hub hopes
HKMA introduces ‘major' piece of financial infrastructure to facilitate China flows
New routing and settlement service will underpin mutual recognition of funds initiative launched July 1; will enhance Hong Kong's role as ‘leading asset management centre', says Pang
Greece asks for three-year ESM bailout as Tsipras tries to unite Europe
Government submits request for longer support programme than previous proposals while Alexis Tsipras seeks backing during rowdy European Parliament session
BoE FPC wary of buy-to-let risks
Financial policy committee asks bank staff to identify channels through which the market threatens stability; UK government caps tax relief on buy-to-let property
Minneapolis Fed research separates Greece and Puerto Rico debt crises
Staff report notes the debt crisis has spilled over to the private sector in Greece but not in Puerto Rico, given the latter’s inability to interfere with private external debt contracts