Financial Stability
Hungary central bank sets out stress test methodology
Working paper explains how the National Bank of Hungary conducts its stress tests, aimed at ensuring the system can survive an intensive month-long liquidity shock
Governors grapple with regulatory implications of African mobile money growth
African central bank heads agree to develop comparative surveys of mobile money regulation, as mobile banking takes off
ECB ‘strongly supports’ new payments directive
The European Central Bank gives its backing to a new payments directive that aims to create a more integrated European market for electronic payments
Visco calls for ‘rapid’ SRM agreement
Bank of Italy governor Ignazio Visco urges the European Parliament and Council for the EU to find a common ground on the SRM; argues for single resolution fund to be fast-tracked
Asia uses macro-prudential policies to greater effect, IMF paper finds
Macro-prudential policy has curbed credit growth and bank leverage in several Asian countries over the past decade; loan-to-value ratio caps and housing tax measures among most effective instruments
ECB unveils ‘co-operation framework’ for SSM
European Central Bank outlines how it will co-operate with national authorities in the forthcoming single supervisor mechanism; proposals open to public consultation
Capital vulnerability at US banks began four years prior to crisis, NY Fed paper finds
CLASS model projections show capital vulnerability in the US banking sector started as far back as 2004, before it peaked during the financial crisis at the end of 2008
Political impasse threatens SRM progress
European parliamentarians express frustration with the slow negotiations over the single resolution mechanism; Martin Schulz urges finance ministers to pick up the pace
Regulatory reliance to blame for faulty credit ratings, paper claims
The growing importance of credit ratings to financial regulators and prudential regulation explains more of the distortion in ratings than the question of who pays for the rating
US Congress committee highlights Volcker rule anomalies
Fed's Tarullo among regulators grilled by US Congress over apparently arbitrary exemptions to the Volcker rule
Fed proposals for updated payments system meets with mixed response
Some industry practitioners tell Fed it should move faster on payments reform, though others argue if it isn't broken, don't fix it
Bank of England says BBA could co-ordinate response to banking cyber attacks
Sweeping exercise aimed at preparing UK banks against attacks against financial infrastructure by ‘hostile nation state' also sees some firms struggle with new dual regulatory structure
Reserve Bank of Fiji targets more effective communication
The central bank will build a new communications framework and resurrect plans for a financial stability report as part of its strategic outlook for 2014-18
National Bank of Hungary honours Austrian governor
Ewald Nowotny receives Lamfalussy Award for ‘exceptional international efforts’; associated conference in Budapest features comments from a host of European central bankers
Banque de France official: Sepa delays incur 'collective cost'
Denis Beau says the market participants that missed the February 1 deadline for migration to the new credit transfer and direct debit schemes should switch as soon as possible
ECB releases AQR framework
Danièle Nouy and Vítor Constâncio outline the ‘building blocks’ of the asset quality review; say recruitment for the SSM is progressing ‘at full steam’
Unco-ordinated macro-prudential policies could result in ‘capital war’, says BoJ paper
Johns Hopkins professor argues that, absent any co-operation, countries across the globe will implement macro-prudential policies in a manner ‘reminiscent of an inefficient arms race’
Ingves calls for consistency in risk weights for credible capital ratios
BCBS chair says underlying differences in risk drive lion's share of risk-weight variations, but some arise from supervisory and practice-based idiosyncrasies
Central banks must lean against boom and bust to retain credibility, says Borio
A more symmetrical response to booms and busts is required to leave policy-makers with the ammunition and credibility to tackle them, says top BIS economist
EBA announces key ratios for European bank stress tests
European Banking Authority wants to see CET1 ratios of 8%, with 5.5% the threshold for an ‘adverse scenario'; stress tests to begin in the spring with results due out in October
Riksbank worries over fallout from ‘sharp corrections' in house prices
Swedish households' interest-rate expectations guided by current levels rather than projections, recently published document finds; Lars Svensson calls findings potentially ‘biased and misleading'
RBI’s Joshi calls for ‘revamped’ bank structures
Deepali Pant Joshi tells Indian banks to enhance their financial inclusion efforts by hiring a ‘separate cadre of staff’ to provide banking services to far-flung rural areas
Barnier publishes bank split proposals
Europe’s 30 largest banks would be banned from engaging in proprietary trading and forced to separate other risk activities from their retail business under proposed reforms
Philippines central bank joins financial stability council
Central Bank of the Philippines will join department of finance and three domestic regulators on a joint body designed to ‘identify, manage and mitigate’ build-up of systemic risks