Central Banks
Swift announces major changes to system
Cloud-based platform will allow end-to-end transactions visibility and innovation by firms, Swift says
Brazilian central bank interrupts rate-cutting cycle
Monetary policy committee says space for further monetary stimulus “should be small”
Ethiopia launches new high-denomination banknote
New 200 birr note aims to curb inflation and corruption, central bank says, as Covid-19 slows growth
FOMC signals rates likely to stay on hold until 2023
Latest Fed projections say inflation likely to stay below target for several years
Diversification makes gold shine brighter – panellists
Negative sovereign yields boost gold’s attractiveness among reserve managers
Advanced economies take the lead in securities lending
Nearly 60% of reserve managers lend out assets that are in high demand
People: Shelton unlikely to have enough votes for Fed role
Judy Shelton’s nomination in doubt; Fed appoints new director of monetary affairs; Bermuda Monetary Authority promotes insurance director
New Zealand becomes first country to mandate climate risk disclosures
Several governments are working to enshrine TCFD framework in law
Investment fund sector needs stress tests – Bundesbank paper
Researchers say their model finds investment firms can magnify losses from global asset price shock
Boards are the main authority for benchmark approvals
Risk management teams tend to lead effort to propose new benchmarks
EM reserves ‘crucial’ in mitigating Covid-19 outflows, says Mauritius governor
Foreign exchange buffers helped to mitigate volatility in financial markets
BIS research maps out links between banks and non-banks
First attempt at global mapping reveals significant scale of interconnections
Reserve managers weigh options to escape low yields
Longer-duration and emerging-market bonds may offer the way forward to portfolio managers
Estonian governor criticises government’s fiscal stance
Spending was too high before coronavirus, and is making all citizens poorer, argues Madis Müller
Mauritius governor defends central bank’s funding of government
“Unprecedented times” require “unprecedented set of measures” including $1.5bn funding of government, says Harvesh Seegolam
Lower-income countries generate highest reserves growth
Most reserves portfolios appear to have weathered the Covid-19 crisis well
BoE reveals Covid-19 expenditure
Central bank spent over $14,000 a week on additional cleaning
Few central banks consider climate risk within benchmarks
Despite central banks supporting mandatory climate risk disclosures, very few account for it in their benchmarks
Nigerian president tells central bank to change forex policy
Central bank defends industrial subsidies and says border has been closed to prevent smuggling
Asian reserves proved more resilient in Covid crisis – reserve managers
Limited use of Fed’s ‘Fima’ facility highlights improved reserve management, says panellist
Half of reserve managers use bespoke index benchmarks
Those using external managers can choose bespoke, but public indexes remain predominant
UK regulators extend complaints review after pressure from lawmakers
Outgoing complaints commissioner says proposed changes raise “significant policy issues”
Consumers must be informed of access to cash changes – FCA
FCA warns decisions around closure of cash services must be ‘fair’ to customers