News
World Bank pays out after triggering pandemic bonds
Requirements for funding release were met on March 31; since then, Covid-19 cases in poorest countries have doubled to 1.34% of the global total
Fed expands local government liquidity facility
Programme faced criticism for leaving out regions with heavy Native American and African-American populations
IMF approves new programmes in support of weaker economies
Over the past week the fund has given the green light for disbursements in Bosnia, Paraguay, DRC and Mauritania
Coronavirus latest: Central banks respond to the Covid-19 crisis
Live coverage as central banks respond to the virus outbreak (live feed is now closed)
Bank of Russia cuts policy rate as oil and pandemic crises deepen
Elvira Nabiullina says central bank may cut again as it forecasts major recession in 2020
RBI steps in with liquidity line for mutual funds
Injection of $6.6 billion comes as Franklin Templeton shuts down six funds
Bank of Japan steps up stimulus with unlimited JGB purchases
BoJ drops limit on government debt and quadruples corporate bond cap, but it is unclear if purchases will actually increase
BRI debt is sustainable, participant countries signal
Countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative say they are not concerned about debt sustainability at home but neighbouring country obligations could be a risk
FedNow: the road to non-bank access to US instant payments
Debate over granting non-banks access to Fed systems reveals possible flaws in US regulation
Ukraine central bank cuts policy rate sharply
NBU says failure to agree IMF deal is main risk, as bank administrators sue oligarch
Joining banking union likely positive for Sweden – Riksbank
Banks’ large cross border activities mean common supervisory and resolution mechanisms are better than national equivalents
Fed to expand paycheck liquidity facility after criticism
Some observers say Paycheck Protection Program not reaching most affected firms
ECB changes collateral rules in effort to shield bank funding
Assets below investment grade will be accepted by ECB as collateral until September 2021
Argentina’s central bank takes part in blockchain clearing pilot
Test system will use smart contracts with timestamping from the bitcoin blockchain
IMF launches new dollar emergency liquidity facility
Facility could fill “critical gap” left by central bank dollar swap lines, senior IMF official says
Swiss central bank reports record quarterly losses
SNB loses $39.1 billion as falls in equities wipe out gains on Swiss franc positions and gold holdings
Pandemics can depress natural rates for multiple decades – SF Fed
Real wages tend to rise gradually for 30 years after pandemics, data stretching back to 1340s shows
Bank of Mexico cuts rates in emergency meeting
Central bank unveils set of measures to boost liquidity amounting to $30.5 billion, 3.3% of GDP
Private sector banker appointed Bank of Namibia chief
President acknowledges long-standing deputy might have felt “passed over” for role
MAS to give $88m in grants to Singapore fintech industry
MAS offers grants to fintech firms in bid to help them survive coronavirus shock
Statisticians grapple with inflation impact of Covid-19
Collecting reliable inflation figures during lockdown is not straightforward
Fed’s balance sheet increases by 50% since March
Total assets now just shy of $6.4 trillion, a new record high
Martin Galstyan named next Armenian central bank chief
Experienced central banker will inherit below-target inflation and depressed commodity prices
Lebanese central bank tries to stem currency crisis
Central bank unfreezes dollar accounts at sharply reduced rate as future of banking sector is unclear