News
People: Latvian governor re-appointed; Lithuania hires board member from ECB
Long-serving Latvian governor wins another term, to see Latvia into the eurozone; Lithuania appoints fifth member to the board; Riksbank promotes new head of financial stability department
Bloomberg launches US dollar benchmark
New US dollar index will represent 10 currencies, including Chinese renminbi and the Australian dollar
Leading central banks make emergency swap lines permanent
Six leading central banks are leaving bilateral swap agreements introduced during the financial crisis in place until further notice; US dollar liquidity-providing operations will continue as normal
Finland joins Riksbank in greater gold transparency
Bank of Finland joins Riksbank in revealing where it stores its gold; both banks cite geographical diversification as a motivation, but say it still makes sense to keep most in London
Central bankers divided over quota for female staff
Participants in a CentralBanking.com poll say that central banks should make efforts to increase the proportion of women in senior positions; split over whether this should be achieved through quota
GCC states need to jettison ‘destabilising' US-dollar pegs, says Qatar's Al Khater
Oil-rich Gulf states should peg currencies to crawling trade-weighted baskets as US demand becomes less of a factor in driving oil prices, says Qatari central banker
Hungarian easing shows no sign of abating
Central Bank of Hungary reduces its key policy rate for the fifteenth time in as many months, and says ‘further cautious easing’ could follow
ECB seeks head lawyer who is ‘resilient to overwork’
Employment law expert says the European Central Bank’s criterion for its next director-general of legal services is a 'concerning pre-condition to employment'
Slovene bank clean-up provides stress test dry run for ECB
IMF urges country to recapitalise banks quickly; academics see country as 'methodology experiment' for ECB, and warn comparisons with Greece and Cyprus could be self-fulfilling prophecies
Riksbank reveals location of gold holdings
Three-quarters of the Swedish central bank's gold reserves are held in the UK and Canada; disclosure follows discussions with other central banks on confidentiality
Gunmen steal $53m from Central Bank of Libya
Armed men overpower guards and steal millions of dollars from cash truck en route to central bank in Sirte
Danish central bank to cut workforce by 10%
National Bank of Denmark to lay off 55 employees as it adjusts to post-crisis environment and introduces new IT system that makes some jobs obsolete
RBI takes hawkish stance against inflation with another rate hike
Repo rate hike and MSF rate cut bring spread back to its normal level of 100 basis points; ‘material' risk of entrenched inflation could mean another hike is on the way, says DBS economist
Central Bank of UAE set to bolster ‘under-developed' local bond market
UAE has looked to economies with strong trade balances as role-models to help develop a domestic bond market; may issue government debt in the coming years
Banque de France backs efforts to circumvent ratings agencies
Central bank gives scathing assessment of credit ratings agencies and supports Esma proposals to reduce reliance on ratings; Moody’s and S&P critical of the plans
Group of 30 calls for closer relationships between bank boards and supervisors
Report authored by a G-30 committee headed by Roger Farmer argues for a ‘new paradigm' in which bank boards and supervisors work more closely together towards their shared objectives
NY Fed's Checki to retire; Minneapolis hires new head of research
New York Fed head of international affairs ends 46-year tenure, while acting communications head wins permanent post; Minneapolis Fed names new research director
State Bank of Vietnam taps Thomson Reuters for FX monitoring system
Vietnam's central bank takes a step forward in increasing transparency and reporting in its foreign exchange market
RBA and government set out rules of engagement
Update to ‘statement on the conduct of monetary policy' says Australian government recognises the Reserve Bank's need for a strong balance sheet; RBA will pay no dividend to the government this year
Fed targets tougher LCR for US banks
Federal Reserve proposes a liquidity coverage ratio for country’s largest financial institutions that goes above and beyond the Basel III minimums
Demoted Myanmar governor ‘allowed' to quit central bank
Former governor was replaced in July by his predecessor, and made one of three vice-governors; he has now been ‘allowed to resign of his own volition', according to the presidency
FDIC inks MoU with China on bank resolution
The document, signed in Beijing yesterday, seeks to improve collaboration on resolution planning through the exchange of information and co-operation on risk monitoring
Carney says BoE 'open for business' ahead of QE wind-down
Extra money for more types of collateral to be made available over longer tenors and at cheaper prices, in a bid to prepare UK banks for the end of QE; facilities could also be opened to non-banks
Cyprus governor hits back over reports of bank re-cap ‘success fee'
Panicos Demetriades says fresh reports refer to confidential documents that have been unlawfully leaked; says central bank will not pay fees based on size of failed banks' recapitalisations