News
Mauritius reappoints former governor
Rameswurlall Basant Roi returns after eight years following the reported ousting of Rundheersing Bheenick in December; new deputy also appointed
Central Bank of Brazil extends swap auctions
Brazil’s central bank will continue to hold daily foreign-exchange swap auctions until March, but has reduced the amount on offer from $200 million to $100 million a day
Sejko lined up as next Bank of Albania governor
Albanian prime minister says parliament ‘will not reject’ the president’s nomination; former bank inspector Gent Sejko set to return to the central bank after a decade away
Bernanke laments scripted policy meetings
Former Fed chair tells Mervyn King that meetings are ‘deadly boring’ as most of the work is done in advance; both men reflect on the crisis for BBC Radio 4’s Today programme
2014: The year in review
The past year has seen central banks across the globe grapple with reform, at an institutional and global level – we look back at the biggest stories of 2014
Riksbank critic becomes deputy governor
Henry Ohlsson, an economics professor who attacked the Swedish central bank for failing to reach its inflation target in a report earlier this year, is picked to replace Karolina Ekholm
FSB pushes countries to meet higher information exchange standards
Financial Stability Board publishes latest progress report on information sharing, with thirteen jurisdictions still lagging behind; updates list of ‘financially important’ economies
Canadians want more women on banknotes, poll shows
Bank of Canada’s banknotes should reflect more gender equality and a better celebration of women, according to the Canadians who participated in an online survey by the central bank
HKMA finds signs of forex manipulation at banks
Investigation into forex market manipulation turns up two cases of misconduct but finds no collusion between banks; six banks criticised for communication ‘indiscretions’
People: Fritz Zurbrügg appointed as SNB vice-chair; Vanoli gets nod from Argentine senate
SNB reshuffles board, with Zurbrügg assuming vice-chair after Danthine retires; Luis Linde replaces Ignacio Visco at the steering committee of the European Systemic Risk Board
MEPs strike deal to cap card payment fees
European Parliament reaches agreement on limits to the fees banks can charge retailers for processing payments in a bid to lower prices and tackle perverse incentives
Fed changes forward guidance
Janet Yellen says FOMC ‘can be patient' in normalising monetary policy, but says new language does not signal change in outlook; Fisher, Plosser and Kocherlakota dissent
Bank of South Sudan keen for exchange rate reform
IMF report finds authorities keen to create a single exchange rate, launch two-way fixed rate auctions and establish an interbank market for foreign exchange
ECB to publish unattributed ‘accounts’ of policy discussions
European Central Bank will publish ‘accounts’ four weeks after every meeting; they are designed to improve the general public’s understanding of the governing council’s thought process
Swiss National Bank introduces negative rates
In the face of growing pressure on the Swiss franc, the SNB imposes an interest rate of -0.25% on sight deposits held at the central bank
Central Bank of Paraguay reduces inflation target to 4.5%
After keeping inflation around 5% for the past three years, the central bank will now aim to shackle it at 4.5% in 2015 and 2016
Russian central bank 'prepares' to recapitalise banks
Central bank announces package of measures to safeguard credit institutions from currency crisis fallout; finance ministry reportedly sells own foreign exchange
Bosnia central bank suspends nine after $380,000 theft from vaults
Prosecutor’s Office detains a central bank ‘clerk’ in connection with offence; money was supposedly taken in three chunks between 2012 and 2014
Bank of Israel researchers propose exchange rate-based forward guidance
Researchers say forward guidance has a mixed track record, especially in small open economies, but linking guidance to external factors would help improve credibility
Ingves: Riksbank prepared to launch currency interventions
Swedish governor says central bank prepared to take unconventional measures, including negative interest rates and asset purchases, in light of falling oil prices
Czech National Bank advises against joining ERM II in 2015
Central bank says the government should not set a target date for entry into the eurozone; raises concern over pace of economic convergence and costs of joining
Ruble plummets despite 650bp hike by Bank of Russia
Second interest rate increase in four days does little to stem currency's precipitous decline; analyst calls central bank's apparent reluctance to intervene in forex markets a ‘game changer'
First BoE stress test uncovers capital shortfall
One UK bank failed the Bank of England's stress test scenario and two more have had to raise additional capital; Carney says future tests may be less forgiving
FCA director says breakdown in controls led to communications blunder
Clive Adamson says FCA has taken steps to improve internal procedures; tells MPs the organisation can struggle to operate in a crisis