News
US banks get stay on Volcker rule
The Federal Reserve has given banks until July 2017 to shed investments in collateralised loan obligations, potentially saving them millions of dollars
Bank of Canada appoints first COO
Filipe Dinis appointed as Bank of Canada’s first-ever chief operating officer; assumes oversight of the central bank’s strategic planning, administrative functions and operations
St Louis Fed research chief calls Bitcoin ‘stroke of genius'
St Louis Fed vice president and head of research has raised some central bankers' eyebrows by encouraging them to ‘welcome the competition' from the virtual currency
BoE adds ECA-backed loans as acceptable collateral
Loans guaranteed by UK export credit agency UKEF will be accepted under the Bank of England's Sterling Monetary Framework, with a haircut
Riksbank appoints two senior managers
Appointments to human resources and cash and payment systems sections follow establishment of three new departments on March 1
ECB says forward guidance a success
European Central bank annual report for 2013 finds forward guidance helped to stabilise money market conditions and anchor market expectations
Yves Mersch urges ABS regulation rethink
European Central Bank executive board member calls for global framework that distinguishes between securitisation instruments of different qualities
People: New deputies at RBI and Bank of Latvia; Russia appoints director
RBI fills seat vacated by Anand Sinha; Zoja Razmusa becomes deputy governor at Bank of Latvia; Olga Alexandrovna appointed as director at the Bank of Russia
Bank of England puts 19th century minutes online
Newly released archival material reveals daring exploits of staff during WW1; the battle to stem an epidemic of counterfeiting in the 18th and 19th century; and more
Sanusi wins $300,000 in damages from Nigerian government
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, who was suspended as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria in February, is not to be arrested or harassed, court states
Turkish PM calls on central bank to cut rates
Turkey's prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan calls on central bank to ‘convene extraordinary meeting' to cut interest rates day after governor sends ‘hawkish' signals in London
Buy-side firms seek greater voice on BoE FX committee
Large buy-side firms keen to take a more active role on FXJSC after allegations dealers manipulated foreign exchange benchmarks
Jeremy Stein quits the Federal Reserve
Jeremy Stein, who joined the Federal Reserve board of governors in May 2012, will step down four years early
Kenya could quadruple central bank capital
Kenya looks set to replace the piecemeal legislation governing the central bank; new bill would boost its capital levels, reduce government influence and increase the governor’s term
Central Bank of Brazil raises Selic rate amid uptick in inflation
Central Bank of Brazil hikes rate by 25bp to 11% following upward revision of inflation for 2014; analysts predict an end to year-long tightening cycle
Draghi opens door to QE as ECB holds
European Central Bank president Mario Draghi says governing council discussed asset purchases in latest meeting; votes to hold rate despite more disinflation
Kenya's M-Pesa mobile money app launches in Romania
East European country is the first territory in Europe to get the mobile cash transfer technology, which also launched in India last year
Bank of Canada looks to anecdotal evidence amid economic models' ‘weakening performance'
Governor Stephen Poloz says experiences of faltering economic models last year has led the bank to focus increasingly on surveys and meetings with local businesses
Lagarde calls for co-ordination to contain ‘spillovers' and ‘spillbacks'
Speech warns advanced economies they can suffer from negative feedback when their policies cause spillovers in emerging markets
Fed switches MBS purchases to proprietary platform
The New York Fed, which implements FOMC policies, will start using its FedTrade platform to buy mortgage-backed securities later this month
Carney-led FSB aims at international regulatory convergence
As systemically important banks internalise tougher regulatory environments, cross-border divergence in regimes may diminish, says FSB chair Mark Carney
New Zealand’s loan restrictions finding their mark
Banks are reigning in their high loan-to-value ratio loans in response to central bank’s macro-prudential measures; IMF backs ‘tight limits’
Zöllner: Asset managers are biggest non-bank FX traders
Head of banking at Bank for International Settlements highlights growing role of non-bank market participants in FX
Cyclical character of US unemployment makes monetary policy a remedy, says Yellen
Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen argues cyclical character of US unemployment renders monetary policy an important tool in fighting it