News
South Africa moves toward UK-style ‘twin peaks’ regulators
Sarb issues consultative document on introduction of prudential and conduct regulators similar to plans in the UK; IMF study encounters problems in testing efficacy of macro-prudential policy
Maldives governor urges government frugality
Fazeel Najeeb says ready availability of short-term treasury bills takes away the incentive for banks to lend to one another; lack of an interbank market is damaging monetary policy transmission
UK to ‘electrify' bank ring-fence in bid to end ‘too big to fail'
UK chancellor launches legislation to enforce ring-fencing – and separate banks that fail to comply
Former BoE MPC members divided on ‘maxed out’ easing
John Gieve, Charles Goodhart and Andrew Sentance disagree on whether the Bank of England has more scope to ease policy; Gieve says action at next meeting is likely
BoJ target leaves Japan inflation swap market unmoved
Doubling Japan's inflation target has had a limited impact on the domestic inflation market
Rating agency warns of knock-on effect of Fed’s foreign bank rules
Fitch says tighter rules for foreign banks operating in the US are likely to make other countries raise standards as well, putting a squeeze on the growth of global banks
Barnier still examining ‘where to draw the line' on bank ring-fencing
Commission spokesman admits tension between maintaining competitive banks that can still finance economic growth and eliminating risks remaining in the European banking system
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe backs mandatory bank takeovers
Governor Gideon Gono says foreign banks must observe ‘indigenisation' laws, which force them to hand majority ownership to local people; foreign direct investment flight continues
Inflation unexpectedly plummets in Turkey
Year-on-year inflation falls from 9.2% to 6.2% between September and December last year; central bank ready to tighten rates if inflationary pressures are restored
Riksbank at odds with proposals to limit capital, analysts say
Proposals released that would halve the size of the Riksbank’s balance sheet; analysts say they clash with central bank policy and are unlikely to be adopted
IMF board split on quota reform options
Disagreement among IMF executive board members over whether more emphasis on emerging markets is needed, with ‘considerable support’ for increasing weight of GDP in quota formula
Fed holds rates and maintains asset purchases in first vote since membership shake-up
Esther George, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, votes against QE in her first meeting
Stanley Fischer hints at successor as candidates emerge
Fischer says Bank of Israel deputy governor Karnit Flug was chosen on the basis she would be able to ‘function as governor’ when necessary; other potential candidates speak to CentralBanking.com
Basel report proposes curbs on bank modelling choices
Basel Committee report finds ‘considerable variation’ in risk-weighted assets for bank trading books; says policy-makers should consider limiting modelling options and improving disclosure
The contenders to succeed Zhou as governor at PBoC
China is set to name the successor to Zhou Xiaochuan as governor of the country's central bank, according to a Central Banking Journal article that weighs up the chances of the leading candidates
Hungary defies IMF to cut rates again
Central bank cuts rates in six consecutive meetings, despite IMF warning that inflation is not well contained and looser policy will do little to boost the economy
UK parliamentary commission attacks regulators’ ability to hold bankers to account
FSA enforcement head defends authority’s integrity; BoE chief legal adviser confident the central bank’s new supervisory divisions are up to the job
ECB’s Praet warns against ‘hazardous’ policy experiments
Executive board member says he is ‘very sceptical’ of suggestions to raise the inflation target, but cautions against complacency over policy toolkits
National Bank of Georgia to overhaul communication strategy
Latest stage in transition to inflation-targeting regime; follows the implementation of new modelling infrastructure
Angola launches new notes and coins, cuts base rate
Notes incorporating new security features to be phased in during the first half of 2013; base rate cut to 10% as inflation hits ‘record low' of 9% per annum
‘Significant work remains’ to fix global finance, says FSB
Meeting of the Financial Stability Board identifies numerous areas that still require work; public comments on policy recommendations reveal concerns over regulatory arbitrage and overlap
RBI cuts rates and strikes dovish note for 2013
Reserve Bank of India cuts headline interest rate for first time in nine months; governor Duvvuri Subbarao hints more cuts may be on the way
Bank of Israel governor Fischer to step down
Stanley Fischer announces he will stand down in June this year; speculation begins as to his next move
‘Frontier Asia’ addresses challenge of growing sustainably
Thai governor and IMF official emphasise need to address the macroeconomic, financial and structural challenges that high growth rates can bring