News
Brussels calls for European ratings supervisor
European Commission proposes new body to oversee all credit ratings agencies operating in the European Union; security issuers must provide information to all agencies to boost competition
Bank's King declines pay hike for two years
Bank of England governor takes two year pay freeze of own volition; non-executive directors see salaries more than double from previous year
China’s Li calls for tightening on back of housing bubble fears
People’s Bank of China monetary policy committee member Li Daokui warns economy may overheat unless tighter monetary policies are put in place
Barroso moots European ratings agency
European Commission president's calls echo those of Michel Barnier; says proposals will be released in September
Venezuela drawn into Securency scandal: report
Australian newspaper alleges that RBA offshoot paid for Vietnamese government officials to win business from Central Bank of Venezuela
ECB reshuffles executive responsibilities as Constâncio takes over Papademos’ role
ECB shuffles distribution of responsibilities between executive board following appointment of ECB vice president Vítor Constâncio
Goodhart: CoCos 'not silver bullets' for bank capital reform
Regulators should ban dividend payments or curb banker pay to conserve cash, instead of championing CoCos, says economist
Bank of Korea elbows government out of rate decisions
Korean central bank wins battle to keep vice minister out of rate calls; government representative can attend and observe future policy meetings, but must leave before policymakers vote
Former Icelandic governors may face criminal charges over crisis
Icelandic parliamentary committee passes names of three former central bank officials to state prosecutors; may face criminal charges
Ratings agencies blindly mimic market jitters: Noyer
Banque de France governor becomes latest euro-area official to slam credit rating agencies for worsening debt crisis; remarks follow Spain’s second downgrade in two months
Canada hikes by quarter point
Bank of Canada raises overnight rate to 0.5%
Hungary defies government calls for cuts
National Bank of Hungary keeps benchmark rate flat at all-time low; decision will further anger new government, which has called for steeper cuts and easy money
Markets support Poland’s central bank nominee amid opposition murmurs
Stock market gains as analysts welcome the nomination of former prime minister Marek Belka to head the central bank; confirmation expected despite grumblings from opposition politicians
Angolan central bank loses monetary policy mandate
Parliament votes to change law so central bank can “merely participate” in monetary and exchange rate policy; government will have responsibility while central bank assists in implementation
Surge in foreign holdings of US Treasuries and agencies ends two-week slide
Data show holdings of US Treasuries and agency securities by foreign central banks with accounts at the Federal Reserve increased $18.2 billion on the back of two weeks of declines
Venezuela to reopen bond markets
Central bank says tests of new centralised trading system nearly complete; follows closure to cut off parallel currency market
ECB’s Bini Smaghi: Greece cannot default
ECB’s Lorenzo Bini Smaghi says an orderly default is simply not an option to solving Greece’s fiscal burden
Ex-Polish PM to head central bank
Poland's acting president nominates former prime minister and IMF European director Marek Belka for post of central bank president
China denies reviewing eurozone bond holdings
State Administration of Foreign Exchange dismisses reports that it is appraising euro asset holdings; follows surge in T-bill purchases last week
BIS’s Cecchetti: change data collection to create “map” to stem crises
Bank for International Settlements’ chief economist Stephen Cecchetti suggests adapting existing statistical reporting frameworks in pursuit of “holy grail” of systemic risk monitoring
Risk Europe: Industry should stop fighting Basel III and focus on transition
Senior Basel Committee member tells banks to get involved in negotiations over the phase-in period for Basel II reforms
Missed mortgage payments spike in Ireland
Thirteen percent of mortgage payments overdue by more than 90 days; chief regulator Matthew Elderfield says there is no simple solution to the problem
Libor climbs as uncertainty in European markets grows
Libor rises to highest in more than ten months as lending in European markets slows down
IMF flags concern over Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s governance
IMF cites severe governance failings as Zimbabwe’s central bank maintains Gideon Gono as chair of its new governing board.