News
IMF and Sarb push for stronger systemic supervision in Africa
Joint effort to highlight importance of macro-prudential approach in addition to scrutiny of individual institutions; IMF pushing for tighter supervision
Lagarde fears ‘unintended consequences’ of monetary easing
IMF managing director fears side effects from low interest rates and asset purchases; says there is a limit to the share of the burden of recovery that monetary policy can take
Asean pioneers lay foundation for economic union with capital markets move
Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore press ahead with capital markets integration in bid to jump-start Asian Economic Community
Reserve managers expanding into riskier assets, survey finds
Latest Reserve Management Trends reveal central banks are moving into ‘non-traditional' currencies; growing number of reserve managers investing, or considering investing, in equities
Fed tightens rules for retail forex banking
Federal Reserve publishes final rules for banks engaging in foreign exchange transactions with retail customers; includes requirements for risk disclosures, good conduct, capitalisation and margining
US non-farm payroll stats strengthen case for more QE
Boston Fed president joins calls to continue QE programme as US employment recovery falters
Bank of Spain reshapes supervisor to meet new demands
Banking supervision directorate restructured to meet the requirements of Spain’s memorandum of understanding and the move to European banking union
ECB on collision course with European Parliament over top supervisory appointments
Yves Mersch fears EP veto over supervisory board heads will 'institutionalise conflict' between the ECB and EP, and contravene the Maastricht Treaty
BoE chief economist says QE impact will vary, but not diminish, over time
Spencer Dale says effects of asset purchases depend on the time and place they are conducted; Bank of Japan’s shocking policy announcement may have been necessary to correct misperceptions
People: Wampah becomes Bank of Ghana governor; Iosco replaces chair
Henry Wampah moves from acting to full governor of the Bank of Ghana; Iosco appoints new chair and vice-chairs; Poland gets new management board members; and more
Hungary launches $2bn scheme to boost SME lending
New scheme will lend to commercial banks interest-free to on-lend to SMEs; cash also available to re-finance foreign-denominated loans into Hungarian forints
Draghi promises Cyprus bail-out is ‘no template’
Mario Draghi says an established pecking order of ‘bail-inable’ debt will avoid repeating the chaotic resolution in Cyprus; ECB and BoE both hold rates
Kuroda unveils radical plan to end Japanese deflation
Measures aim to double monetary base in two years, with asset purchases no longer constrained by banknote rule; mixed response as questions raised over whether yet more easing will work
BoE economist warns of tendency to ‘overstate’ fiscal multipliers
Matthias Paustian says simple Keynesian models can produce unrealistically high fiscal multiplier when examining fiscal policy at the zero lower bound
IMF strikes €1 billion funding deal with Cyprus
Staff team agrees Fund’s contribution to overall bail-out package; Christine Lagarde praises Cyprus’s ‘ambitious’ programme of reforms
Haldane defends BoE's macro-prudential policy
Andrew Haldane says recent instruction to banks to increase levels of capital will stimulate lending to real economy; academics debate viability of macro-prudential policy
Australia shuffles top managers but governor Stevens stays on
RBA governor Stevens reappointed for three more years, while Wayne Byres moves from Basel Committee to head up prudential regulator Apra
Asean report maps road to financial integration
Key to achieving an Asean Economic Community will be capital account and financial services liberalisation; member states should integrate at their own pace, to avoid EMU-style crises
ECB’s Cœuré damns ‘Panglossian’ view of currency war danger
ECB board member’s comments on ‘dangerously alluring’ monetary easing come a week after Bernanke claimed widespread QE is an ‘enrich thy neighbour’ policy
UK enters new regulatory landscape
UK’s new conduct and prudential regulators take over from the FSA and aim to avoid the failings of their predecessor
Barbadian governor proposes adopting new policy rate
DeLisle Worrell and other senior central bank staff suggest adopting three-month Treasury bill rate as key policy rate, saying it is more practical for small, open economies
IMF calls on Hungary to safeguard central bank independence
The Fund's executive board urges National Bank of Hungary to preserve legal and operational independence; encourages a 'pause' in monetary easing
Bank of Lithuania chief urges banks to consider fee cuts as non-cash payments rise
Report shows sharp increase in volume of non-cash payments in Lithuania; governor Vitas Vasiliauskas says this gives banks room to consider cutting fees
Turkish banks face larger bill for holding forex and gold
Central bank increases price of holding gold and foreign exchange for Turkish banks who want to diversify reserve holdings away from Turkish lira