News
Georgia selects symbol for national currency
Central bank hopes new symbol, chosen by a commission guided by a public vote, will increase the popularity of the lari
Kenyan central bank launches new interest rate
Kenyan banks are required to use a new base rate when pricing loans; central bank thinks it will boost the supply of credit to the private sector but observers are sceptical
FOMC members offer conflicting takes on US inflation path
Jeffery Lacker says inflation is moving closer to the Fed's 2% target, while Narayana Kocherlakota warns reaching it may take another four years
Trinidad governor threatens senator with legal action over ‘defamatory' comments
Jwala Rambarran takes action over claims he is ‘playing dolly house' with foreign reserves; says he will seek ‘substantial damages' unless public apology is issued
OECD warns taper hits developing-world growth prospects
Paris-based club of advanced economies warns taper will combine with declining commodity cycle and anaemic eurozone growth to hurt the growth prospects of developing countries
Nakaso backs BoJ to exit QQE smoothly
Bank of Japan the only central bank with experience in exiting QE; Hiroshi Nakaso says it has an ‘extensive’ range of instruments at its disposal
Lautenschläger sees TLTROs impacting real economy from next year
Executive board member warns targeted lending programme will ‘take longer’ than other policies to work through economy; markets question whether banks will demand the estimated €1 trillion
Icelandic police chief heads ‘bizarre' committee to choose next governor
Icelandic economists criticise choice of Reykjavik police chief to chair three-person panel charged with recommending the next central bank governor
Cut in capital requirements opens door for new UK banks
Regulators say efforts to lower barriers of entry for small banks, including lower capital requirements and easier application process, is spurring competition
Gualtieri elected chair of ECB watchdog committee
New Econ Committee members approve Italian socialist as chair; Gualtieri faces an early test of his composure as German politician Bernd Lucke is rejected as vice-chair
New Zealand mulls coloured coins
Geoff Bascand reveals details about the RBNZ’s forthcoming banknote series; suggests new technologies could ‘supplant cash’ in years to come
Central bankers insist rates are staying put as BIS faces ‘loss of credibility'
Haldane says risk 'migration' could create a more robust financial system; Yellen, Draghi and Cunliffe believe monetary tightening would be the wrong way to turn
Mario Draghi can ‘use the force' in central banking ‘confidence trick'
Market participants say ECB president Mario Draghi is the ‘Yoda' of central banking for his adept use of ‘Jedi mind tricks'
People: Deputy governors appointed in Russia and India
China Investment Corporation appoints fifth executive vice-president; new director of insurance supervision at the Central Bank of Ireland
Volcker questions remain as metric reporting begins
US banks with more than $50bn in assets will be required to report trading metrics to regulators from July 1, but confusion remains around hedging and market-making exemptions
ECB cuts frequency of monetary policy meetings
The governing council will set policy once every six weeks from January 2015; when combined with new rotation system national central bank governors will only vote six or seven times each year
Ingves outvoted as Riksbank cuts 50bp
Swedish central bank hits zero lower bound for first time since 2010 as inflation plummets; outvoted Ingves says his standing is not weakened, calls housing situation ‘acute'
Bank of Russia sells half its stake in Moscow bourse to SWF-led investor group
Sovereign funds and institutional investors lead purchase of 11% stake in Moscow stock exchange as central bank proceeds with mandated divestment
Chinese banks freed to set own RMB-dollar exchange rate
Chinese authorities hand banks freedom to set their own dollar exchange rates; central bank also widens renminbi trading band
Glenn Stevens lifts veil on RBA comms strategy
Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens says guidance on the future path of interest rates has ‘served its purpose’ and tells markets what to look for next
Yellen takes sides in ‘lean against the wind' debate
Federal Reserve chair says monetary policy faces ‘significant limitations as a tool to promote financial stability'; macro-prudential policies ‘far more direct' and effective
Zeti calls for governance overhaul at central banks
Bank Negara Malaysia governor Zeti Aziz says central banks need to understand ‘the new realities’ of crisis management; argues for new internal committees dedicated to the cause
Italian socialist tipped to lead ECB-watching Econ Committee
Roberto Gualtieri likely to be elected as chair of the Econ Committee next week in the European Parliament, making him the chief point of contact with the European Central Bank
Tombini says inability to instil confidence ‘central explanation' for weak recovery
Central Bank of Brazil governor says ‘longer period of normalisation of monetary policy' a possibility; domestic inflation 'under control' and likely to remain ‘well behaved'