News
Nigeria's ousted governor makes transition to Muslim 'spiritual leader'
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi was appointed emir of Kano, a northern Nigerian state, on Sunday; influential post could make Sanusi a source of ‘frustration' for president, says analyst
Bank of Mauritius could push for new interest rate power
Bank of Mauritius task force says the central bank should be able to regulate interest rates; publishes 100 recommendations for improving terms and conditions of banking contracts
IMF agrees BoE should raise rates before tapering QE
Bank of England should raise interest rates before shrinking balance sheet, Fund says; notes ‘challenge' in communicating how monetary and macro-pru policies interlink
Bitcoin success won't mean death of central banks, say Haldane and Qvigstad
Bank of England chief economist and former Norges Bank deputy write paper examining evolution of central banking from inception through to a digital future
People: German and Dutch central banks lose board members; Philadelphia Fed appoints research head
Longest-serving Bundesbank executive board member to step down; Netherlands Bank loses governing board member; Philadelphia Fed replaces departed Loretta Mester; more
Borio: current account is a ‘badly inadequate' measure of financial risk
BIS director says still not enough attention is paid to capital account but adds build-up of vulnerabilities also requires looking directly at balance sheets of cross-border institutions
Solomon Islands ‘still adjusting’ to new central bank legislation
Board aiming to achieve one of the lowest inflation rates in region under new price stability mandate; central bank turns to government for recapitalisation after forex losses
New Nigeria governor Emefiele to target unemployment and lending to 'key sectors'
New governor says bank ‘cannot sit idly by and concentrate only on price stability' at first press conference; unemployment rate to play key role in monetary policy decisions
Central African central bank needs liquidity management overhaul, IMF says
IMF's annual mission to the Central African Monetary and Economic Community called for improved operations at the central bank and reform of government securities markets
ECB set to flood banks with cash as deposit rate turns negative
European Central Bank cuts main rate to ‘lower bound’ and deposit rate below zero; plans to provide banks with up to €400bn in cheap loans to boost lending to real economy
Nouy says SSM will bring ‘positive effects’ for Nordic banks
Supervisors from Nordic countries consider how their relationship will change when the SSM becomes operational; Denmark and Sweden are unlikely to opt in
Riksbank calls for separate LCR in local currency
Swedish central bank is wary of lenders' ‘extremely low' krona buffers; proposed change could be constrained by the size of Sweden's sovereign bond market, however
Lithuania cleared to adopt euro in 2015
Lithuania set to follow Estonia and Latvia into the eurozone; ECB gives seal of approval but warns it will be ‘challenging' to keep inflation low after joining
Bank of Portugal shifts research focus after Gaspar review
Portuguese central bank sets new research priorities following a strategic review; internal commission places emphasis on quarterly publication and career development
Fed overhauls collateral requirements for discount window
The changes, including separate requirements for fixed-rate and floating-rate loans posted by depository institutions, could make it harder to obtain central bank liquidity
Central Bank of Ecuador deposits half its gold with Goldman Sachs
Three-year deal sees the bank swap half-a-million ounces of bullion for ‘high security instruments and liquidity', ostensibly to cover government's widening fiscal deficit
US overtakes Taiwan as offshore RMB clearing centre
The value of RMB payments between the US and China jumped 229% in the year to April 2014, helping the US overtake Taiwan as the third-biggest offshore RMB clearing centre
BIS figures show cross-border lending on the mend outside the eurozone
Statistics for the final quarter of 2014 show cross-border lending recovering in most of the world, especially China, but continuing to decline in the eurozone
Rajan 'cognisant' of state financing needs as RBI loosens credit restraints
Reserve Bank of India holds key rate at 8% despite spike in food prices; takes steps towards creating a ‘more generalised provision of system liquidity’
Norges Bank poised to complete shift from FX buyer to seller before year's end
The Norwegian central bank sends strong signal it will make no foreign exchange purchases this year; analysts predict bank will make ‘symbolic shift' to net-seller in Q4
People: Dewatripont is new Belgian no.2; RBA appoints new economics research head
Mathias Dewatripont replaces Françoise Masai as vice-governor of the National Bank of Belgium; RBA promotes Alexandra Heath as Jonathan Kearns heads for the BIS; and more
Europe’s ‘bloated’ banking system could be harming growth, says ESRB committee
Report by advisers to European Systemic Risk Board says the banking system is ‘overweight’ and prescribes a number of remedies, including securitisation of SME loans
IMF says Japan's 'aggressive' QQE could be needed for ‘extended period’
The Bank of Japan may have to keep QQE running for ‘an extended period of time’ according to the IMF, and should consider providing forward guidance on its asset purchases
Obama urged to fill Fed board with community bankers and financial reform champions
Leading Democrats on Senate Banking Committee say it is 'critical' that two vacant Fed board seats are filled by nominees with 'strong commitment to financial reform'