Europe
ECB dumps Steinhoff stock
Losses on holding in scandal-hit retailer may have been approximately €50 million
Eurozone countries’ manufacturing sectors are diverging, Italian paper finds
Manufacturing profits rise relative to non-tradables in Germany and Spain, but fall in France and Italy
ECB corporate bond purchases fall to lowest level in December
CSPP is expected to rebound in January, while the ECB reduces QE to €30 billion a month
Platforms win small on Mifid day one
Some dealers stopped quoting bilaterally on smaller bond trades
Public debt in EU countries harms growth, ECB paper argues
Researchers find public debt crowds out investment but private debt is used efficiently
Complex instruments still pose systemic risks – paper
Discretion granted by financial reporting standards increases opacity and complexity, say authors
People: Cleviston Haynes handed full governorship
Central Bank of Barbados acting governor gets full term; delayed appointments made to Israel’s Supervisory Council; ESM confirms Mário Centeno as chair
BIS issues new ‘streamlined’ stress test principles
Banks have made significant advances in stress testing since financial crisis, Basel Committee says; issues new ‘guidelines’ that focus on stress test evolution
Danish central bank dismisses central bank digital currency
Digital instrument would not make current payment system more efficient, says report, adding introducing such a currency would pit the central bank against commercial institutions
SNB buys banknote company ‘to ensure its survival’
Company that provides substrate for Swiss banknotes came into liquidity difficulties following the cancellation of a tender from an international client
BoE sets out post-Brexit supervision plans
Central bank says UK will aim to stay open as banks, insurers and CCPs are brought under the PRA’s oversight; changes imply heavy workload for the supervisor
Riksbank moves towards normalisation; interest rate on hold
Executive board votes to keep the interest rate at –0.5%; says it will end QE programme in December 2017
One big bank falls short of ECB’s capital requirements
One bank falls short and a second comes close, although five banks failed the test in 2016
Paper looks at EU attempt to increase capital supply to SMEs
Measure introduced in CRR has benefited medium but not small businesses, researchers say
EBA publishes NPL standards in bid to foster market
Reporting templates ask for granular data in bid to establish EU dataset
Draghi says ECB’s asset purchases should stay ‘open-ended’
ECB president rejects calls for September end to purchases as inflation forecasts rise slightly
Stress tests find vulnerabilities in European pension funds
More than a quarter of institutions could not fulfil their commitments following an adverse scenario
Denmark ‘not heading for cashless society’ – research
Central bank recognises cash transactions are in decline, but says consumers will always have the option to pay with cash
Policymakers need wider range of systemic risk models – paper
Researchers attempt to combine systemic importance and systemic risk approaches
ECB approves major financial infrastructure programmes
ECB plans for Target2 and T2S to merge, plus new collateral management system for Eurosystem
Ingves: Riksbank ‘will soon take a stance’ on e-krona
The executive board will examine whether e-krona could be the gateway to central bank money, as the decline in cash continues in Sweden
Italian central bank launches fintech initiative
New communication channel will allow firms to directly engage with the central bank
Eurozone must improve management of national cash cycles, paper argues
Researchers find wide variations between cash quality in eurozone countries
European Commission proposes creating a European Monetary Fund
The new EU institution would replace the European Stability Mechanism in 2019