Europe
Leading central bankers defend frameworks amid ‘polyshock’
Panellists at SNB-IMF event say policy-makers should remain cautious in face of uncertainty
Working group minutes: guarding financial independence
Dynamic capital may help but tailoring accounting frameworks to central banks is still challenging
BoE’s Woods praises competition mandate for regulators
Edict has helped UK central bank facilitate new entries into banking sector, PRA chief says
Busting Mythos: how Europe is responding to the latest AI model
Experts emphasise heightened importance of focusing on basics
BIS announces board changes
Panetta elected chair, plus new roles for heads of RBA, BCB, BoJ and BoK
AI, geopolitics, crypto among top AML worries – EU report
Boundary between fraud and money laundering ‘increasingly blurred’, says Amla
Bulgarian lessons from entering the eurozone
Sofia’s uneasy membership in the currency bloc, five months in
People: Macron nominates ex-chief of staff to take over at BdF
Plus: BoJ appoints new head of international affairs, and MNB deputy joins EBA board
UK needs closer EU ties in multipolar world – BoE’s Bailey
Governor urges greater support for multilateral institutions to solve growing global imbalances
Rising global imbalances will be difficult to smooth out – panel
BoE’s Alan Taylor says imbalances bring financial stability risks
Politics and finance threaten independence – Schnabel
ECB board member says fiscal woes and deregulation may make central banks’ jobs impossible
Three-fifths of central banks use strategic progress monitoring tools
Respondents with wider set of objectives report highest usage of tools
Prolonged Iran conflict poses stability risks – Barr and Woods
Fed governor and UK’s PRA chief also make renewed case for central bank independence
Central banks increasingly use KPIs for strategic planning
Practice more widespread in jurisdictions that link annual reviews to all staff
Trends in reserve management 2026: survey results
101 central banks, responsible for $9.5trn+ reserves, reveal exclusive data on FX interventions, if the US dollar is still seen as a safe-haven currency and approaches to investing in 20+ currencies
Romania spends €2.1bn to stabilise leu as government falls
Central bank’s reserves went from €67bn in March to €64.9bn in April
Strategic control processes often data driven
Processing is implemented quarterly or bi-annually across jurisdictions
Parliamentary committee hails success of BoE’s RTGS renewal
Programme holds lessons for wider government digital transformation, committee says
Annual reviews usually linked to strategic plans for some staff only
Remuneration commonly not linked with progress on strategic goals
ECB holds and faces dilemma of whether to hike in June
Lagarde says direction is ‘clear’ as Iran conflict worsens outlook for inflation and growth
Team leaders increasingly involved in strategic plan implementation
Respondents commonly review plans and re-align objectives after strategic cycles
Cash needed for resilience, say eurozone central banks
Institutions from Austria, Germany and Spain outline why hard currency remains key
Number of dedicated strategic planning units rises
Larger central banks more likely to have dedicated units
Instant payments gaining volumes from RTGS – BoE study
Move may be driven by demand for rapidly available funds and lower payment fees, say authors