International
Covid-19 fails to interrupt asset diversification – survey
Lower yields remain the top worry of reserve managers in 2020, study finds
Central banks must collaborate to tackle payment ‘shortcomings’, says Cœuré
Matching up disparate systems is challenging but central banks can catalyse change, BIS official says
Fed will calibrate NSFR to avoid hurting repo
Fed’s supervision head says final liquidity rule will be fast-tracked without fresh consultation
Reserve Benchmarks 2020 report – charting new data frontiers
Perspectives on staffing and salaries, reserve coverage, portfolio construction, benchmarking, use of external parties and risk management
BIS paper models credit booms and busts
Authors outline heterogeneous-agent framework that could support macro-prudential policy
Estimating the cost of a pandemic grant for the world’s poorest economies
The cost of support measures for vulnerable economies is manageable, says Steve Kamin, but political leadership may be lacking
European central banks remain leaders for gold
Average gold holdings on the continent stand at 10.6 million ounces
BIS paper delves into new fintech database
Authors investigate rise of “big tech credit” in many economies
Spread gap between green and grey bonds closing – BIS specialist
Measuring and incorporating sustainability still a challenge, says Omar Zulaica
Advanced economy central banks use more custodians
Reserve managers in advanced economies work on average with 5.6 custodians
One third of reserves staff work in front-office roles
Average reserve management team size is less than 30 employees
Moral mandates better suited to ESG adoption than financial goals – panel
Lack of liquid green bond markets limits a wider adoption of ESG investment strategies
IMF staffers warn of looming sovereign debt crises
Governments and markets should agree to extend bond maturities, IMF says
Covid-19 will not result in CBDC issuance, say central bankers
Policy-makers think changes in payment behaviour will be temporary and CBDC research will take time
Diversification makes gold shine brighter – panellists
Negative sovereign yields boost gold’s attractiveness among reserve managers
Innovation hubs should help central banks update regulation – panellists
Regulation should be transparent enough for fintechs to understand what requirements must be met
Advanced economies take the lead in securities lending
Nearly 60% of reserve managers lend out assets that are in high demand
Boards are the main authority for benchmark approvals
Risk management teams tend to lead effort to propose new benchmarks
BIS research maps out links between banks and non-banks
First attempt at global mapping reveals significant scale of interconnections
Reserve managers weigh options to escape low yields
Longer-duration and emerging-market bonds may offer the way forward to portfolio managers
Mauritius governor defends central bank’s funding of government
“Unprecedented times” require “unprecedented set of measures” including $1.5bn funding of government, says Harvesh Seegolam
Lower-income countries generate highest reserves growth
Most reserves portfolios appear to have weathered the Covid-19 crisis well
BIS warns of gap between market valuations and reality
Corporate credit spreads have tightened, despite what the BIS sees as a looming solvency crisis
MasterCard launches new CBDC testing environment
New platform will allow central banks to test CBDC issuance and distribution