United Kingdom
UK chancellor blames Rock run on regulator
Alistair Darling, the British chancellor of the exchequer, admitted on Tuesday that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) was culpable in the run on Northern Rock, but said he still planned to grant the banking regulator more power.
UK chancellor outlines regulatory changes
In a bid to prevent another Northern Rock, Alistair Darling, Britain's chancellor of the exchequer, has pledged to make the government ultimately responsible for actions to counter banking crises.
Northern Rock shows fallibility of communication
The run on Northern Rock, a British mortgage lender, illustrates the potential downside of central bank communication around stability issues, says Gary Stern, the president of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve.
BoE credit survey shows crunch impacting lending
The Bank of England's credit conditions survey, published on Thursday, signalled a marked decline in lending to households and businesses towards the end of 2007.
Journalist defends Old Lady's "low morale" claims
Irwin Stelzer, the journalist who wrote last week that a senior Bank of England official had said the British chancellor and prime minister were blocking changes to banking regulation because of low morale, has described it as "a pity" that Mervyn King,…
Rate setters act on inflation not job location
Little evidence exists of any systematic differences in the voting habits of internally- and externally-appointed members of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee, research published by the Bank finds.
Bank of England committee unanimously backed cut
All nine members of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee voted in favour of cutting rates to 5.5% earlier this month, minutes published on Wednesday reveal.
Banks take Old Lady's money
The Bank of England's adoption of a new auction method for open market operations met with success on Tuesday as all of the available funds were allocated.
Only banks can fully solve lending problem: King
No amount of central bank liquidity can bring interbank rates back down to normal levels, Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, said on Tuesday.
Old Lady denies reports of government criticism
The Bank of England countered reports published over the weekend that an unnamed senior Bank of England official had said low government morale was blocking plans for a fundamental overhaul of the financial regulatory system.
Bank of England - Quarterly Bulletin
Details of the impact of Northern Rock's use of the lender of last resort facility on the Bank of England's open market operations are noted in the latest edition of the Quarterly Bulletin.
UK's inflation expectations reach eight-year high
Britons' inflation expectations rose to the highest level for eight years in November, the Bank of England's Inflation Attitudes Survey has revealed.
BoE's Paul Tucker on global credit crunch
Paul Tucker, executive director for markets at the Bank of England and a member of the monetary policy committee, at a speech on Thursday, analysed the difficulties facing central banks in correctly diagnosing changes in credit conditions and asset…
Rock raises lender of last resort issue for EU
One important aspect of the Northern Rock crisis in the UK has been to make market participants wonder what would happen if a similar-sized institution got into difficulties in a small or medium-sized EU member state.
US-style scheme could have stopped Rock run
A US-style deposit insurance scheme would have been a "real help" in halting the run on Northern Rock, Britain's chief regulator said on Tuesday.
SWFs would follow private equity guidelines
Sovereign wealth funds would be willing to enter into the voluntary code of conduct set out in the Walker Review, an influential report on private equity governance standards and transparency, the author says.
UK cut does little to alleviate interbank tension
Sterling interbank borrowing costs fell only slightly in response to the Bank of England's 25 basis point rate cut on Thursday, indicating that the cut did little to alleviate liquidity tensions.
Old Lady cuts rates to 5.5%
The Bank of England's rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted on Thursday to cut its benchmark bank rate by 25 basis points after data suggested the UK economy was weakening.
UK moves to encourage SWF investment
The British authorities on Tuesday launched a charm offensive in a bid to coax sovereign wealth funds to invest in UK business.
We were transparent enough, say bankers
Investors were given all the information they required on structured products, a group of senior figures at top investment and commercial banks told UK lawmakers on Tuesday.
UK regulator warns on worsening liquidity risk
Mortgage lenders must protect themselves against the "very real prospect" that liquidity conditions will worsen in 2008, Clive Briault, the retail managing director at the Financial Services Authority (FSA), Britain's banking regulator, said on Tuesday.
Injections pose no moral hazard risk: ECB member
In spite of the Bank of England's claims to the contrary, moral hazard should not be an issue in deciding whether or not to inject extra funds into the money markets, a member of the European Central Bank's (ECB) executive board said on Monday.
Old Lady changes tack and steps in with £10bn
The Bank of England said on Thursday that it would lend an extra £10 billion ($20.7 billion) at its benchmark bank rate to allay fears that interbank borrowing costs will shoot up over December.
UK's King gloomy on economic conundrum
Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, said on Thursday that the economic outlook is "uncomfortable" because the problems of the credit crisis are now coupled with burgeoning inflationary pressures.