Central Banking
New head at Canadian regulator
Jim Flaherty, the Canadian finance minister, has announced the appointment of Julie Dickson as the new head of the country's financial services regulator, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI).
Former BaFin employee guilty of embezzlement
A German court has found a former employee of BaFin, Germany's top financial markets regulator, guilty of embezzlement. The employee, whose name was not disclosed, was yesterday sentenced to six years in prison.
Singapore's Tong: Asia's economic prospects
Goh Chok Tong, chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said, "At the political level, Asia is also coalescing. However, political coalescence is progressing more slowly than economic integration," he said in a keynote address on 4 July.
ECB leaves rates on hold
After leaving interest rates unchanged on 5 June, European Central Bank (ECB) president, Jean-Claude Trichet, signalled that the central bank will hike rates again later this year.
Smaghi: challenges facing EU
"The EU (European Union) will be confronted with three major challenges: rapid technological change, globalisation and an ageing population," Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, member of the executive board, European Central Bank (ECB), said.
RBI's Reddy on India's financial sector
YV Reddy, governor of the Reserve Bank of India, said "The critical task before the public policy, in general, and Reserve Bank of India, in particular, is to strengthen the structural factors in the economy but determinedly moderate the cyclical and…
Deutsche Bundesbank - annual report 2006
Germany's central bank marks its half century by looking back at the performance of the economy in 2006 and notes the new projects, such as T2S, the Bundesbank is working on.
Noyer on French banks' vulnerabilities
Christian Noyer, governor of the Banque de France, said there is an "ever more urgent need for new methods of risk assessment and for appropriate supervision that can react swiftly to these changes," at a speech given on 29 June during the presentation…
Jelasi: Serbia's "big strides" towards EU
In a speech on 29 June Radovan Jelasi, governor of the National Bank of Serbia, said "Serbia is taking big strides towards the European Union, standard of living is improving and there are ample professional challenges around."
ECB's financial markets legislation
The European Central Bank (ECB) published "European Legislation on Financial Markets" on 3 July.
Turkey's payment systems
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published a report on payments systems in Turkey on 3 July.
No change in Australian interest rates
The Reserve Bank of Australia has left interest rates unchanged at 6.25%, where they have remained since November 2006. The decision was widely expected.
FSA report pans sub-prime lenders
A report issued by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the United Kingdom adopts a highly critical stance with respect to sub-prime mortgage lenders and advisers. The report says that these parties have failed in their responsibilities to…
Russian inflation at 5.7% in first half of year
Sergei Ignatyev, the chairman of the Central Bank of Russia, said on 4 July that inflation in the consumer price index (CPI) amounted to 5.7% in the period January-June this year. Ignatyev's comments came during a testimony before parliament.
Dubai watchdog issues hedge fund code
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has published a draft Hedge Fund Code for public comment. A consultation paper and a copy of the draft code were made available on the DFSA's website on 4 July.
Unexpected June price rises in Chile
Consumer prices in Chile rose 0.9% in June, representing their biggest monthly rise since September 2005. Food and housing costs were largely responsible for the shock.
Roth refutes hedge fund risk
The highly leveraged institutions (HLI) industry is "no direct threat to financial stability," Jean-Pierre Roth, chairman of the governing board of the Swiss National Bank and chairman of the board of directors of the Bank for International Settlements,…
ECB's Smaghi: better communication on euro needed
"[The] euro area is fully equipped to manage its own currency ... [but] better discipline is required in the preparation of the euro area's position to ensure that a consistent message is sent to its partners," Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, member of the…
Holograms keep currency real
A special report by the US National Research Council entitled "A Path to the Next Generation of US Banknotes: Keeping them Real," suggests that holograms have a definitive role in combating banknote counterfeiting.
Slovakia: 2006 annual report
The National Bank of Slovakia recently published its annual report for 2006.
No challenge to European at IMF - Paulson
The American Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson, says the United States will not challenge the long-standing tradition of allowing European countires to select the new managing director of the International Monetary Fund.
PBoC continues moderate tightening
The People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, has re-affirmed its decision to tighten monetary policy "moderately" in order to control the growth of lending and investment and prevent the economy overheating.
Mauritius raises rates to 9.25%
The Bank of Mauritius, the country's central bank, announced on 30 June that it had raised its key repo rate by 75 basis points to 9.25% with effect from 2 July. The decision came after the third meeting of the central bank's Monetary Policy Committee …
Bank of Thailand urged to cede supervisory role
Chodechai Suwanaporn, a director of Thailand's Fiscal Policy Office, told a conference at Thammasat University on 3 July that the roles of bank supervision and reserve management should be separated from the Bank of Thailand.