Central Banking
Riksbank deputy assesses changing payments market
Cecilia Skingsley warns capacity of mobile networks is not always sufficient to manage ‘temporary peaks' in activity; also addresses ‘changeover' of banknotes and coins
CGFS pushes central banks to prepare market-making crisis measures
BIS committee warns of ‘bifurcated’ liquidity and suggests central banks prepare crisis measures to support market-making, including the potential for direct intervention in critical markets
Flug warns Israel is falling behind in productivity race
Bank of Israel governor sees country slipping behind its OECD peers and suggests policy changes to boost productivity growth
Thomas Jordan dismisses monetary reform proposals
Swiss National Bank head rejects multiple reforms, including a return to the gold standard, the introduction of plain money and the adoption of the euro
Nigerian central bank scrutinised over currency troubles
As the naira continues to weaken, analysts argue central bank blunders earlier this month have added fuel to the flames ignited by rising oil prices; MPC expected to hike rates tomorrow
Basel rate-risk project sets up scrap over deposit models
Attempts to set international capital rules for banking book interest rate exposures are hitting sensitive ground as banks warn lending will suffer if regulators cap deposit maturities
BIS's Hannoun calls failure to normalise policy a 'high-risk strategy'
Deputy general manager flags numerous ways in which unconventional policy may have adverse effects on the economy, both now and in the future
PBoC cut fails to impress but more action on the cards
Economists say first cut in two years likely to have weak effect at best, but PBoC may have to take stronger action going forward as economy worsens
Dudley endures grilling on Goldman tapes
New York Fed president questioned by senate committee, including whether the culture at the Fed itself is up to scratch; Dudley contests claim NY Fed failed in supervisory duties
Maldives governor says international experts ‘unaware’ of island realities
Azeema Adam argues policy advice from international institutions is misguided, and rejects the use of one-size-fits-all policy prescriptions
Central Bank of Ecuador trials mobile payments
A group of 800 people are testing the platform as part of pilot program; Central Bank of Ecuador hopes to tackle financial inclusion with the new technology
Netherlands Bank moves 122.5 tonnes of gold from New York to Amsterdam
Central bank will now keep 31% of its gold reserves in own country; move was designed to create a more even distribution of its reserves across the globe
Riksbank deputy pleased with macro-prudential progress 'for now'
Martin Flodén says further measures could be taken if central bank's 0% interest rate fails to push up inflation toward 2% target
Policy discussion makes up between 5% and 70% of central bank minutes, study finds
Report by Central Bank of Ireland shows great variation in scope and characteristics of minutes, with word count ranging from 600 to 13,000
BoE’s Taylor defends complexity of leverage ratio plans
External FPC member says countercyclical leverage ratio may be more complex than a flat rate, but allows the Bank of England to be less heavy-handed with the rule and avoid perverse incentives
Top EU court should dismiss UK bonus cap plea, says advocate general
Opinion rejects UK’s main legal challenge to EU bonus cap law and argues use of word ‘cap’ is misleading; UK Treasury says opinion ‘demolishes’ case for fixed ratio
Draghi sets sights on capital markets at SSM inauguration
Mario Draghi says policy-makers can draw on new model for banking supervision when working to integrate capital markets; Danièle Nouy calls for consistent regulation across countries
Lagarde lauds new Mexican bonds with ‘strengthened' collective action clauses
Mexico issued $2 billion in 10-year bonds with new collective action clauses, which Lagarde says ‘will play a critical role in enhancing the architecture for sovereign debt markets’
Argentine governor says peso becoming more predictable
Central Bank of Argentina governor Alejandro Vanoli believes the peso is becoming more predictable due to his efforts to control the exchange illegal market
New Zealand’s banknotes get first upgrade since 1999
Reserve Bank unveils a ‘brighter, more modern look’ for its banknotes, and a host of new security features; net cost will be NZ$40 million over five years
Klaas Knot: It’s up to governments now
Netherlands Bank president tells parliament that European governments will have to boost growth and ‘stir up’ inflation themselves; latest central bank bulletin reinforces point
Kuroda wins over BoJ policy rebels
Three of four dissenters at the last policy meeting line up behind Bank of Japan’s expanded easing programme as inflation slips lower
Bank of Canada weighs inflation target increase
Consideration should be given to an inflation target that is above 2%, deputy governor argues; says lower neutral interest rate could lead to ‘non-trivial’ increase in ZLB episodes
Linde: Spanish banks have ‘solid solvency position’
Bank of Spain governor says performance of Spanish banks during ECB stress tests was ‘positive’; banks face the future in a ‘solid solvency position’