Banks
Consultancy and advisory provider of the year (currency management): De La Rue
The UK-based company is helping central banks monitor the lifespan of banknotes in a bid to improve stock management and cost-effectiveness of currency operations
Payments and market infrastructure provider of the year: Perago
The software company is helping central banks around the world implement reliable and highly adaptable RTGS and retail payments systems
Fed paper models risk-taking channel of monetary policy
Model in which monetary expansion increases risk-taking appears to fit with the data
Technology consultant of the year: Vizor Software
The Dublin-based company continued to grow its client base in 2017, proving its mettle in emerging markets, with the addition of Brunei’s central bank and the Zambian pensions and insurance regulator
Banknote and currency services provider of the year: Landqart
The leading hybrid substrate provider offers the durability and increased security of polymer combined with the security features and customer familiarity of paper
Innovation in reserve management: HSBC
The global bank stepped in during Egypt’s economic crisis, arranging a private funding package that proved instrumental in turning around the country’s fortunes
Consultancy and advisory provider of the year (data and regulatory management): BearingPoint
BearingPoint’s expertise in data and reporting has informed a number of high-level bodies over the past year, including the Basel Committee and the IMF, following groundbreaking work in Austria
Asian central banks crack down on cryptocurrency
Central banks in China, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore all taking action as cryptocurrency prices slump
EU ombudsman asks Draghi to relinquish G30 seat
Prolonging the president’s membership threatens independence and public’s trust in the ECB, O’Reilly declares
BoE economists challenge conventional wisdom on yield curve
Steeper curve may not be as good for bank profitability as widely believed
Short-selling bans increased instability – ESRB paper
Banks’ volatility, leverage and default probability increased by bans on short-selling – researchers
Central banks lack ‘firepower’ to combat financial crises, says report
Without interest rate cuts available, the next financial crisis could be much “longer and deeper”, Global Risk Report says
RBI’s Acharya tells banks to deal with interest rate risk
Indian banks are vulnerable to changes in yields and have relied on regulatory forbearance for too long, deputy says
German savings banks may buy debt to gain political favour, ECB paper says
Research warns this behaviour increases interdependence between banks and governments
BoE’s Tenreyro sees hopeful signs for UK productivity
Many factors dragging on productivity may soon start to fade, MPC member says, though the UK seems to be missing out on a global investment boom
Core-periphery model of bank networks called into question
Researchers find multiple cores in the interbank market, posing different systemic risks
BoE’s Woods warns of ‘point of tension’ in Brexit negotiations
PRA chief fears EU supervisors may adopt a local mindset when dealing with cross-border firms
Economists need to better understand macrofinancial links – BIS paper
Stijn Claessens and Ayhan Kose call for “new generation of models” among other research to solve ongoing puzzles
Banking ‘deserts’ do not explain financial exclusion – NY Fed economists
Data shows absence of nearby banks fails to explain “unbanked” share of the population
Home truths on Europe’s NPLs
Europe needs to overcome fears of a hypothetical crisis, and impose more intrusive supervision and greater provisioning on its banks
Gontareva accused of complicity in money laundering
Ex-governor denies she improperly helped former president Yanukovych
HKMA launches consultation on open API framework
Open API enables personalised services for bank users but requires access to customer data
IMF’s Obstfeld: effects of accommodative policy remain unclear
The IMF chief economist weighs up the productivity puzzle and whether monetary policy helped or hindered growth following the financial crisis
PBoC tightens bond trading rules, relaxes renminbi controls
China’s financial regulators continue their efforts to deleverage the economy and promote renminbi internationalisation