Capital
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank – Raising expectations
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank embodies international co-operation and innovation – the spirit of modern China. Strict management, openness and transparency have won the bank wide recognition and acceptance, says Jin Liqun, the bank’s president
Prudential curbs on lending are working – RBA report
Central bank says concerns over riskier forms of lending “have eased”
The IFF China Report 2018: Post-financial crisis – A decade on
The Global Financial Crisis sparked Group of 20 countries to introduce tough new regulations on financial institutions and instruments. Yet the architecture of the global monetary, economic and financial system has many flaws. What lessons can China…
Fed outlines simplified capital regime
“Stress capital buffer” would likely raise capital requirements somewhat for many of the largest banks and lower them for the smallest, the Fed says
FSI finds divergent practices on non-performing assets
Study finds it is hard to make “meaningful comparisons” of troubled assets across jurisdictions
Iceland is ready to drop final capital controls – Guðmundsson
Icelandic governor says economy is sturdy enough to allow the removal of the remaining controls
Fed’s Brainard notes pro-cyclical challenges to supervision
Fiscal stimulus at a time when the economy is running hot requires vigilance, governor says; stress tests cannot counter all pro-cyclicality in credit
Book notes: A diary of the euro crisis in Cyprus
Panicos Demetriades’ book tells the inside story of the Cypriot crisis and how battles over central bank independence led ultimately to his resignation
Basel Committee highlights best practice for early intervention
Supervisors have become more forward looking and adopted new tools since 2008 in a bid to catch trouble early
Dudley outlines tougher incentives to make bankers behave
New York Fed chief says compensation could be linked to banks’ loss absorbency
Fed profits shrink as interest expenses bite
The Fed’s profits in 2017 were more than $10 billion smaller than a year earlier, as the effects of interest rate hikes begin to show
Book notes: Respectable banking, by Anthony Hotson
The author’s sensible goal of “respectable banking” is admirable, but the recommendations would not all help to achieve this
Basel Committee adds ‘amber zone’ in market risk revamp
“Amber zone” will protect near-miss desks, but regulators not convinced by complaints on non-modellable risk factors
Bank of Ghana places troubled UniBank under administration
Central bank says it has made several attempts to save the mid-sized lender since 2016, but claims lack of co-operation from management and false information led to failure
Macro-prudential measures should be made to last – RBNZ’s Spencer
Outgoing governor wants temporary framework for loan-to-value ratios to stay; says debt-to-income instrument should also be part of toolkit
Italian paper looks at eurozone firms' capital costs
Fall in borrowing costs in periphery due to balance sheet improvements, researchers find
RBNZ deputy governor calls for move to ‘dual reporting’
“Sometimes unclear” how banks reach their risk weightings, Bascand says
Norwegian sovereign wealth fund says 2017 saw third-highest annual returns
NBIM says returns from holdings in oil and gas companies lag those of other sectors
Remembering Charles Freeland
Charles Freeland, former deputy secretary-general of the Basel Committee and friend of Central Banking, died in 2017
Authorities need to deal with ‘limitations’ of global standards
The BIS’s Fernando Restoy says global standards do not cover all possible risks, and national supervisors need to fill in the gaps
RBI under pressure from alleged banking fraud scandal
Alleged fraudulent transactions uncovered at Punjab National Bank undermine the firm’s capital position; RBI launches investigation into “increasing incidence of frauds”
ECB orders Latvia to shutter bank over laundering allegations
US Treasury alleges the bank laundered billions of dollars and had links to North Korea
NY Fed paper measures global capital flow pressures
The authors’ method allows them to estimate how sensitive countries are to changes in global risk aversion, as well as overcoming problems with capital flow data
BoE’s Cunliffe sees liquidity risk in rise of investment funds
Investors have poured money into less liquid instruments at a time when market liquidity has been falling, warns the BoE deputy governor