CB In Depth
Big data in central banks 2020–21 report: shifting to centre stage
The Covid-19 shock made big data a key input into policy at a time when data governance appears to be improving and central banks are embracing cloud technology
Data-driven policy-making for central banks focus report 2021
In this report, Central Banking discusses why data is so crucial for central banks to make effective policy decisions and why current traditional indicators that are no longer fit for purpose. The pandemic has highlighted the need for an overhaul of data…
Mário Centeno on monetary-fiscal interaction in the eurozone
Bank of Portugal governor says ECB is not being overrun by former finance ministers, must improve the definition of its inflation target and has no need for yield curve control. Centeno believes NextGenerationEU fund could serve as template for a future…
Book notes: Capital and ideology, by Thomas Piketty
A political pamphlet like Milton’s ‘Areopagitica’, but longer
Kenneth Montgomery on the Fed’s progress with instant payments
The FedNow project leader speaks about Covid-19 payment behaviours, a new liquidity management tool and what it will take to achieve ubiquitous instant payments in the US
Book notes: Asset management at central banks and monetary authorities, edited by Jacob Bjorheim
This excellent book fills a critical gap existing since IMF guidelines on asset management were revised
The Covid crisis, central banks and the future
Crisis responses have had positive initial outcomes, but also exacerbated significant underlying challenges that raise concerns related to exit strategies and the future for central banks
Book notes: The political economy of the special relationship, by Jeremy Green
Unsatisfactory story about the decline and resurgence of the UK’s importance in the global financial system
Ulrich Bindseil on the launch of the digital euro
The ECB’s director-general for market infrastructure and payments speaks about the functionality, tiering approaches, privacy policies, ledger technology and ecosystem impact of the eurozone's planned CBDC
Book notes: The currency cold war, by David Birch
Pleasant and interesting read on whether digital money will jeopardise the US dollar’s dominant role in global trade and finance
The role of Tips for the future payments landscape
Tips could support euro CBDC plus cross-border payments in many currencies
Hernández de Cos on ECB policy, crises responses and Basel reform
Spanish governor and Basel Committee chair Pablo Hernández de Cos favours a form of average inflation targeting, says ECB is willing to boost stimulus and Basel reforms not diminished by Covid-19 exceptions; stresses the need for structural reform and…
Central bank social media usage continues to evolve
User growth among central banks has started to level off, but those that use social media platforms are seeing growing subscriber bases and an increase in engagement
Is the integrity of Afghanistan’s central bank under threat?
Acting governor fires key staff and is accused of undoing reforms, while World Bank appears ready to suspend funds; administration and other donors show few signs of learning from Kabul Bank scandal
Whither the age of ‘magic money’?
EME central banks are more exposed to changes in geopolitics, climate, demography, technology and inflation at a time when monetary theory is running well behind central bank practice
Monetary unions in the making in Africa
EAC, Ecowas and SADC can adopt practical steps learned from EMU to prepare for their own currency unions
Otmar Issing on the art of central bank communications
EMU architect speaks about Draghi’s “whatever it takes” intervention, forward guidance failures, the Fed’s average inflation target ‘miscommunication’, and why the ECB may be overreaching in its strategy review
Is the RBI doomed to fail its ‘quest for financial stability’?
Covid-19 has set back progress on hard-won reforms. As the economy struggles to recover, the RBI and government must walk a treacherous path back to safety
Lessons from the Riksbank’s negative rates experiment
Sweden is the only nation to have implemented negative rates and then returned them to ‘normal’ territory. What can central bankers learn from the Swedish experience?
Olli Rehn on AIT, market neutrality and EU fiscal policies
The Bank of Finland governor talks about the ECB’s strategy review, market failure on climate change, lessons from the sovereign debt crisis, and the Draghi legacy effect on Covid-19 responses
Gold for central banking focus report 2020
The Covid-19 pandemic and the reaction from central banks had a significant impact on the price of gold. Over the past few decades, central banks have viewed gold as a ‘safe-haven asset’ – an investment that can be used to dodge the impact of negative…
The ultimate store of value
Róbert Rékási, head of foreign exchange reserves management at the Central Bank of Hungary, speaks to Central Banking’s Victor Mendez-Barreira about how Covid-19 has changed gold investment trends
How can central banks secure the future of money?
Central banks should start tackling the accounting, legal and policy challenges related to CBDC. This work will shape the future of money, as could be witnessed in Albania
Book notes: The great demographic reversal, by Charles Goodhart and Manoj Pradhan
An important book, predicting that powerful demographic forces will upend conventional thinking on macroeconomics and policy