Distributed ledger
Sweden must ask fundamental questions on money – Ingves
Sveriges Riksbank governor Stefan Ingves says lawmakers must act to preserve the regulation of the payments system
ECB’s Mersch urges caution on regulatory sandboxes
The ECB board member is “not sure we have the right answers yet”
The winners of the 2018 Central Banking Awards
Bank of Canada wins Central Bank of the Year, Lesetja Kganyago picks up Governor of the Year and Perng Fai-nan receives Lifetime Achievement Award; 16 more awards unveiled
UK lawmakers launch inquiry into DLT and cryptocurrency
Parliamentary committee is to investigate whether UK regulators have struck the right balance in regulating emerging technologies without stifling innovation
Sama enables blockchain for cross-border payments
Pilot with Ripple will allow domestic banks to settle payments across the xCurrent network; payments infrastructure based on the Interledger Protocol
European authorities warn of dangers in cryptocurrency markets
Spanish and Dutch central banks warn of “misleading” data and unregulated markets
BIS’s Carstens calls for cryptocurrency clampdown
Bitcoin has become “a combination of a bubble, a Ponzi scheme and an environmental disaster”
Global custodian of the year: BNY Mellon
The US asset specialist has made strong progress in its effort to offer a seamless overlay of its disparate legacy systems, while also providing improved training to official institutions
Central Banking Awards: Bank of Canada is central bank of the year
Awards go to the Bank of Canada, PriceStats, Perago and De La Rue
Do not ban cryptocurrencies – DNB
Central bank says a ban would be difficult to enforce and could impede innovation
Initiative of the year: Bank of England’s FinTech Accelerator
The UK central bank has embraced fintech service providers in a controlled manner to bolster its cyber-security and payments capabilities
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
Russia raises capital ratios, launches fintech consultations
Systemically important banks must increase capital ratios; smaller banks can choose “basic” or “universal” licences
Instant payments crucial to stop crypto disruption – Mersch
ECB board member reiterates concerns around viability of crypto-currencies, while encouraging banks to adopt instant payment networks
UK Royal Mint to use blockchain to track gold trades
System will track ownership of gold traded on new platform without the need of a central database; new system will charge small transaction fees but abolish storage fees
How crypto is my currency?
Richard Heckinger examines how central banks are grappling with new ideas on crypto-currency and distributed ledgers
DLT set to make central banks ‘obsolete’ as payment operators – report
Second phase of MAS’s Project Ubin deemed a success as central bank manages to deploy RTGS system on DLT fabric
DLT has ‘more potential for change’ outside US – Boston Fed VP
Jim Cuhna says distributed ledger technology can transform financial services not only in payments but also in securities settlement; challenge is finding use cases
Hong Kong and Singapore to collaborate on fintech
The first joint initiative of the two rival cities is to link the trade finance platforms with a DLT-backed interface
UK’s FCA claims success after first year of ‘sandbox’
Regulatory ‘sandbox’ has had high success rate, but there have been some issues, says regulator
Canada’s Project Jasper to explore clearing of securities in third phase
Central bank teams up with new partner for phase three of DLT project, with results expected in May 2018
Fintech is the future – Menon
Central bankers weigh in on potential of fintech, agreeing there is a need to separate use cases from the hype
Bank of Lithuania bans banks from virtual currency activities
Lithuanian financial firms must disassociate themselves from virtual currencies, says central bank, warning licences may be revoked
True potential of blockchain lies in cross-border transactions – Menon
Singapore is investigating two use cases of blockchain in the cross-border sphere; technology could be used to prevent duplication of invoices in trade agreements