Payments
UK payments regulator set for launch
PSR outlines its approach ready for start of regulation on April 1, including plans to work more closely with the industry, increase transparency and boost competition
Investigation unearths flaws in BoE’s RTGS system
Combination of elderly and complex RTGS system, inadequate testing and poor contingency planning led to nine-hour outage last October; BoE adopting review’s recommendations in full
Colombian paper considers reaction functions in payments
Working paper examines how different entities within a large-value payment system react to failures within that system, finding that a range of factors are in play
Gradual rollout for China's payment system
The country’s cross-border interbank payment system will further contribute to the internationalisation of the renminbi
Bank of Latvia establishes first overnight clearing cycle
New cycle will accelerate processing of retail payments submitted late in the day and comes with an upgrade to business continuity that should see fewer payments rejected
ECB revisits virtual currencies in new report
Research concludes virtual currencies do not pose ‘material risk’ to central bank operations in eurozone, but could if they become more widely used or entwined with the real economy
RBI director calls for ‘strong law’ against cyber crime
A strong law help increase the confidence of the average person on the street in using technology in financial transactions, argues RBI executive director
Swift in talks with Fed and ECB on real-time payments
Swift’s Juliette Kennel and Carlo Palmers talk to Central Banking about the company's leap into real-time payments in Australia, and discuss launching similar systems in other countries
Fed’s Powell: Virtual currencies ‘not ready’ for role in payments reform
Governor Jerome Powell says virtual currencies could play a ‘bigger role’ in the future, but are not yet ‘mature enough’ to contribute to the Fed’s faster payments initiative
Renminbi cracks top-five payment currencies
Share of the renminbi in global payments increases to 2.17% in December, Swift data shows, pushing it above the Canadian and Australian dollars, and into the top five
Fed challenges payments industry to get quicker and safer
New document sets out strategies for improving US payment system; Federal Reserve will only consider expanding role as service provider if private sector falls short
MEPs strike deal to cap card payment fees
European Parliament reaches agreement on limits to the fees banks can charge retailers for processing payments in a bid to lower prices and tackle perverse incentives
UK payments regulator may use powers to force innovation
Payment Systems Regulator emphasises its "strong" powers over industry and says it will not hesitate to use them if firms fail to collaborate on innovation
Euro Retail Payments Board warns of fragmented market for 'instant payments'
Stakeholder group sets up working streams on 'person-to-person' and contactless euro payments; chair Yves Mersch stresses importance of instant clearing services
National Bank of Ukraine to overhaul payments system
National Bank of Ukraine is upgrading its payments system with a view to widening its use; it is also exploring the use of mobile applications in making payments
Resource costs of Australian payments system down as percentage of GDP
Consumers face similar cost for credit and debit card payments despite higher cost of credit cards to the economy, RBA paper finds
PBoC highlights ‘rapid’ growth of electronic payments
Quarterly report on payments in China says electronic payments, particularly mobile payments, grew significantly in Q3
Swift wins Australian real-time payments contract
Contract represents new direction for the financial messaging service, with the final platform expected to go live in 2017
New payments regulator in UK may have uneasy relationship with BoE
Treasury committee highlights potential for conflicting objectives between newly formed payments regulator and the Bank of England; Tyrie says independence ‘pretty heavily circumscribed’
Central banks weighing the benefits of bitcoin
Digital or ‘crypto’ currencies are controversial among central banks, but some see merits in their use and a few may even issue their own; more digital currency innovation likely in future
BoJ’s Nakaso sees opportunities for payments innovation
Options on the table include 24-7 real-time payment systems, improved cross-border linkages and better financial messaging systems
Riksbank study questions status of cash as legal tender
Researchers warn ‘lock-in effect' may inhibit market participants from exploiting more efficient payment methods
BoE picks Deloitte to review RTGS failure
Consultancy firm to conduct investigation into outage in real-time gross settlement system that saw system break down for several hours
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