Financial Stability
SPEED: the new journal for financial plumbers
SPEED - short for Settlement, Payment, E-money and E-trading Development - is a new journal aimed at all those policy-makers in banks, central banks and system operators who are trying to ensure that the financial infrastructure, often called the …
Securities Settlement Service may cut costs
Costs for securities settlement services could fall as much as 20% if the European Central Bank sets up a single platform in the eurozone, a person familiar with the deliberations told Dow Jones Newswires Thursday 17 August.
SBV strengthens communications, security
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has selected advanced technologies from Cisco Systems to help increase operational efficiencies in its countrywide infrastructure and provide a platform to regulate the banking system.
BOJ steps in after Tokyo blackout
The Bank of Japan began supplying emergency funds Monday 14 August to the interbank market after a blackout halted fund settlements.
Albania's Fullani: Prevention rather than recovery
In the speech 'Prevent rather than recover' given on 24 July Ardian Fullani of the Bank of Albania said the concept of providing financial stability does not differ a lot from the logic of maintaining macroeconomic stability.
Counterfeiters finally crack the Euro note
According to this article published on The New Zealand Herald's website on Wednesday 2 August, the amount of counterfeit currency discovered in the 12 euroland countries is now running at 600,000 notes a year - roughly the same as before the single…
New Zealand's new coins go into circulation
Smaller, lighter 50, 20, and 10 cent coins were released Monday 31 July in New Zealand. The new coins retain the same "heads" and "tails" designs but the 10 cent coin is copper-coloured, the RBNZ said.
BoE's Gieve on financial system risks in the UK
In the speech 'Financial system risks in the UK - Issues and challenges' given on 25 July Sir John Gieve of the Bank of England said the probability of a contagious financial crisis may have fallen but its impact, if it ever happened, could be more…
Roseman on coin and currency issues
In testimony 'Coin and currency issues' given on 19 July Louise Roseman of the Division of Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems said a law requiring the Treasury Department to issue new Presidential $1 coin designs every year may not foster…
ACU calls for new members
The Asian Clearing Union (ACU) concluded its two-day technical committee meeting Wednesday 19 July calling for the admission of countries beyond the ESCAP Asia/Pacific region.
ECB sets Nov 2007 date for TARGET2
The European Central Bank on Friday 21 July confirmed the starting date for its payment system TARGET2 as 19 Nov 2007.
Comment: Noyer takes Kroes to task
The Bank of France governor, Christian Noyer, said on 18 July that the European Commission is "playing a very dangerous game" in attempting to break open the European credit card market. How legitimate are his concerns?
Comment: Rethinking financial stability reporting
The Bank of England recently unveiled its revamped Financial Stability Report. Starting with the title of the publication, the Bank has taken a new approach to both the presentation of report and its content. The changes are an effort to focus the report…
BoE paper on efficient payment systems
The Bank of England Working Paper "The welfare benefits of stable and efficient payment systems" examines the importance of smoothly functioning payment systems to the economy by extending a recently developed theoretical model of banks.
ACU to discuss payment systems efficiency
Members of the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) will meet in Dhaka this week to discuss ways to make their payment systems easier to use to boost trade, a Bangladesh central bank official told Reuters.
How do central banks write on financial stability?
This IMF Working Paper, published July 2006, surveys central bank financial stability reports, and proposes a framework for assessing them.
Comment: Will McCreevy's approach work?
The European commissioner for internal market and services, Charlie McCreevy, has called for an industry-driven "code of conduct" to reduce the costs of European cross-border settlement and clearing, rather than propose a directive. Will his famous light…
Bank of England Financial Stability Report, Jul 06
The Bank of England published its latest Financial Stability Report for July 2006 on Wednesday 12 July. It was published in a new-style, providing an assessment of prospects for the UK financial system.
RBNZ countdown to smaller lighter coins
On 31 July the current 50, 20, and 10 cent coins will be replaced with smaller and lighter coins, and the 5 cent coin will begin to be phased out, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand said on Monday 10 July.
Dutch central bank wants better payment system
The Dutch central bank has called for a more efficient payment system and is considering a set of measures to encourage people to pay more by electronic means, MarketWatch reported.
Comment: Dutch banks lose on payments
A recent report by McKinsey, a consulting firm, finds that Dutch banks are losing money on processing payments. Moreover, the report suggests that margins will be under even greater pressure as banks have to implement a plethora of new regulations.
Papademos on price stability & financial stability
In the speech 'Price stability, financial stability and efficiency, and monetary policy' given on 7 July Lucas Papademos of the ECB said transparency in monetary policy is important for financial stability and financial efficiency.
EU Parliament wants information on SWIFT
The European Parliament adopted a resolution on Thursday 6 July asking EU governments, the Commission and the European Central Bank to explain what they know about the SWIFT agreement.
ECB considers new securities settlement service
The European Central Bank said Friday 7 July it is considering setting up a new service for securities settlement in the eurozone. Through the new system, the ECB said it aims for synergies and harmonized settlement of securities transactions in the euro…