Central Banks
FCA director says breakdown in controls led to communications blunder
Clive Adamson says FCA has taken steps to improve internal procedures; tells MPs the organisation can struggle to operate in a crisis
Signs of reflation in Japan as Abe sweeps back to power
Tankan survey shows degree of optimism among businesses and potential for rising wages in coming months, although evidence is mixed; Shinzo Abe reclaims supermajority in election
SBP annual report highlights ‘two phase’ year
Pakistan’s economy suffered turbulent spell in 2013, but IMF agreement saw a return to relative stability; central bank praises government for ‘long-awaited’ return to fiscal discipline
IMF paper suggests Peruvian forex interventions are asymmetric
The Central Bank of Peru has tended to react differently in the face of appreciation and depreciation pressures, research finds
Fischer questions FSB's democratic credentials
Fed vice-chair says Basel body not democratic ‘in a certain sense' but still a ‘great success'; argues it was set up specifically to circumvent IMF bureaucracy
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
RBNZ takes next step towards replacing settlement systems
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is seeking registrations of interest from potential vendors to replace its current payment and settlement systems, NZClear and Esas
IMF: Uganda cut policy meetings to improve forecasts
Bank of Uganda now sets policy once every two months in an effort to base decisions on "firmer" data; the ECB will hold eight meetings in 2015 with the BoE set to follow suit in 2016
Kocherlakota announces Fed departure
Minneapolis Fed president and FOMC dove to step down when his term draws to a close in February 2016
Fijian authorities tackle religious worker fraud
Financial Intelligence Unit urges religious organisations to conduct financial transactions under own name to prevent overseas remittances from ending up in the wrong hands
RBI's Rajan looks to regional and domestic demand
RBI governor argues India must look to regional and domestic demand for its growth, while still working towards a ‘more open and fair global system’
Argentina’s central bank denies being an ‘alter ego’ of the government
Central Bank of Argentina lawyers look to dismiss a complaint from the holdout funds in New York, rejecting the notion the institution is an ‘alter ego’ of the Argentine government
Impact of flight to liquidity on bonds important for policy-makers, study finds
The effects of flight to liquidity episodes on bond markets ‘are important for policy-makers’, since they are associated with ‘lower macroeconomic confidence’, research finds
IMF paper: Costs of macro-pru policies still unclear
Policy-makers should ‘move carefully' in adopting macro-prudential tools as ‘knowledge is still limited', working paper argues
Poloz warns regulation could stifle credit to SMEs
Bank of Canada governor says new financial regulation likely to reduce the availability of credit to small companies by discouraging financial innovation
Women still hold less than 10% of top jobs
Central banks continue to become 'more equal employers' in 2014, but only 18 of 189 institutions are led by women
Brazil’s central bank lowers expectations of further action
Brazil’s central bank says inflation will enter ‘a long period of decline’ next year, as it looks to guide inflation and interest rate expectations
Basel Committee tightens securitisation standards despite bank protests
Final standards for securitisations impose tougher capital requirements despite banks’ complaints that the rules are ‘punitive’; reduces reliance on external ratings
Norges Bank cuts interest rates as krone weakens
Low inflation gives Norway's central bank room to tackle the impact on growth of falling oil prices; governor suggests key rate will remain at record low for the next two years
Czech banks ‘resilient’ to adverse shocks
Latest stress tests conducted by the Czech National Bank finds the country’s banking sector is ‘sufficiently resilient’ to shocks, including a ‘sizeable decline’ in economic activity
Bank of Finland’s Honkapohja advocates ‘cautious and gradual’ approach to deregulation
Central bank board member offers lessons for China from Nordic experience with financial deregulation, and advocates a cautious approach over a ‘big bang’
Bank of England unveils sweeping transparency changes
Bank of England to publish transcripts of monetary policy meetings, cut number of meetings, revamp committee structures and more; Barry Eichengreen says benefits likely to ‘dominate’ costs
Linde fears ‘revival’ of debt sustainability concerns
Concerns about the sustainability of European sovereign debt have not disappeared and could be reactivated if the economic conditions worsen, says Linde
Weak TLTRO demand increases pressure on ECB
Banks borrow €129.8 through ECB's second operation; pressure increases on governing council to launch new measures in January or March 2015