European Central Bank (ECB)
Maltese governor says ECB’s policy will ‘take a while’ to hit periphery
Josef Bonnici attributes the drop in loans to the private sector in the eurozone’s stressed countries to the ‘weak and uneven’ monetary policy transmission mechanism
Industry in discussions to change FX benchmark calculation, says ECB official
Senior market participants have suggested widening the time window in which benchmark exchange rates are set in forex, following allegations of manipulation
ECB paper says global economy still haunted by ‘spectre of protectionism’
Researchers at the European Central Bank find evidence that countries still regress to trade protectionism in the face of recessions or loss of competitiveness; call for international peer pressure
Mersch defends ECB’s Chinese walls
European Central Bank executive board member Yves Mersch says plans to keep monetary and supervisory functions separate will ensure any ‘conflicts of interest’ are avoided
ECB’s Asmussen demands gender diversity
Executive board member Jörg Asmussen says he is ‘deeply convinced’ of the need for greater gender diversity in the financial industry, and the benefit to both men and women
ECB's Smets made counsellor to president Draghi
Frank Smets, ECB director-general for research, steps into post vacated by Christian Thimann; will be counsellor to the president and co-ordinator of counsel to the executive board
ECB’s Mersch warns against excess liquidity policy becoming ‘permanent feature’
Executive board member Yves Mersch says it is now up to banks to make the most of the ‘favourable financing conditions’ created by the ECB
ECB prepares ground for new €10 banknote next year
New €10 note will be the second in the Europa series after the launch of the €5 note this May; Partnership Programme launched today will seek to smooth its introduction among stakeholders
Weidmann says ECB governing council must give up SSM oversight
In order to avoid a conflict of interest between monetary and financial supervisory policy, Bundesbank president says either a treaty change is needed, or a new institution separate from the ECB
ECB's Cœuré says European institutions must be more accountable
The financial crisis has led European institutions to intrude more into member states' economic and fiscal policies, with 'redistributional consequences' - so democratic accountability is 'key'
ECB paper proposes new metrics for competitiveness
Researchers say that conventional indicators of competitiveness are losing their relevance as production spreads across borders, and propose two new measures based on concept of global value chains
Draghi wants European public backstop for stress tests
ECB president Mario Draghi says both national and European public funds should be in place ahead of the comprehensive assessment to ensure it is a ‘credible exercise’
Weidmann and Draghi go head to head on ECB policy
Draghi, Asmussen and Weidmann lay out their views on the right direction for eurozone monetary policy; Bundesbank president accused by Paul Krugman of 'sadomonetarism'
OECD’s White says ECB supervision is back to front
William White says ECB should be managing the current crisis rather than trying to prevent the next one; warns that the global economy remains vulnerable, partly because of central bank actions
ECB gives Nouy the nod for SSM chair, but Mersch is no 'shoo-in' for deputy
ECB nominates top French regulator to head up SSM; responds to concerns that key decisions will be taken before chair is in place, but Sharon Bowles says questions remain for Draghi
ECB launches public consultation on mobile payments security recommendations
The governing council of the ECB asks market participants to comment on draft recommendations intended to make mobile payments more secure; interested parties have until January 31 to weigh in
OECD joins calls for eurozone QE
Organisation says ECB should consider ‘institutional changes' to allow it to buy corporate and sovereign bonds; suggests a timetable for US taper
Polish economists say rate cuts damaged trust in ECB
Working paper says central bank interest rate cuts can damage public trust if they come at a time when households have ‘pessimistic expectations'
ECB cut prompts record FX intervention in Serbia
Central bank expresses ‘firm and prudent’ resolve to lean against capital flows resulting from ECB rate cut, but eschews a fixed exchange rate
Bank of Spain puts 'revolving door' under review
Javier Priego, the Bank of Spain’s general secretariat, is reassessing the rules governing central bank employees after they leave the institution
OECD’s William White fears global economic system is still highly unstable
William White tells Christopher Jeffery he is wary of placing too much reliance on the ‘science’ of monetary or regulatory policy. He also believes the world economic system is still out of balance
ECB's Mersch touts securitisation of SME loans as way of boosting EU economy
Executive board member says second priority after assessing banks' balance sheets is to support lending to SMEs by strengthening capital markets
Banks respond differently to capital target deviations, ECB paper shows
Working paper finds banks tend to reshuffle risk-weighted assets or increase holdings when above Tier I ratio, but more inclined to increase equity levels when below target