European Central Bank (ECB)
Bank of Slovenia lifts lid on bank health checks
The 10 banks under investigation will be subjected to asset quality reviews and bottom-up stress tests; results will be challenged by an outside consultancy
Fall in OECD inflation highlights advanced economy monetary policy dilemmas
New OECD figures show lower annual inflation rates despite Japanese CPI turning positive; pressure mounts on ECB and Fed to counteract trend, but analysts unsure with what tools
Constâncio insists private sector will play ‘major’ role in filling capital shortfalls
The ECB’s vice-president says banks will be able to fill any capital holes turned up in the central bank’s comprehensive assessment at least partly through private funds
ECB paper finds value in high-frequency trading
Working paper suggests high-frequency trading aids price discovery, such that regulatory restrictions could damage market efficiency
ECB faces parliamentary grilling on Troika track record
Senior managers from European Central Bank and European Commission defend the accountability and forecasting track record of the Troika in European Parliament hearing
ECB’s Asmussen urges Denmark and Sweden to sit at banking union table
Jörg Asmussen says the single supervisory mechanism will be the envy of those outside the eurozone; tells Denmark and Sweden they will get more of a say if they have ‘a chair at the table’ now
Leading central banks make emergency swap lines permanent
Six leading central banks are leaving bilateral swap agreements introduced during the financial crisis in place until further notice; US dollar liquidity-providing operations will continue as normal
Central bankers divided over quota for female staff
Participants in a CentralBanking.com poll say that central banks should make efforts to increase the proportion of women in senior positions; split over whether this should be achieved through quota
Bank of Spain's Linde touts comeback of local banks
Governor says lenders' solvency position has improved noticeably from a year ago; highlights 'drastic reduction' in toxic assets on banks' balance sheet
ECB seeks head lawyer who is ‘resilient to overwork’
Employment law expert says the European Central Bank’s criterion for its next director-general of legal services is a 'concerning pre-condition to employment'
ECB's Cœuré urges eurozone to take lessons from Asia
Executive board member says governments' response to the Asian financial crisis, including overhaul of domestic financial sectors, made for painful adjustment but swift recovery
ECB’s Asmussen backs ‘allocative’ fiscal union
Board member ‘sees a role’ for a European fiscal union in ensuring resources are allocated efficiently; suggests other forms of centralised budgeting are less useful
Cyprus governor hits back over reports of bank re-cap ‘success fee'
Panicos Demetriades says fresh reports refer to confidential documents that have been unlawfully leaked; says central bank will not pay fees based on size of failed banks' recapitalisations
Cœuré concerned over 'big bang’ payments migration
ECB says many member states are planning to migrate to the Single Euro Payments Area in the last quarter of the year; Benoît Cœuré points to operational risks of leaving it to the last minute
ECB unveils three-pronged comprehensive assessment
European Central Bank reveals the methodology behind the risk assessment, asset quality review and stress test it will use to scrutinise the eurozone’s largest banks over the next year
Bundesbank warns over surge in German property prices
House prices in the country's biggest cities are up more than a quarter since 2010, as investors search for yield amid record low interest rates; lack of supply also plays a role, says new study
ECB’s Cœuré laments slow payments progress
Benoît Cœuré says closer integration of payment systems in Europe would bring major benefits, but is being held back by limited efforts at standardisation; urges banks to innovate more
Praet says household heterogeneity key to understanding transmission mechanism
New Household Finance and Consumption Survey can bring new insights into how individual households are affected by economic shocks, says ECB chief economist
ECB seeks head of new human resources office
Recruitment and operations section will be responsible for recruitment and ECB employees' contracts, salaries, and benefits; overhaul comes as ECB gears up for SSM implementation
BIS publishes data disclosure standards for CCPs
CPSS and Iosco set requirements for which quantitative data central counterparties should release and when; aims to increase transparency around the risks associated with them
Cyprus finance minister says governor Demetriades is 'under scrutiny'
Harris Georgiades says expanded central bank board will improve governance; argues banks will succeed in raising equity as capital controls are lifted
Mix of micro and macro indicators improves chances of spotting bank distress early on
ECB working paper presents ‘early warning model' using bank and country-level data for predicting individual bank distress in Europe
European Council approves ECB's single supervisory mechanism
The SSM is a precondition for enabling the European Stability Mechanism to be able to directly recapitalise banks - breaking ‘the vicious circle' between banks and sovereigns, Council says
ECB's Asmussen tells G-20 to slim down policy focus
Executive board member argues informal economic forum should concentrate on financial regulatory reform rather than ‘food security and labour issues'; calls for permanent G-20 secretariat