Europe
Book notes: EuroTragedy, by Ashoka Mody
The former International Monetary Fund insider elegantly tells the story of the creation of the currency that has defied economics, warning that it could get “worse, much worse”
FCA opens temporary permissions regime application window
Firms have until March 28 to notify the UK regulator
Central Bank of Ireland gives go-ahead to Google payments
Tech giant awarded licence under PSD2
Denmark intervenes to maintain euro peg
A rate hike is “very likely” if intervention continues, analyst says
Staff cuts made at majority of central banks since 2013
But staff numbers grow at several banks, including ECB and Bank of England
EU legal officer says Latvian government wrongly barred governor
Authorities provided no evidence to back claims governor acted corruptly, advocate general says
Euro area wage growth appears sustainable – ECB bulletin
ECB wage analysis shows increases are no longer being driven primarily by ‘wage drift’
Europe approves post-Brexit CCP and CSD framework
EC adopts temporary regime to allow UK CCPs and CSDs to continue operating for 12 months after Brexit; BoE and Esma in talks to ensure efficient supervision
Podcast: Gender targets – friend or foe?
Officials from the ECB explain why gender targets, though controversial, are necessary to close the gender gap at central banks
Releasing liquidity can encourage banks’ ‘gambling’, ECB paper argues
ECB paper analyses Portuguese authorities’ response to banking crisis
IMF urges eurozone to complete banking union with common deposit insurance
European leaders failed to agree on a common deposit insurance scheme at last week’s summit
Slovenian government struggles to appoint new governor
Lawmakers due to vote on nominee after governor retired citing threats and pressure over bail-in
Draghi warns of downside risks as ECB ends net asset purchases
ECB will continue buying sovereign bonds with yields below deposit rate
ECB has made ‘little use of macro-pru powers’, senior official says
Eurozone authorities lack powers to deal with diffuse sovereign risk or shadow banks – ECB official
ECB secondary bond purchases are legal, European Court of Justice says
European Union’s highest court rejects German activists’ claim that PSPP breached constitution
Central banks turn to visual communication in 2018
More than 30 central banks started YouTube channels over the past 12 months, according to Central Banking Directory 2019; Bank Indonesia retains Twitter titles
People: Kenyan and Samoan governors named to UN digital task force
Kenya’s Njoroge and Samoa’s Ainuu-Enari to investigate digital impact on financial inclusion
Lack of monetary autonomy ‘central’ to eurozone debt crisis – researchers say
Spain would have been ‘immune’ to rollover debt crisis outside eurozone – Minneapolis Fed paper
Bundesbank paper looks at effects of sanctions regimes
German banks cut activity in sanctioned countries but subsidiaries may increase lending, paper finds
Bank lending standards can worsen financial frictions, ECB paper finds
Model shows tighter lending standards can damage productivity, researcher argues
ECB adopts new capital key
National central bank shares adjusted, but governors’ voting allocations remain unchanged
Cyprus governor says 2015 police raid stopped her investigating politicians’ debts
Governor Georghadji offers to re-start investigation into loans to “politically exposed persons”
Italian crisis and trade tensions are raising eurozone risk – ECB
Emerging market stress and fears of protectionism may drag down global growth, ECB says
ECB launches eurozone real-time retail payments platform
ECB aims to prevent fragmentation of European real-time payments market