Balance sheet
MAS’s Menon plays down record profit figure
The record-breaking profit was due to strong positive currency translation effects and higher investment gains
BoJ's balance sheet surpasses that of the Fed
BoJ's balance sheet exceeds ¥500 trillion, a fraction larger than that of the Federal Reserve in absolute terms, and much larger as a percentage of GDP
Fed minutes shed light on balance sheet shrinkage plan
System of caps would allow gradual reductions in the reinvestment of securities held under the QE programme
Fed should make sure it does not ‘fall behind’ – Mester
US central bank should “remain vigilant” as employment reaches full capacity and the balance sheet begins to unwind; the Cleveland Fed president sees more rate hikes this year
Lesotho launches new core banking system without a hitch
Intellect Design Arena’s QCBS will improve the “operational efficiency” of the African central bank; system will also form the “backbone” of the Central Bank of Armenia’s upgrade
Balance sheet not an ‘active’ policy tool for normal times, says Fed’s George
Reductions in Fed’s balance sheet should be on “autopilot”, says George; establishing a “sound framework” will be important
FOMC mulls ‘predictable’ balance sheet wind-down
One FOMC member says a “minimum pace” should be set for the reduction in mortgage-backed securities; committee will inform the public about its future plans for the balance sheet when the time comes
Fed’s Dudley discusses unwinding of balance sheet
Should reinvestment end “abruptly”, financial conditions would tighten, New York Fed president said; tapering “gradually and predictably” is the way to go, he adds
Fed income drops in 2016
Central bank remits less to US Treasury as interest income declines and operating costs rise; passage of "Fast Act" changes remittance process
Iran central bank slams latest asset freeze ruling
Luxembourg court freezes $1.6 billion of central bank assets amid terrorism compensation case; legal battle may have implications for Iran’s nuclear deal
Bank of Canada’s C$460m refurbishment on time and on budget – Poloz
Construction workers have spent past three years gutting old head office and renewing interior to meet modern standards; annual report sheds light on costs
London financial sector likely to ‘lose prominence’ following Brexit, says Sarb bulletin
South Africa to watch developments in London closely following Brexit vote, as domestic banks decrease exposures to the UK
Time to shrink Fed’s $4.5 trillion balance sheet, say presidents
Cleveland Fed president is “comfortable” changing reinvestment programme this year; balance sheet plan should be published as soon as possible, says Kashkari
Kashkari explains his sole FOMC dissent
Minneapolis chief reminds his colleagues the Fed treats 2% inflation as a target, not a ceiling; urges FOMC to publish plan for shrinking balance sheet
Hauser makes case for BoE’s second line of defence
Ballooning balance sheet and growing contingent liabilities raise need for central bank to bring its risk management in line with “best practice”, executive director says
FOMC’s Brainard: Fed may need to raise rates in near future
“Drag” on US economy from foreign and domestic factors decreasing, FOMC member says; Brainard also calls for shrinking Fed’s balance sheet as rates rise
RBI annual report shows both income and expenditure on the rise
Staff costs and transaction fees drove rise in overall costs in 2015–16, although these were balanced by higher income; staff numbers on the decline
Jackson Hole: economists flag costs and benefits of bloated balance sheets
Economists including Christopher Sims, Ricardo Reis and Jeremy Stein unpack the economics of central bank balance sheets, identifying both dangers and potential benefits
IMF working paper encourages Italian banks to clean up balance sheets
Italian banks are likely to become more profitable as economy recovers, authors say, though their capacity to lend is linked to capital buffers
Irish bad bank shifts focus to delivering new property
National Asset Management Agency is shifting its focus to projects aimed at developing commercial and residential property; asset disposals to be reduced in scale as body winds down
Bank of Mauritius spells out cost-cutting measures
Central bank defends finances after posting losses in successive years; points to range of measures taken to reduce expenses, including release of "unproductive but fatly remunerated" employees
Advanced economies could learn from EM counterparts in managing balance sheets, paper says
Composition of advanced economies' balance sheets is aligning in some respects to their EM counterparts, largely as a consequence of increasing size since the financial crisis, paper says
Banks start to clean up balance sheets after RBI asset quality review
Efforts will enable flow of credit in the long term, deputy says; improving capital buffers and governance structures also beneficial
High debt tends to reduce consumption growth – Norges Bank memo
Research tries to capture diversity of household balance sheets, finding consumption tends to grow more slowly among those with high debt levels