Banks
Fed unveils stress scenarios under revised testing approach
Tests now include model enhancements, new phase-in methods and lighter requirements for some banks; the severe scenario has been turned up a notch
Kazakhstan’s Akishev sets sights on lower inflation
Governor hails success with inflation targeting and says central bank now plans to push inflation even lower; NBK also working on new banking supervision framework
Macro-prudential spillovers may grow, paper argues
Bundesbank paper uses IBRN data to analyse cross-border effects of policy
Kenya’s monetary policy framework under threat – IMF
New interest rate caps are “constraining” the central bank’s ability to conduct monetary policy while negatively affecting banks’ profitability, but action plan could see them eliminated
African regulators want regional regulatory structure – Basant Roi
“Political will” to support financial regulatory reform in Africa is “missing”, says Mauritius governor; IMF chief says resolution frameworks are “insufficient”
Some G20 initiatives have harmed EMs, says Mminele
Reforms have led to G-Sibs reassessing their business models, leading to a rise in de-risking, says Sarb deputy; Africa is seeing a “pronounced decline” in correspondent banking
FCA's McDermott joins StanChart
Former FCA acting chief executive starts her new role in March
UK financial regulators finalise plans to strengthen enforcement and transparency
PRA and FCA publish measures that will keep financial firms better informed about investigations; new framework will “command public confidence”
Regulations and QE impacting repo market – ECB’s Mersch
Executive board member says “confluence of factors” has boosted demand for collateral and impaired its supply, but the situation may improve
LCH platform to provide risk calculations for margin hub
SwapAgent will send standardised sensitivities for bilateral trades to AcadiaSoft to make IM calls
FSB: ‘no immediate case’ for aligning rehypothecation rules
No pressing need to harmonise rules, but better monitoring of global collateral reuse will give regulators a clearer understanding, FSB says
Fintech is threatening universal banking as we know it – Carney
Carney highlights how fintech could threaten conventional banking through the provision of services; BoE governor also explores the pros and cons of a centrally issued digital currency
PMA stresses accord with Israel as banks threaten to pull out
Governor Azzam Shawwa says Palestinian banks conform to global standards, as the Israeli government steps in to offer assurances to its banks providing correspondent services
‘Flash’ currency moves will continue to surprise markets – BoE’s Salmon
Bank of England executive director says there is “growing potential” for flash events to occur in core markets, despite markets now being able to identify risks
Cross-border claims shifting in favour of non-banks
BIS international banking statistics show claims on banks fell in third quarter of 2016 but claims on non-banks continued to grow
LatAm should pursue regional financial integration – IMF paper
Timing is “ripe” for region to pursue financial integration as means of counterbalancing effects of departing global banks, authors say
BoE paper maps contagion via CDS market
Economists identify mechanism whereby declining creditworthiness can spill from one bank to another via credit default swaps
Basel set to decide on capital relief for accounting changes
Phase-in to IFRS 9 and Cecl needed to avert "a dramatic overnight drop in regulatory capital", say auditors
Policy tensions in China to become ‘more stark’ in 2017 – Menon
MAS head says China's authorities will have to use a fair amount of “policy dexterity” this year to deal with likely US rate rises and volatile international markets
Swift creates distributed ledger proof-of-concept
Swift, in conjunction with Hyperledger working group, will launch private distributed ledger network to help banks manage their cross-border payments
Leveraged markets not a financial stability risk – Powell
Powell examines state of highly leveraged markets with eye to financial stability, judging they are not yet a problem
BIS paper flags importance of “multi-layered” bank networks
Authors go beyond aggregate exposures to reveal “multiplex” interbank networks, which could allow more tailored policymaking
RBI research arm tests blockchain for clearing, settlement
IDRBT releases white paper on the applications of blockchain, examining the benefits for the Indian financial sector; research group created proof-of-concept architecture to simulate clearing network
Central Bank of Brazil sets out agenda for 2017
Improved governance and financial inclusion at the top of the list for the central bank; aims have been published on an innovative interactive webpage