CB In Depth
Is the integrity of Afghanistan’s central bank under threat?
Acting governor fires key staff and is accused of undoing reforms, while World Bank appears ready to suspend funds; administration and other donors show few signs of learning from Kabul Bank scandal
Whither the age of ‘magic money’?
EME central banks are more exposed to changes in geopolitics, climate, demography, technology and inflation at a time when monetary theory is running well behind central bank practice
Monetary unions in the making in Africa
EAC, Ecowas and SADC can adopt practical steps learned from EMU to prepare for their own currency unions
Otmar Issing on the art of central bank communications
EMU architect speaks about Draghi’s “whatever it takes” intervention, forward guidance failures, the Fed’s average inflation target ‘miscommunication’, and why the ECB may be overreaching in its strategy review
Is the RBI doomed to fail its ‘quest for financial stability’?
Covid-19 has set back progress on hard-won reforms. As the economy struggles to recover, the RBI and government must walk a treacherous path back to safety
Lessons from the Riksbank’s negative rates experiment
Sweden is the only nation to have implemented negative rates and then returned them to ‘normal’ territory. What can central bankers learn from the Swedish experience?
Olli Rehn on AIT, market neutrality and EU fiscal policies
The Bank of Finland governor talks about the ECB’s strategy review, market failure on climate change, lessons from the sovereign debt crisis, and the Draghi legacy effect on Covid-19 responses
Gold for central banking focus report 2020
The Covid-19 pandemic and the reaction from central banks had a significant impact on the price of gold. Over the past few decades, central banks have viewed gold as a ‘safe-haven asset’ – an investment that can be used to dodge the impact of negative…
The ultimate store of value
Róbert Rékási, head of foreign exchange reserves management at the Central Bank of Hungary, speaks to Central Banking’s Victor Mendez-Barreira about how Covid-19 has changed gold investment trends
How can central banks secure the future of money?
Central banks should start tackling the accounting, legal and policy challenges related to CBDC. This work will shape the future of money, as could be witnessed in Albania
Book notes: The great demographic reversal, by Charles Goodhart and Manoj Pradhan
An important book, predicting that powerful demographic forces will upend conventional thinking on macroeconomics and policy
Has Covid-19 made gold shine brighter?
The price of gold has skyrocketed this year, but central banks have not flocked to invest as they have done in the past, write Rachael King and Victor Mendez‑Barreira.
Gold reserves in central banks – 2020 survey results
Reserve managers share their views on future gold holdings, target allocations, purchasing and storage approaches, the use of ETFs, and the impact of Covid-19, in the results of a new joint Central Banking-Invesco survey. By Nick Carver and Robert Pringle
Book notes: Austerity, by Alberto Alesina, Carlo Favero and Francesco Giavazzi
When it works and when it doesn’t; every chapter is thorough, informative and persuasive
Georgia’s Gvenetadze on implementing an aggressive reform agenda
The National Bank of Georgia governor speaks about efforts to improve monetary policy, financial infrastructure, financial literacy, transparency and ESG
Frank Smets on the ECB’s strategy review
The ECB’s DG of economics explains how expectations, communication, fiscal dominance, climate change and the Fed’s actions will be factored into the ECB’s delayed strategy review
Book notes: Money, by Geoffrey Ingham
The incompatible theories of money: Ingham reveals the fundamental clash of ideas that shape the environment in which all central banks operate
Fed’s new framework splits opinion
Former Fed officials offer mixed reactions to average inflation targeting, with most calling for the US central bank to refine its communication
Is there a rift in the ECB governing council?
Mixed messages from Christine Lagarde were followed by sharp divergence among board members
Book notes: Quest for restoring financial stability in India, by Viral Acharya
A definitive contribution to the political economy of central banking in emerging economies, but Acharya does not acknowledge the challenges moving forward
Klaas Knot on ECB policy-making, the FSB and central bank ‘capture’
DNB president talks about the temporary nature of unconventional policies, the importance of inflation target ‘bands’, the role of central banks as ‘circuit-breakers’ and ECB decision-making under Christine Lagarde
The eurozone’s eastern conundrum
Bulgaria and Croatia expect a net positive effect as they take final steps to join the euro, while the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland remain reluctant
James Bullard on the Fed’s policy review, FSOC and forecasting jobs data
St Louis Fed president discusses his support for average inflation targeting, his concerns about US Treasuries market function, non-bank regulatory weakness and negative rates, as well as the unexpected success in using Homebase data to predict highly…
Covid-19 policy-making and the need for high-speed data
High-frequency data holds the promise of speed and adaptability, but the rush to find alternative economic indicators has the potential to create problems