Financial inclusion
EU offers Iran sanctions relief with new clearing house
Iran retains access to Swift network despite US sanctions, but new clearing house could provide permanent loophole
Standard-setters can only partially support inclusion – BIS’s da Silva
Standard-setters can balance risks and opportunities, but cannot tackle deeper structural issues
Tunisia’s El Abassi on central banking during a regional security crisis
Central Bank of Tunisia’s governor talks about capacity building, evolving relations with the IMF, integration among the Arab states and using technology to foster inclusion
Fed assessing effects of community bank closures in rural areas – Quarles
Decline in community banks over last two decades concentrated in institutions with less than $100 million
Bank of Canada launches education website
Central bank widens efforts to educate Canadian students on finance
Bank of Canada launches new communication initiative
Central bank hopes new publication will promote financial literacy among Canadians
Female regulators increase stability of the financial system, IMF paper finds
IMF research: including women in the regulatory process has benefits “beyond” equality
Haldane: ‘superforecasters’ could help central banks
Non-experts could help solve difficult problems for central banks, says Andy Haldane
Bank of Brazil and HKMA sign fintech agreement
Central banks to promote innovative financial services companies
Financial literacy differs greatly between countries – OeNB paper
Some differences are due to survey methods but others may reflect institutional factors, find researchers
RBI figures show demonetisation captured very little ‘black money’
Over 99% of banknotes were returned despite high cost to the economy
Venezuelan central bank launches app to aid currency reconversion
App allows members of the public to covert prices into the new “bolivar soberano”
Number of bank accounts in Malawi up 64 % in six months – governor Kabambe
Digital financial services reducing the number of people unbanked in Malawi, says governor
Vietnamese government orders tougher capital ratios for banks
Banking modernisation plan pledges increased central bank independence but is short on details
Older population increases financial fraud risks – Atlanta Fed
Most financial exploitation of elderly goes unreported, researcher says
MAS strengthens use of data to combat financial crimes
Singapore central bank will roll out revised reporting forms and reporting platform in August
Thailand can benefit more from fintech – Veerathai
Thai governor sees role for blockchain technology in improving regional payments
Bank of Israel’s Flug to stand down in November
First female governor stresses importance of central bank independence
Financial literacy of Italians below G20 average – Bank of Italy
Less than half of survey respondents are able to calculate a simple interest rate
KYC regulation impinging on financial inclusion – Sarb
Fintech firms could help under-served customers through a “digital identity”, which will allow banks to identify customers without them having to visit branches in person
Employer-employee loans can cut credit risk - Minneapolis Fed article
Research looks at Minnesota scheme
Two women appointed to top BoE committee
Julia Black and Jill May will sit on the Prudential Regulation Committee
DNB develops new instant payment network
Banks will be able to process payments within seconds by mid-2019, the central bank says, but evolution of cash infrastructure will continue
Federico Sturzenegger on Argentina’s efforts to create a credible central bank
The Central Bank of Argentina governor, in his last interview before leaving office, speaks about panic in emerging markets, the IMF bailout, and bringing to an end high inflation and monetary financing