Fintech
Bank of Israel accelerates work on CBDC
Central bank has been exploring pros and cons of issuing a digital shekel since 2017
Fed looks to boost competition in debit card payments
New rule will support legal right to at least two payments options for merchants
Bank of Canada to become default payments regulator
Central bank will oversee any company not already regulated under proposed law
Fed clarifies account access rules for fintech firms
Proposals address growing number of firms seeking access to the central bank’s balance sheet
MAS launches new regtech grant
S$42 million fund will help firms test new digital products before full deployment
The evolving ‘strategy function’ in central banks
Some institutions participating in a survey of 27 central banks still struggle to fully harness an effective ‘strategy function’, according to the ECB’s Jean-Charles Sevet and Alejandro de la Cuesta
People: deputies appointed in China and El Salvador
New MPC member in Turkey; former RBI governor dies; and more
FCA chief announces launch of fintech ‘nursery’
Rathi also says social media firms should be held accountable for products they advertise
Zhang Tao on the IMF’s fintech agenda, CBDCs and big tech oversight
IMF deputy managing director speaks about the fund’s perspectives on CBDC operating frameworks, regulating big tech and macrofinancial oversight in a digital world
BoE broadens access to RTGS with ‘omnibus’ account model
Accounts will allow payment system operators to ‘pool’ client funds for transfers in central bank money
Sweden may have a digital currency in five years, says Riksbank governor
Sveriges Riksbank is testing e-krona pilot as Swedish cash use falls rapidly
Fintech & IT Benchmarks 2021 report – executive summary
Shedding light on fintech initiatives, staffing, salaries, cyber security and more
Fintech & IT Benchmarks 2021 report – detailing the evolution of technology
Benchmarking data sheds light on staffing trends, priority areas of research and uptake of new technology, cyber security challenges and central bank digital currencies
ECB’s digital euro consultation says public worried over privacy
Nearly half of responses to ECB come from Germany
Regulating big tech and non-bank financial services in the digital era
Big tech incursions into financial services in China and elsewhere demonstrate the potential benefits of adopting a digital-bank or holding-company approach to financial regulation
Central banks take less than 50 minutes to fix critical outages
Time tolerances for critical system downtime range from one to 32 hours
Cuban central bank approves new money transfer app
Digital wallet offered by Cuban telecoms firm will only receive and pay out in pesos
Payment innovation is top fintech research priority for central banks
CBDC ranked second as central banks explore wider implications of fintech for payments
High income economy central banks’ technology costs vary widely
Some central banks in advanced economies have kept costs as low as those in poorer nations
Large economy central banks more likely to employ CTO
Slight majority of central banks employ CTO, but differences are clearer when sorted by GDP
Most central banks do not have dedicated fintech departments
Fintech operations tend to be spread across departments
Central banks hired more fintech staff in 2020
Significant proportion of central banks are yet to establish dedicated fintech teams
Most central banks hold annual cyber security training sessions
One-third of central banks hold training every 0–6 months
US agencies begin survey on AI
Regulators seek information on use, management and development of artificial intelligence