Washington (AFP) - The US Senate confirmed Janet Yellen as the new leader of the Federal Reserve, marking the first time a woman has headed the world's most powerful central bank.
Showing posts with label financial sector. Show all posts
Showing posts with label financial sector. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 08, 2014
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Lecture examines financial stability politics
Notre Dame undergraduates had an opportunity to get an insider’s perspective on the handling of the recent recession when Nellie Liang, a director of the Federal Reserve Board (the Fed) of Governors, came to campus to give a lecture aimed at economics majors on financial stability politics after the financial crisis.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Fitch warns on risks from shadow banking in China
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - China's unregulated shadow banking sector poses an increasing risk to the country's financial stability that could spread to other countries, credit rating agency Fitch said on Monday.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Swiss banks facing huge fine over US assets: report
GENEVA: Swiss banks holding US citizens' funds that are not declared to American tax authorities are set to have to pay a massive fine, under a deal between Switzerland and Washington, a newspaper reported Wednesday.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Analysis: Euro zone bank troublespots don't come down to size
DUBLIN/LONDON (Reuters) - Though the implosion of Cyprus's bloated banking system has put other euro zone economies with outsized financial sectors such as Luxembourg and Malta in the spotlight, loan quality is the real litmus test of a country's financial stability.
Sunday, April 14, 2013
G20 to consider cutting debt to well below 90 pct/GDP: Document
DUBLIN: Financial leaders of the world's 20 biggest economies will consider next week in Washington a proposal to cut their public debt over the longer term to well below 90 percent of gross domestic product, a document prepared for the meeting showed.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Cyprus bailout talks go to wire in Brussels
NICOSIA: EU economic chief Olli Rehn warned Cyprus it was essential to reach a deal in Brussels Sunday to save its economy from imminent bankruptcy, saying "there are only hard choices left" for the country.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Cameron put on spot by watchdog over austerity remarks
LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron was reprimanded by a budget watchdog on Friday for claiming that it did not see his austerity agenda as a drag on Britain's economy.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Fitch issues warning against China's growth model
BEIJING: Global ratings agency Fitch has warned that China's "investment-driven growth model" faces increasingly serious constraints due to heavy debt financing by local governments.
Sunday, January 06, 2013
Spanish banking unions brace for more job cuts
MADRID: Spanish banking unions are braced for thousands more job cuts this year, starting with redundancies at Spain's largest bank Santander after its merger with subsidiary Banesto.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Banking sector reform: don't tear up Vickers proposals, warns Osborne
George Osborne, the chancellor, has urged the independent commission on banking standards to avoid "tearing up" the consensus on financial reform by pushing for a more radical separation of retail and investment banking.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Global financial risks have increased, says IMF
Risks to global financial stability have increased in the past six months despite efforts by policymakers to make the financial system safer, according to the International Monetary Fund.
Friday, October 05, 2012
Spain says convinced will find investors for bad bank
LONDON (Reuters) - Spain's Economy Minister said on Thursday he was certain the country would find interest from the private sector for the 'bad bank' it is setting up to park billions of euros in soured real estate assets.
Wednesday, August 01, 2012
Europe's top banks feel pain from debt crisis; Q2 profits plunge
FRANKFURT: Europe's biggest banks on Tuesday took massive hits on their second-quarter profits as the eurozone debt crisis slices into earnings and adds to the pressure to boost their capital defences.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Spain requests bank aid, awaits Moody's cut
MADRID (Reuters) - Spain formally requested European aid for its indebted banks on Monday but the lack of details rekindled investor doubts over the financial sector, hours before Moody's was expected to cut the ratings of all Spanish lenders.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Europe bailout of Spain could cost $125 billion
MADRID: Spain will ask for a bailout for banks felled by bad real estate loans, in an about-face that European officials welcomed Saturday and said could cost up to (euro) 100 billion ($125 billlion).
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Spanish savings banks mull merger as debt crisis bites
Three Spanish savings banks, Ibercaja, Liberbank and Caja3, are considering a merger to strengthen their balance sheets as the country's debt crisis continues to bite.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Zimbabwe Central Bank, Treasury Planning Banking Reforms
JOHANNESBURG – Zimbabwe rolled out a raft of measures this week to boost stability in the country's financial sector, decimated by its economic crisis and investor flight.
Thursday, February 03, 2011
Treasury Committee calls for right not rushed regulation
In July 2010, the Treasury published a consultation document, A new approach to financial regulation: judgement, focus and stability, proposing changes to financial regulation in the United Kingdom. The Government proposes to do away with the tripartite system, in which the Treasury, Bank of England, and Financial Services Authority work together, replacing it with a 'twin peaks' structure, separating macroprudential and conduct of business regulation. Today's report is the Committee's response to what has been set out so far with regard to those proposals.
The Government's timetable
The Government has said that it wishes the legislation to be introduced in "mid 2011" and to be completed by 2012. The Committee is concerned about the risks involved in such an ambitious timetable and the report underlines the importance of getting reform of financial regulation right.
It believes the legislation to establish the new regulatory structure should be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny, over a reasonable timescale. Even with proper pre-legislative scrutiny, once introduced, the timetable for the Bill should be generous enough to allow proper parliamentary consideration, using carry-over if necessary.
The Committee welcomes the establishment of the Independent Commission on Banking and notes that its work may well have a bearing on the shape of regulation required. The report recommends that the Government pay full regard to the ICB before coming to conclusions on financial regulation. This also has implications for the timetable set out.
The Committee welcomes the Government's suggestion that FSMA could be revisited in its entirety. The report calls on the Government to present a new Bill only after full consideration has been given to responses to initial consultation. Drafting the legislation will then be likely to secure a more coherent final product.
Commenting, Treasury Committee Chairman Andrew Tyrie said: "In light of the banking crisis, the Government is rightly proposing radical changes to the way in which financial services are regulated. However, having examined the initial proposals, the Committee's overriding concern is about the proposed speed of implementation.
“It is vital to maintain the momentum for reform, but there is no point in flawed change. In any case, these proposals need to be considered in conjunction with the ICB. Regulatory reform will almost certainly not be enough; the Government will also need firmness of purpose should the ICB recommend structural reform."
A super regulator
The Government proposes to give a Financial Policy Committee (FPC), based in the Bank of England, power to monitor the system to ensure financial stability, and to take action when that stability is threatened. There are sound reasons for insulating economic policy decisions from short-term political pressures. However, the report underlines the importance of democratic accountability. Moreover, 'financial stability' is a very broad concept, and may be hard to define in practice.
The report calls on the Government to give much more detail about what it considers constitutes financial stability.
The macro-prudential tools which the FPC is to use are as yet undefined and untested, and may have unexpected consequences. The Government must also decide which macro-prudential tools it proposes to make available to the FPC.
The Committee welcomes the fact the Government is going to set out these macro-prudential tools in secondary legislation and calls for that legislation to be published as soon as possible so that Parliament can assess the nature of the powers to be devolved to the FPC.
The accountability of the Monetary Policy Committee is secured by its extremely clear remit, and the mechanism for exchanging letters with the Chancellor if inflation breaches the target. In addition, the Bank of England has engaged with the Treasury Committee in an exemplary way to achieve accountability to Parliament. The need for secrecy, among other things, will mean that the accountability of the FPC will be different from that of the MPC. The Committee will consider what is required to secure FPC accountability in the light of more detail on the Government's reform proposals.
Given the high profile, yet uncertain nature of its tasks, it will be essential that the FPC has a strong core of credible external members and contains at least one person with recent experience of risk management at the highest level. The report calls on the Government to reconsider the balance between Bank personnel and external members and provide a fuller explanation of the reason for including two bank executives as part of the FPC.
Andrew Tyrie said: "Until now, financial stability has been seen as the ultimate responsibility of the elected Government. These proposals make the Bank of England a 'super-regulator.' If the Financial Policy Committee is to be given lead responsibility for securing financial stability, the Government needs to provide clarity about what such stability means.
“Such a large transfer of power also necessitates robust accountability. There is a clear structure by which the MPC is held accountable to Parliament. The structure for the FPC will have to differ from that for the MPC, but it is of no less importance. In order to ensure challenge is embedded within the FPC we would also like to see better balance of external members. The Committee will return to the issue of democratic accountability."
Source: http://www.mortgageintroducer.com
The Government's timetable
The Government has said that it wishes the legislation to be introduced in "mid 2011" and to be completed by 2012. The Committee is concerned about the risks involved in such an ambitious timetable and the report underlines the importance of getting reform of financial regulation right.
It believes the legislation to establish the new regulatory structure should be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny, over a reasonable timescale. Even with proper pre-legislative scrutiny, once introduced, the timetable for the Bill should be generous enough to allow proper parliamentary consideration, using carry-over if necessary.
The Committee welcomes the establishment of the Independent Commission on Banking and notes that its work may well have a bearing on the shape of regulation required. The report recommends that the Government pay full regard to the ICB before coming to conclusions on financial regulation. This also has implications for the timetable set out.
The Committee welcomes the Government's suggestion that FSMA could be revisited in its entirety. The report calls on the Government to present a new Bill only after full consideration has been given to responses to initial consultation. Drafting the legislation will then be likely to secure a more coherent final product.
Commenting, Treasury Committee Chairman Andrew Tyrie said: "In light of the banking crisis, the Government is rightly proposing radical changes to the way in which financial services are regulated. However, having examined the initial proposals, the Committee's overriding concern is about the proposed speed of implementation.
“It is vital to maintain the momentum for reform, but there is no point in flawed change. In any case, these proposals need to be considered in conjunction with the ICB. Regulatory reform will almost certainly not be enough; the Government will also need firmness of purpose should the ICB recommend structural reform."
A super regulator
The Government proposes to give a Financial Policy Committee (FPC), based in the Bank of England, power to monitor the system to ensure financial stability, and to take action when that stability is threatened. There are sound reasons for insulating economic policy decisions from short-term political pressures. However, the report underlines the importance of democratic accountability. Moreover, 'financial stability' is a very broad concept, and may be hard to define in practice.
The report calls on the Government to give much more detail about what it considers constitutes financial stability.
The macro-prudential tools which the FPC is to use are as yet undefined and untested, and may have unexpected consequences. The Government must also decide which macro-prudential tools it proposes to make available to the FPC.
The Committee welcomes the fact the Government is going to set out these macro-prudential tools in secondary legislation and calls for that legislation to be published as soon as possible so that Parliament can assess the nature of the powers to be devolved to the FPC.
The accountability of the Monetary Policy Committee is secured by its extremely clear remit, and the mechanism for exchanging letters with the Chancellor if inflation breaches the target. In addition, the Bank of England has engaged with the Treasury Committee in an exemplary way to achieve accountability to Parliament. The need for secrecy, among other things, will mean that the accountability of the FPC will be different from that of the MPC. The Committee will consider what is required to secure FPC accountability in the light of more detail on the Government's reform proposals.
Given the high profile, yet uncertain nature of its tasks, it will be essential that the FPC has a strong core of credible external members and contains at least one person with recent experience of risk management at the highest level. The report calls on the Government to reconsider the balance between Bank personnel and external members and provide a fuller explanation of the reason for including two bank executives as part of the FPC.
Andrew Tyrie said: "Until now, financial stability has been seen as the ultimate responsibility of the elected Government. These proposals make the Bank of England a 'super-regulator.' If the Financial Policy Committee is to be given lead responsibility for securing financial stability, the Government needs to provide clarity about what such stability means.
“Such a large transfer of power also necessitates robust accountability. There is a clear structure by which the MPC is held accountable to Parliament. The structure for the FPC will have to differ from that for the MPC, but it is of no less importance. In order to ensure challenge is embedded within the FPC we would also like to see better balance of external members. The Committee will return to the issue of democratic accountability."
Source: http://www.mortgageintroducer.com
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Global financial stability still at risk, reforms needed: IMF
WASHINGTON, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Global financial stability was still not assured and significant policy challenges remained to be addressed even nearly four years after the onset of the severe financial crisis, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Tuesday.
"The interaction between banking and sovereign credit risks in the euro area remains a critical factor, and policies are needed to tackle fiscal and banking sector vulnerabilities," the IMF noted in its latest report released on Tuesday.
At the global level, regulatory reforms were still required to put the financial sector on a sounder footing, according to the report entitled Market Update of the Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR).
The Washington-based institution said that relatively favorable fundamentals in some emerging market countries were spurring capital inflows, which meant that policymakers in emerging markets needed to watch diligently for signs of asset price bubbles and excessive credit.
The IMF released its latest biannual GFSR in October 2010 prior to the IMF and its sibling agency the World Bank's annual meeting.
"Equity markets in advanced and emerging market countries have risen since the October 2010 GFSR. Commodity prices have taken off, with oil, food, metals and raw material prices all rising rapidly, " according to the Tuesday report.
The IMF believed that capital inflows were normally beneficial for recipient countries, but sustained capital inflows could strain the absorptive capacity of local financial systems.
Despite improvements in market conditions since the October 2010 GFSR, sovereign risks within the euro area had intensified and spilled over to more countries, the IMF warned.
"Overall, while progress has been made and most financial sectors are on the mend, risks to global financial stability remain. Problems in Greece, and now Ireland, have reignited questions about sovereign debt sustainability and banking sector health in a broader set of euro-area countries and possibly beyond. Without further progress in this field, global financial stability and sustainable growth will remain elusive," noted the report.
Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com
"The interaction between banking and sovereign credit risks in the euro area remains a critical factor, and policies are needed to tackle fiscal and banking sector vulnerabilities," the IMF noted in its latest report released on Tuesday.
At the global level, regulatory reforms were still required to put the financial sector on a sounder footing, according to the report entitled Market Update of the Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR).
The Washington-based institution said that relatively favorable fundamentals in some emerging market countries were spurring capital inflows, which meant that policymakers in emerging markets needed to watch diligently for signs of asset price bubbles and excessive credit.
The IMF released its latest biannual GFSR in October 2010 prior to the IMF and its sibling agency the World Bank's annual meeting.
"Equity markets in advanced and emerging market countries have risen since the October 2010 GFSR. Commodity prices have taken off, with oil, food, metals and raw material prices all rising rapidly, " according to the Tuesday report.
The IMF believed that capital inflows were normally beneficial for recipient countries, but sustained capital inflows could strain the absorptive capacity of local financial systems.
Despite improvements in market conditions since the October 2010 GFSR, sovereign risks within the euro area had intensified and spilled over to more countries, the IMF warned.
"Overall, while progress has been made and most financial sectors are on the mend, risks to global financial stability remain. Problems in Greece, and now Ireland, have reignited questions about sovereign debt sustainability and banking sector health in a broader set of euro-area countries and possibly beyond. Without further progress in this field, global financial stability and sustainable growth will remain elusive," noted the report.
Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)