Banking

Bloomberg The world’s central banks can’t ignore the growth in cryptocurrencies and may at some point have to consider whether it makes sense for them to issue their own digital currencies, according to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). “Whether or not a central bank should provide a digital alternative to cash is most pressing in countries, such as Sweden, ...

Bloomberg Egyptian Central Bank Governor Tarek Amer said inflation in the most populous Arab country has peaked after policy makers responded to the surge in prices by raising borrowing costs to the highest level in more than a decade. “We are in the right direction and we are moving very fast,” Amer said in an interview on Monday. “We’ve been ...

Bloomberg Europe’s desire for a new institution that can keep an eye on government finances and rescue programs might be gaining momentum — if political leaders can only come up with a better name. The term ‘European Monetary Fund’ has become so entrenched that it was included in European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s State of the Union address last week, ...

Bloomberg Ten years ago, a lender called Northern Rock, bloated with billions of pounds of risky mortgages, received emergency support from the Bank of England after the short-term funding it relied on dried up. Depositors lined up outside branches to get their money back, the first run on a British bank in 150 years. It was the start of a ...

Bloomberg Ilan Goldfajn is racking up the milestones as Brazil’s central bank president, but he’s still a long way from securing the institution’s ultimate goal: greater independence. Since taking the helm in June last year, the 51 year-old former Itau Unibanco chief economist has helped bring inflation to an 18-year low, hastened the end of subsidized state loans, and saw ...

Bloomberg Nordea Bank AB is losing clients in Sweden in what independent mortgage brokers say appears to be a protest against the bank’s plan to redomicile to Finland in pursuit of a more accommodating regulatory environment. The customer shift has been registered by two online home-loan brokers and confirmed by other banks operating in Sweden. Nordea says flows in the ...

Bloomberg Miguel Angel Fernandez Ordonez, the former governor of the Bank of Spain, was absolved of possible criminal acts in the Bankia SA case, along with seven other central bank and regulatory officials. Their omission of not taking action to prevent the Spanish commercial bank’s initial public offering wasn’t a criminal action — even though its accounts may have been ...

Reuters Turkey’s central bank said it will keep monetary policy tight until the inflation outlook displays a significant improvement, after it kept rates steady for the third straight meeting. Current elevated levels of inflation and developments in core inflation indicators pose risks to pricing behaviour and the bank would deliver further monetary tightening if needed, it said. It kept all ...

Bloomberg The South African Reserve Bank’s fight against its detractors escalated this week, and now even has President Jacob Zuma in its sights. The central bank in court papers accused Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane of bias and being part of a campaign to undermine its independence after documents showed the anti-graft ombudsman held a secret meeting with Zuma’s lawyers before ...

Bloomberg Kenyan lenders risk needing to raise expensive debt on local markets next year to shore up their core capital levels, which may be eroded by new accounting standards the country is introducing that compel banks to classify losses differently. That’ll be a double whammy for an industry already reeling from the effects of interest-rate caps introduced a year ago, ...