samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
The average return on equity varies significantly across countries – and France ranks among those with the most solid in the euro area – but on average it has stagnated at around 5%. This situation raises three questions, about three possible factors: low rates, non-performing loans and the digital transformation. The first factor, and the one most frequently mentioned, although sometimes to excess, is the low interest rate environment. Insurers and pension funds with a high level of fixed rate guarantees may suffer. As for banks, their net margins have been squeezed by the low interest rates and the flattening of the yield curve. However this question needs to be examined from all angles [slide 5]. Monetary policy has also had offsetting effects: lending volumes have picked up again; banks have booked significant capital gains; the cost of risk has fallen as borrower solvency has improved; the cost of funding including market and ECB financing has become cheaper. All in all, the overall impact of our non-standard monetary policy measures on bank profitability is expected to be modest for the period 2014–17. Furthermore, nominal interest rates are slightly on the rise since the turning point in August 2016, and nominal rates are the ones – not real ones – which matter for bank profitability, as well as the slope of the yield curve. The second factor putting pressure on profitability is the level of non-performing loans [slide 6].

Paul Tucker: Remarks on “Making Monetary Policy by Committee” Discussant remarks by Mr Paul Tucker, Executive Director and Member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England, on “Making Monetary Policy by Committee” by Alan Blinder, at the Bank of Canada Conference “International experience with the conduct of monetary policy under inflation targeting”, Ottawa, 22-23 July 2008. * * * Central banking involves a lot of learning – by doing, by thinking, researching, and by comparing ourselves with our peers. At the core of that learning process is exchanges amongst central bankers themselves, much of it in Basel. The other rich seam is the academic literature. But relatively few turn (or return) to scholarly reflection after periods of alternatively practising and theorising about central banking. Alan Blinder has therefore provided a signal service, since stepping down as Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, through his series of papers on monetary policy practice and how it both draws on and fuels theory. Today’s paper, on the role of committees in the making of monetary policy 1, places central banks into categories Blinder first set out a few years ago: single decision taker; autocrat-led college; genuinely-collegial; individualistic. It is especially interesting to the Bank of England, where for just over a decade we have operated a one-member/one-vote system for deciding our policy rate. As Blinder rightly says, comparatively speaking, this is clearly at the ‘individualistic’ end of the spectrum, and is a rare example of the species.
The developments in the Middle East, Iraq in particular have resulted in soaring oil prices reaching highs of about $ per barrel, due to the insecurity and uncertainty pertaining to the global oil supply. Both gold and oil prices are expected to maintain high prices throughout 2004. Increased foreign assets obtained from export earnings from the real sector will in effect improve the capability of oil exporting African countries to release more funds towards the achievement of their environmental goals. In line with the expectations of the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative, many heavily indebted African states have cut their fiscal expenditure and are focussing on staying within their set targets. Attainment of the HIPC initiative completion point, will lead to the much needed debt  BIS Review 74/2004  5  cancellation by Paris Club members resulting in an overall improved financial position of these economies. Failure to reach the target will however prolong reduced fiscal expenditure. Despite the long-term economic benefits of the HIPC initiative in achieving the MDGs, short and medium-term growth strategies of development concerning the environment and other areas will be constricted. 4.1  Prospects of economic growth  The prospects for economic growth in Africa remain bright. The African Union (AU) is currently making efforts towards ensuring political stability in the continent aimed at promoting both foreign and domestic investor confidence.

When profit expectations ultimately fall back to more realistic levels, share prices drop. Corporate investment slackens as the economy’s aggregate capital stock is adjusted to match a more reasonable long-term return. This is accompanied by decreased household consumption, not least of capital goods, to match a more realistic assessment of the long-term development of income. The Austrian School also provides us with a fundamental insight into economic policy’s limitations. If a technological breakthrough leads to a period when the growth of investment and consumption exceeds what is sustainable in the longer run, there is bound to be a fall-off. After a supply shock of this type, measures of economic policy are simply not capable of preventing an adjustment to a more realistic appraisal of the future. The necessity of the adjustment means that the measures only postpone it and presumably tend to make it all the more painful when it does occur. History teaches us that after a period of what I would call “growing pains”, the optimism about what the new technology can achieve will be restored, albeit in a more orderly, realistic guise. In my opinion, neither the rapid fall-off in global activity nor the terrorist attacks on 11 September have upset the grounds for being optimistic about the new technology’s potential. Problems for many companies After the investment boom and the marked slowdown we are now experiencing, there is a risk of a good many companies having balance-sheet problems.
This is evident with the significant three-fold increase in contributions of the product marketed through bancatakaful in 2005 which accounted for 20.4% of total contributions. Bancatakaful has contributed considerably to the increased penetration in the family takaful business, especially for single contribution takaful plans. We envisage significant inroads in the penetration rate of bancatakaful in future years in line with the positive trend shown by the conventional counterparts, where the bancassurance captured 45.3% of the new life insurance business premiums generated in 2005. Through efficient cost structures of bancatakaful and with the entry of joint-venture takaful operators involving banks and savings institution with extensive nationwide branch network, the takaful industry should maximize the potential of this alternative distribution channel. Finally, on the global front, Islamic finance has made significant inroads and has achieved growing global recognition. Another significant milestone in the progress of Islamic banking and finance as recently announced by Bank Negara Malaysia is the initiative to enhance the position of Malaysia as an international Islamic financial centre (MIFC). With the vibrant domestic Islamic financial industry that has become an integral component of the financial system, Malaysia is now well positioned to be an international centre of origination and issuance of Islamic financial instruments, fund and wealth management, Islamic financial activities in international currencies and takaful and retakaful businesses. As at year 2005, the total gross contributions from takaful business outside Malaysia recorded an insignificant proportion of the total contributions of the industry.

and HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad, with the group's strong international network and experience, are well positioned to make Malaysia as their regional and global hub for Islamic banking and takaful. HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. should also leverage on the strengths of its shareholders i.e. HSBC, Jerneh Insurance Berhad and Employees Provident Fund, to further accelerate the growth of the takaful business. On this note, it is my pleasure to congratulate HSBC Insurance (Asia Pacific) Holdings Limited, Jerneh Asia Berhad, and EPF on this momentous occasion of the official launch of HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. I wish HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. every success in its endeavours and look forward to its contribution towards further development of the Islamic financial services industry in Malaysia. Dengan lafaz Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim, saya dengan sukacitanya merasmikan pelancaran HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. Terima kasih. BIS Review 84/2006  3
We learnt this lesson the hard way in the wake of the GFC, and that is why the Committee's membership – comprising both central banks and supervisory authorities – is crucial to ensure that we benefit from both the system-wide and institution-specific perspectives. Moreover, given the increasingly cross-sectoral nature of many of today's financial stability issues – such as digitalisation and climate – I believe that more cooperation across different sectors – for example, on accounting, competition, anti-money laundering, data privacy, and taxation, to name a few issues – is also vital. In many instances, we are all working on similar issues from a slightly different angle, and so we would surely all benefit from sharing notes and ensuring that there are no unintended gaps or overlaps. Let me end by noting that cooperation need not mean full harmonisation. While having a single, uniform "global rule book" may be theoretically appealing, the fact is that we live in a heterogeneous world, with structural and cyclical differences across banking systems and jurisdictions. Moreover, many of our central bank and supervisory authority members are accountable to their national legislatures, so it is crucial that global standard setting bodies are perceived to be legitimate and transparent. This is why the Basel Committee has an extensive outreach programme with a wide range of stakeholders that go beyond market participants, to include academics, public sector bodies, legislatures and civil society. Indeed, there needs to be an appropriate balance between globally-agreed decisions and national measures.

Pablo Hernández de Cos: Central bank independence and policy coordination in a globalised world Speech by Mr Pablo Hernández de Cos, Governor of the Bank of Spain, at the International Symposium on Central Bank Independence, panel on "Central bank independence and policy coordination in a globalised world", organised by Sveriges Riksbank, Stockholm, 10 January 2023. *** Let me start by thanking the Riksbank for organising this symposium and for inviting me to take part in this panel. In many ways, the theme of our panel – central bank independence and policy coordination in a globalised world – is a good description of the objectives to which Stefan Ingves' many, many, achievements have contributed during his long and varied career, including most notably as Chair of the Basel Committee and as Chair of the Advisory Technical Committee of the European Systemic Risk Board. It is therefore somewhat humbling for me to take part in this discussion as his successor as Chair of both these Committees. While I will focus my remarks on the financial stability aspects of independence, globalisation and coordination, allow me to start by recalling the main reason why the task of controlling inflation has been assigned to independent monetary authorities in a large number of economies. The argument is based on what the economic literature calls "time inconsistency", which highlights the role of expectations in agents' behaviour. Price stability unquestionably enhances economic growth and improves wellbeing in the long run.
Under passporting, currently we cannot apply our preference for retail subsidiaries to banks from elsewhere in the EEA. It would be odd to continue with this if the UK and EU27 become third countries following Brexit. Subject to the negotiations, our current planning assumption is therefore that all international banks will need to put material retail business in a subsidiary. This should be no surprise given our existing policy – we are 7  engaged on this with the handful of relevant branches and will continue to promote a smooth transition . How far does this logic go? Overseas there are moves afoot to apply elements of this logic to other parts of financial services, in particular to wholesale banking. Why does this matter to us? The UK provides unrivalled access to global capital markets. Over three-quarters of foreign exchange and OTC interest rate derivatives trading in the EU takes place here. International banks from Asia to the Americas use their UK presence to raise finance on behalf of their home group. Since the first Eurobond in 1963, which financed the Italian motorways, international banking in London has driven growth in real economies around the world. And custody banks operating here safeguard and administer assets on behalf of institutional investors from east to west. Wholesale capital markets and the banks which serve them are deeply interconnected and contribute to the efficient allocation of capital. International banks match savers and borrowers across the globe, reducing 8  funding costs, facilitating cross-border investment and financing trade .

The  BIS Review 30/2009  1  combined effect now is a painful deleveraging process that drives down asset prices, shrinks balance sheets, and feeds straight into the real economy in the form of credit contraction. Adverse feedback loops between the financial system and real economy have become entrenched. The Eurozone, which accounts for the second largest share of global GDP, has deep financial linkages with the US. Through these linkages, financial stresses were transmitted across the Atlantic rapidly. Many banks in Europe, as well as other financial institutions such as insurance companies and asset managers had large exposures to US assets. Many were over-leveraged and dependent on benign conditions for liquidity to continue flowing. So they got sucked into this vortex. We have a similar story of credit evaporating and strains being felt in the real economy. Over in Japan, recovery from a decade of economic growth stagnation has been derailed by the collapse of external demand with serious knock-on effects on domestic activity. Japan’s capacity to support the growth of other advanced and emerging economies is now diminished. So a global recession is now upon us. The three economic giants – the US, Europe and Japan – together accounted for just over 50% of global GDP in 2007. All three cylinders are sputtering. The impact has already been felt worldwide. How long and how deep this recession will be is still an unknown, though many economists are predicting a long L-shaped trajectory.
While impact analyses reveal that the reform would increase capital requirements in some jurisdictions, they also show that certain facets of the reform would lower them. Specifically, some of these latter facets have already been implemented via the European quick fix I mentioned earlier.14 The objectives of this second phase of the Basel III reform, which consist of balancing simplicity, comparability and risk sensitivity, remain wholly in place. Thus, after deciding to defer implementation by one year so as to increase banks’ operational capacity, all members of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) have committed to its full and consistent implementation on the new date agreed. The economy and financial system will thus have sufficient time to absorb the main effects of this crisis and to progressively rebuild their buffers, if they were used. Domestically, the coordinated supervision of the risks to financial stability has been strengthened in recent years through the creation of the Spanish macroprudential authority 14  For example, in relation to the digitalisation of the banking sector, this reform exempts from deduction from CET1 investment in software development, databases and database management; the related amortisation, however, must still be deducted. This is because such investment is considered a basic input for banks to pursue their activities amid the economy’s and society’s growing digitalisation, and for banks to be able to better compete with BigTech firms, which are software asset-intensive.

The level of solvency had increased, in terms of CET1 capital, from € billion in December 2007 to € billion in December 2019, up by slightly over 35%. This rise in capital entailed  1  From the 2008 peak to March 2020, the number of employees fell by 48% and branches by 35%. 1  a notable increase in loss-absorption capacity. Indeed, almost half of all capital took the form of buffers above the minimum regulatory level, which can be released should it prove necessary.2 In comparative terms, the CET 1 ratio of the main Spanish deposit institutions stood below the European average, while their leverage ratio is slightly above. This is because Spanish banks’ asset risk weightings are higher, basically as a result of a more intensive use of the standardised approach to risk management. The drive spread to the entire non-financial private sector in Spain, the deleveraging of which from 2010 to 2019 (almost 30 pp of GDP for the household debt ratio and 45 pp of GDP for firms’ debt level) has contributed to it being better positioned to tackle the strong shock to activity imposed by the pandemic. One way of illustrating this resilience are the stress tests we supervisors regularly conduct. This is the case of the FLESB (Forward Looking Exercise on Spanish Banks), conducted annually by the Banco de España. Its latest aggregate results were published in our autumn Financial Stability Report.
Let me express a clear personal opinion; financial crises of the past were often, in large part, created by the people at the top making poor decisions – people not possessing the right information; not having due regard for risk; not being properly incentivised. Significant failures have often had their roots in poor governance with insufficient checks and balances to the decisions of powerful individuals. Strong, effective systems of oversight and risk management are paramount in meeting the PRA’s objectives for the safety and soundness of firms and insurance policyholder protection. Not surprisingly, governance issues are consistently at, or near the top, of the PRA’s agenda whether for banks or insurers. I can safely predict that this focus is not about to lessen any time soon. Firms in tomorrow’s world need to aim for governance best practice. BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  The recent banking crises further illustrated that one of the most obvious ways in which financial stability can be undermined is through disorderly firm failure and the consequent disruption of financial services. The PRA’s stance is that unsuccessful business models need to be allowed to fail, but that failure should be in an orderly manner so as not to disrupt the provision of core financial services. And I think we would all agree that the taxpayer should not be asked to bail out a failed firm. One difference from banking is that failing insurers usually do exit in an orderly manner.

Durmuş Yilmaz: The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey – the history, recent developments and the future of monetary policy in Turkey Opening remarks by Mr Durmuş Yilmaz, Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, at the Conference on the occasion of celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, Ankara, 1 June 2007. *  *  *  Governors, Colleagues, Friends, and Distinguished Guests, It is a great pleasure to welcome you to this Conference on the occasion of celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey. As this conference is also President Trichet’s first official visit to the Central Bank, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to him for joining us at this special event. On occasions like these, I believe, it is appropriate to look back and make an assessment of the institutional progress the Central Bank of Turkey has made since its inception. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to share with you the most significant changes taken place in the Bank’s history, and then focus on the recent developments in the implementation of monetary policy. Finally, from a medium to long-term perspective, I would like to say a few words on the future of monetary policy in Turkey.
Muhammad bin Ibrahim: Creating an inclusive, sustainable and prosperous Labuan Speech by Mr Muhammad bin Ibrahim, Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia (Bank Negara Malaysia), at the Labuan Industry Annual Dinner 2017, Labuan, 27 October 2017. * * * It is a pleasure to speak at this dinner. Last year I spoke on the urgent need for Labuan International Business and Financial Centre (IBFC) to reinvent itself to stay relevant – in other words, for us to reinvent ourselves in order to survive in a new world reality. In my remarks tonight, I will build on last year’s theme and touch on three imperatives for change in Labuan, namely: 1. First, to ensure the local community benefits from economic activity; 2. Second, to transform the economic structure to become one that is more diversified, resilient and sustainable; and 3. Third, to rationalise and enhance tax incentives consistent with international best practices. Ensuring the local community reaps the benefits of economic activity Labuan has come a long way. After two and a half decades, it is now home to close to 14,000 companies, 54 banks, more than 200 insurance related entities, foundations and leasing companies, respectively. Nonetheless, the growth of the financial sector should have more spillover benefits to the local community. Two facts illustrate this: 1. First, gains in income must be more evenly distributed across the local population. The top 20% earns more than 5 times the income of the bottom 40% household group1.

Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Financial technology (FinTech) transforming financial services in Singapore Speech by Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, at the Launch of LATTICE80, Singapore, 10 November 2016. * * *  Introduction 1 Good morning. Thank you for inviting me to join all of you. Let me begin by congratulating Marvelstone on the launch of LATTICE80. 2 It is the first innovation space in Singapore dedicated to and designed specifically to support FinTech. LATTICE80 is also the first not-for-profit private sector initiative in this business of nurturing start-ups. The FinTech Phenomenon 3 FinTech – or financial technology – is transforming financial services, both from within established financial institutions and from outside the regulated sector through new, FinTech players. 4 When FinTechs first came to global prominence, it was tempting to cast this as a battle between new, innovative and responsive players and lumbering, flat-footed banks and other financial institutions. 5 The real picture is more nuanced, mainly because the incumbents have not been sitting still: Many of them are investing heavily in technology to streamline and optimise entire swathes of operations. For example, several initiatives are underway among banks to tap on distributed ledger technology to achieve swift, seamless and secure trade settlement. Several financial institutions have set up in-house FinTech units to replicate the start-up culture. They are also collaborating with and, in some instances, buying over promising FinTech companies. 6 And not many technology companies aspire to become financial institutions.