samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Not long afterwards, Foreningsbanken had to petition to be placed under public administration. The bank Centralbanken for Norge followed only a few days later and then Handelsbanken. Michelsen was on to a fundamental problem. Banks have critical functions in a modern economy. First, banks play a key role in the payment system. In one way or another, practically all payments go through banks. Individuals and firms have bank deposits that they depend on for making payments. Banks operate payment systems used by shops and other businesses. They operate interbank and international payment systems and payment systems for securities trading. If payments come to a halt, the economy will seize up. Second, banks extend credit: Short-term trade credit and operating credit; long-term loans for investing in housing, real estate and businesses. Without this credit, businesses and investments come to a standstill. Banks may be regarded as intermediaries. They channel money from depositors and other investors to borrowers. Banks determine who should be given credit and monitor borrowers and their projects. Moreover, they do so with considerable efficiency. Thus, depositors and investors avoid having to do this job themselves. This function makes banks unique: Banks extend long-term credit and raise short-term debt. 6 We call this banks’ maturity transformation. But this transformation also makes banks vulnerable. Banks are dependent on public trust. If any doubt arises as to a bank’s ability to service its debt, a run on the bank may ensue.

I understand that, as at December 1999, commercial bank assets in Euroland represented over half of total assets in the bank, debt and equity markets. The corresponding figure in the United States is only 15.8%. It is true that the relatively greater dependence on banks in financial intermediation in the main Euroland countries has served those countries remarkably well for many years. It provided continuity of funding and support for long-term strategies, and therefore insulated them from the scourge of “short-termism”. But the pendulum appears to have swung in the opposite direction over the past 10-15 years. Competitive equity and debt markets have been more efficient at delivering the corporate restructuring and the funding for “new economy” activities in a speedy manner in a world of particularly rapid technological change and a world where international finance is highly mobile. Such efficiency, with globalised markets, coupled with a buoyant economy, is seen to be attracting substantial capital to the US markets, and I understand that one major source from where such capital comes is Euroland. Seen from Asia, this has been another important factor contributing to the weakness of the euro. These sort of images may explain why people talk of a reluctance of foreigners to invest in Euroland, despite the very clear signs that the overall prospects for non-inflationary economic growth are now quite encouraging. You may argue that these images are mistaken and flawed. You may well be right; I am not in a position either to refute or to verify them.
A £ note may also have had a symbolic meaning to her, as it was the amount she was paid by publishers Crosby and Co. for her first novel, Susan. 2  Just as a £ banknote might have evoked memories for Jane Austen, so does money serve as a collective 3  memory for a country and its people. Our banknotes have cultural as well as economic value. Through the characters on our banknotes, we celebrate the breadth and depth of achievement across the United Kingdom, in fields ranging from literature to the visual arts, science and statecraft. Once she replaces Charles Darwin on the £ banknote this September, Jane Austen will sit alongside Winston Churchill on the new £ Adam Smith on the £ and Boulton and Watt on the £ Around the end of the decade, Smith will be replaced on the £ by JMW Turner. These individuals have advanced British thought, spurred innovation, exerted exceptional leadership, and more generally helped to shape this diverse society and forge our common values. 4  As the “mother of the great tradition of the English novel”, Jane Austen’s place in this august group is assured. Sir Walter Scott’s praise for Austen’s “talent for describing the involvement and feelings and characters of ordinary life which is to me the most wonderful I ever met with” is a sentiment that those reading her work today would recognise and endorse.

Join me in wishing Mr Ndhlovu well in his new role and I have every confidence that he will perform to distinction. I wish to take this opportunity to thank Ms Lumpa for her able stewardship of the Association and wish her well in her new appointment. I have every confidence that she will excel. Ladies and gentlemen, the banking industry plays an important role in any economy, particularly the role of intermediating funds between savers and borrowers. It also plays an equally important role in providing payment system platform where economic agents can settle their transactions. You will also note that the performance of these functions also attracts numerous risks which have potential to compromise the stability and the efficient operations of the banking industry. The regulatory environment therefore requires adjusting appropriately in response to developments in the financial system. Chairperson, you will note that the Bank of Zambia has, in the most recent past, introduced a number of measures aimed at enhancing stability of the banking industry in Zambia as well as to enhance the transparency and efficiency in the allocation of resource in the economy. Allow me to briefly highlight some of the key policy initiatives that the Bank of Zambia has recently introduced: 1)  Reduction of statutory reserve ratios: in the fourth quarter of 2011, the Bank of Zambia reduced both the statutory and core liquid asset ratios by 3 percentage points to 5.0% and 6.0% respectively.
Our challenge concerns more the nature of this financing: developing equity financing more than debt financing. Flat tax is a welcome step towards a greater tax neutrality between the different forms of investment. I have already stated this, insurers must create new tailored products, in the area of life insurance, which are less liquid but allow savers to benefit from the higher returns offered by equities in the long term, with a form of capital protection. The PACTE law on growing and transforming companies, presented by the Minister of the Economy, could provide an opportunity. Banks are also considering offering a new long-term savings product: I understand this point of view, provided that the aim isn't to create a new tax loophole; we have had enough of this great French speciality. 2/3  BIS central bankers' speeches  My last wish concerns the Banque de France, and it is a commitment to our transformation, which we want to be exemplary for the public service. In 2018, we will be over half way with our strategic "Ambitions for 2020" plan, which aims to improve our services to the French and European economies, while achieving significant savings: as of this year, our net spending will be almost EUR 100 million lower, in current euro, than it was in 2015: this is what we are "giving back" to the national community. In 2018, let us also be exemplary in our commitment to the social and territorial cohesion of the country, in order notably to help our most underprivileged citizens.

Supervisors should also stand ready to act if bubbles like phenomena appear in some markets. For emerging economies, measures aimed at stabilizing capital inflows may help and relieve the pressure on domestic financial conditions and prevent further asset bubbles. International financial architecture In the longer run, however, we may need to work together towards a more efficient and stable international financial architecture. Let me highlight three possible avenues for progress. First, we have to find ways of dealing with international capital flows volatility. For one given country, capital controls may temporarily reduce the pressure on its capital account or even permanently limit the volatility of its exchange rate. For the whole international system, however, they may simply displace the pressure to other countries or asset classes and exacerbate, rather than reduce, overall volatility. There might be ways to eliminate those  2  BIS Review 160/2010  negative effects by creating a predictable framework defining the circumstances, modalities and conditions through which temporary controls would be implemented. Second, there would be benefits in finding ways to disconnect reserve accumulation from exchange rate management and, more generally, from balance of payment situations and monetary policies. At present, reserve accumulation can only occur through a conjunction of balance of payment surplus and some degree of exchange rate intervention. Emerging countries have increased their foreign exchange reserves from 4 percent of GDP in 1990 to over 20 percent on average today.
Banks are in a special position. They transform short-term deposits into long-term loans. They are responsible for payment settlements, and bank deposits serve as a means of payment. The volume of amounts outstanding in the interbank market is sizeable. As a result, problems in one bank may rapidly spread to other banks. The financial strength of banks is thus important for financial stability, even more so in countries where banks are the main financial intermediaries. Long-term profitability has a decisive influence on financial strength. Obviously, there are many factors that can influence the future profitability of banks. The topics you will discuss during these two days are of great importance. Financial unrest spreads through payment and settlement systems. These systems can also be a source of risk. This occurs when banks credit customers before they have received settlement from the payer bank. Payment and settlement systems must thus be designed to reduce settlement risk. This is an issue high on the agenda of most central banks. Interdependence of monetary and financial stability The objectives of monetary stability and financial stability are interdependent. High - and thereby in practice varying - inflation and unstable exchange rates can threaten financial stability through several channels. First, it is more difficult to assess the risk of an investment project. Inflation makes it difficult to differentiate between a change in prices for goods or service and a change in the overall price level. It makes it more difficult to determine the discount rate to be applied.

10  BIS central bankers’ speeches  Table 2 International scenario assumptions 2013  2014 (f)  Jun.14 Report  Sep.14 Report  Dec.14 Report  Growth  2015 (f)  Jun.14 Report  Sep.14 Report  Dec.14 Report  2016 (f)  Sep.14 Report  Dec.14 Report  (annual change, percent)  Trading partners' GDP  3.5  3.6  3.4  3.2  3.9  3.8  3.5  3.9  3.9  World GDP at PPP  3.1  3.3  3.2  3.2  3.7  3.7  3.5  4.1  3.9  United States Eurozone Japan China India Rest of Asia (excl. Japan, China and Ind Latin America (excl. Chile)  2.2 -0.4 1.6 7.7 5.0 3.9 2.3  2.4 1.0 1.6 7.3 5.4 4.1 2.0  2.1 0.8 1.0 7.3 5.4 4.0 1.7  2.3 0.8 0.3 7.4 5.6 3.6 1.1  3.1 1.7 1.0 7.2 6.2 4.4 3.0  3.0 1.7 1.5 7.2 6.2 4.5 2.6  3.0 1.0 1.3 7.1 6.3 4.3 1.9  3.2 1.8 1.2 7.0 6.5 4.8 3.3  3.1 1.5 1.4 6.9 6.5 4.8 3.0  LME copper price $ Brent oil price $  332 109  310 108  315 106  311 99  (levels) 290 103  305 104  295 70  300 101  285 75  Terms of trade  -3.2  -0.5  0.0  -1.1  1.7  -0.5  -2.1  (annual change, percent) -1.5  -0.8  (f) Forecast.
One of the main levers for action is to increase the supply of safe eurodenominated assets. The launch in 2021 of the Next Generation EU (NGEU) programme will raise EUR 800 billion. Above all, the unified approach to  Page 5 sur 6 financing EU borrowing, which was introduced by the Commission in 2023, means that bonds xii can be issued under the single name of "EU bonds", which has the advantage of avoiding fragmentation and boosting the liquidity of issues. But I believe we need to go further, by aiming to bring together the bond issues of the Commission, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and maybe the European Investment Bank: the total pool would then amount to EUR 1,100 billion. We also need to speed up the implementation of the Capital Markets Union (CMU), which is crucial for ensuring a better allocation of capital within the euro area: this internal integration priority also serves the euro's external role. These first, realistic steps are the only advances within our reach at this stage. They should not divert our attention from the "creative frontier" xiii that a truly multilateral financial system would represent. The ultimate goal remains to lead the IMF to become a more universal, accessible and agile lender of last resort. This would require adjusting the IMF's role and financial capacity in the global financial safety net, to better reflect the new global economic balances and prevent some under-represented countries from taking or pursuing more unilateral routes.

Let me stress two elements in this direction: • We are data driven, we are not forecasts driven. And recent data show that even if we are obviously still far from the inflation target, our monetary policy is at work, and is working : inflation has peaked in the euro area, core inflation has declined for the second consecutive month, and there are several other signs that underlying price pressures are softening. According to yesterday’s inflation forecast, which is a rather cautious one, inflation should be at 3 % in the euro area by the end of this year, and at 2% by 2025: we are confident that we will deliver on our inflation target in the next two years. • We have already shown our determination on interest rates through this overall 400 basis point increase. We obviously covered most of the  Page 2 sur 6 ground, and we are clearly in restrictive territory on all maturities: the key issue now is the transmission of our past monetary decisions, which is proceeding forcefully to financial conditions but could take up to two years for its full economic effects. Hence, the duration matters more than the level; persistence matters more than the peak. II. Forces pushing for greater diversification in the IMS Despite the end of the Bretton Woods system in the 1970s, the US dollar still plays a dominant role in the international monetary system (IMS).
Despite the increasing non-performing loan portfolio, banks have sufficient capital to address this phenomenon. I would like to elaborate more on this latter point. The performance of lending has become the focus of attention for policy-makers and economic agents. The slower economic growth was followed by sharp deceleration in lending. The reasons are quite understandable: on the one hand, businesses have reduced their demand for loans due to uncertainties relating to the sale of their own products; and on  BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  the other hand, banks have been pursuing a more conservative approach to lending, being uncertain about the success of different business plans. Global theory and practice suggest that the investment and credit cycles progress in line with the performance of aggregate demand. In other words, we will see a stable recovery of lending only when economic growth recovers at a steady pace. However, as we have already stated, we believe that there is room within the Albanian reality for a better performance of lending. Channelling savings into profitable investments and supporting businesses with lending are the reasons for the existence of the banking system. We have been constantly emphasizing this message, and we have taken concrete steps, which have lowered the banking system’s financing cost and provided incentives for lending through an adequate regulatory environment.

During the 2000s, the Albanian economy was most focused on non-traded sectors like construction, and hotels and tourism, with a low share in the growth of productivity. Improving them and successfully facing competition in the international markets should lie at the core of Albania’s new economic growth model. Bank of Albania’s analyses suggest that these structural changes will contribute to recovering the economy at a faster pace in the years ahead and restoring the previous growth rates. The agriculture sector meets the above criteria to lie at the core of this new model better than any other economic sector. On the other hand, we must recognise that despite Albania’s vast natural resources, we have not managed to fully utilise these potential resources for the agriculture sector to face competition in the international markets. The Bank of Albania sees great potential in agriculture, which, for a number of reasons, could not materialise in the past years but can become more beneficial in the future. Unlike other sectors, whose future benefits may be limited, agriculture may represent an important source for a second period of dynamic economic growth. The Albanian economy should be re-oriented towards those sectors whose capacity to compete in the international markets is the best signal for the development potential. The Albanian economy being a net importer of food products hints at a low level of competitiveness and represents one of the major future challenges.
This could be achieved by having the private operators of this infrastructure issue a ‘settlement token’ on the DLT system, with the securities then being settled against these tokens. An initiative launched by a consortium with Swiss participation is working on such an approach under the project name ‘Utility Settlement Coin’. This example shows how a market solution could ensure cash-side settlement of securities on the distributed Page 5/8  ledger. This scenario is outlined on the slide 7. Such a privately issued settlement token would be equivalent to commercial bank money, and fully secured by central bank money. However, it would also be possible in principle for central bank money to be tokenised for the settlement of interbank transactions. Central banks in some countries – Singapore among them – are conducting experiments to gain a better understanding of the associated risks. As you can see on the slide 8, this is similar in concept to the previous option. However, there are a number of questions still to be answered in this respect as well. As you can see, there would be various forms that this coexistence could take. What is crucial is that the safety and reliability of the FMI be maintained. The central bank has an important part to play in the reliable foundation, that is to say with regard to payments in the RTGS system. Around this solid foundation, however, it is the market that has the main role.

Those reforms have played an important role in reducing risk in the system, alongside the overall improvements in capital, risk  4  BIS Review 70/2004  management, and the financial infrastructure. Further progress in strengthening risk management practices is an investment worth making, particularly at a time when the markets appear to be pricing in a relatively benign view of risk in the financial system and in the economy overall. BIS Review 70/2004  5
Undoubtedly, it would require commitment of substantial capital and human resources on the part of banks and the supervisors. For banks, the main challenges appear to be the skills shortages and data inadequacies coupled with uncertainties regarding costs associated with implementation. Banks all over the world have started to voice concerns over the mounting regulatory costs. It is a regulatory responsibility to encourage banks to have a phased implementation programme starting from a traditional baseline scenario of identification of operational risks, assessment, and awareness monitoring and integrating these elements over a period. Basle II implementation and operational risk mitigation process puts heavy burden on supervisors to detect problems in banks, to stay on top of the latest advances in risk management and to avoid abuses of many powers that are given to supervisors. All these are too much for supervisors to bear as many of us are still on the learning curve. Exchange of information both within and outside the region would be very important particularly in capacity building for evaluation and validation of risk assessment models of banks. This seminar is one such joint effort by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka  BIS Review 88/2005  3  and the SEACEN Centre, which would provide a good opportunity to exchange information and learn from each other. 16. Basel II is expected to foster financial stability through its risk sensitive framework through encouragement of banks to adopt improved risk management practices.

Today’s consensus is that payments, clearing, and settlement systems must be safe, reliable, efficient, and secure, which are critical to financial system stability. That’s why most regulators, the central banks in particular, have become owners and operators of clearing and settlement systems. Although the tendency is to outsource this function, many regulators at some stage or other have owned or operated these systems. 7. Another technology related risk is the desire of banks to acquire the leading edge with propriety systems, stand alone systems and specific IT systems. Banks tend to hang onto this short-lived approach. Individual systems are costly not only to banks themselves, but also to customers. The norms should be not attracting customers, but reducing their operational risks and reduction of transaction costs to customers. Both are often forgotten or ignored by banks and continuous reminding has become a regulatory responsibility. Despite moral suasion banks in many countries have not realized the gains of having common ATM platforms, back-up sites, disaster recovery sites and sharing of costs. 8. It may also be necessary to for banks to recognize that different risks matter in different lines of businesses. A comparison of business unit economic capital requirement by risk type indicates that operational risk is highest in fund management, private banking, and in retail banking when compared to corporate banking, insurance business (if banks are allowed to engage in). The new operational risk element is expected to hit banks specializing in areas - such as custodian arrangements and asset management.