samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Pablo Hernández de Cos: Remittance flows and their effects on Latin American macroeconomic and financial stability during the COVID-19 crisis Introductory remarks by Mr Pablo Hernández de Cos, Governor of the Bank of Spain and Chair of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, to the virtual seminar on “Remittance flows and their effects on Latin American macroeconomic and financial stability during the COVID-19 crisis”, organized by the Fondo Latinoamericano de Reservas (FLAR) and the Bank of Spain, webinar, 27 July 2021. * * * Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Let me first thank FLAR (the Latin American Reserve Fund) and its president, José Darío Uribe, for the opportunity of jointly organising this webinar with the Banco de España. It will be the first of many and marks the start of close collaboration between both institutions, formalised in a memorandum of understanding in December 2020. The close economic and financial ties between Latin America and Spain are widely known. The interest of the Banco de España in the region has grown, as you know, owing to the internationalisation of Spanish banks since the early 1990s, largely directed towards Latin America. In this process, the region has taken on great significance for the Spanish banking system. Indeed, Spanish banks’ exposures to Latin America account, on pre-pandemic data, for almost one-fifth of the system’s total exposures, and for almost 30% of exposures outside Spain.

The result is that, on average, between 40% and 60% of an idiosyncratic shock to a euro area country translates directly into a decline in its consumption, twice the analogous impact estimated for the United States. Against this background, the Capital Markets Union, which aims at providing firms and households with identical funding and saving opportunities, irrespective of their location, remains an essential initiative. The Capital Markets Union project has focused on several initiatives (or operational objectives). These aim to improve information flows in order to facilitate price discovery; to allow better access to new markets and products; and to achieve a stronger enforcement  13  of rules and procedures in order to increase legal certainty and investor protection. Progress has been fruitful in some areas, but much remains to be done. In general, the project garners broad support from all parties concerned, but it currently lacks much-needed momentum. As indicated in the conclusions of the Report by the Next CMU High Level Group in October last year, the sheer breadth of the project and the multiple dimensions involved require the identification of a large number of specific actions, aiming to enhance supervisory and regulatory harmonisation, which must be promoted and implemented at the national and supranational level. Finally, the creation of a common safe asset for the euro area may be the cornerstone of a common capital market, with important implications for other policy areas 2. A wellfunctioning capital market requires a broad asset class with ample liquidity and low risk.
It is a keystone of the European single market, which will ensure prosperity in Europe for the benefit of the rest of the world. I would like to draw your attention to why the euro and Monetary Union have been successful from the outset, and to the conditions and prospects for building on this success. I. The euro and Monetary union are based on a credible monetary policy and contribute to an appropriate economic and monetary equilibrium in Europe I.1. A credible, stability-oriented monetary policy a/ First of all, let me point out that, from a technical and operational point of view, the launch of the euro on financial markets has been an indisputable success. In this respect, one has to remember all the doubts voiced three years ago. The decentralised organisation of the Eurosystem has achieved the objectives it was assigned in three important respects: •  operational efficiency, as is demonstrated by the timely adjustment of banking liquidity and steering of short-term interest rates;  •  the security provided by the procedures and systems implemented by the Eurosystem, both for the execution of its operations and in the field of large-value payments. At the shortest end of the market, the integration of the interbank market took place in 1999, right from the start of Monetary Union, thanks to the setting up of the Target system for the transfer of large-value payments in real time throughout the euro area and other EU countries.

The debate about putting more activity through central counterparties is an example. Frankly, it could have taken place a decade ago, and it is a crying shame that it didn’t. The reason it didn’t was that no one came into work thinking that it was their job to think about that and that they had a responsibility for taking a system wide perspective and actually doing something. 2  See Tucker, P M W (2010), “Shadow Banking, Financing Markets and Financial Stability” at BGC Partners Seminar, London, January 2010. 4  BIS Review 145/2010  Institutions are now being created around the world – the Financial Stability Oversight Council in the US, the Systemic Risk Board in the EU, the Financial Policy Committee in the UK – which I earnestly hope will bring that kind of perspective to our work. And the final area is leaning against the credit cycle when it threatens stability. The zeitgeist embraced the seductive idea that either there wasn’t a bubble or if there was a bubble that there was nothing you could do about it. Which was dangerous nonsense, as events have proved. This is not about fine tuning the credit cycle. But we do need to be prepared to take the punchbowl away before the party gets completely out of control. That was the view 50 years ago. Forward to the past.
Failure to recognize bad debts 9. Having landed themselves with bad debts, banks failed to face up to the problem. In particular, systems for loan classification and provisioning have been inadequate. As a result, capital ratios have been overstated, and insolvent or near-insolvent banks have been allowed to continue in business and to build up further losses. Banks have been allowed to accrue income on non-performing loans, thus overstating revenue and capital. Lack of transparency  1  Paul Krugman, “What happened to Asia?”, January 1998  BIS Review 28/1998  ˝  -3-  10. All this has been made worse by a lack of transparency in regional banking systems. Failure to disclose the true scale of bad debt problems has weakened market discipline on bank management and reduced the need for them to face up to the problems. Public confidence in banking systems has been undermined because, with no credible information, depositors and investors assume the worse in even relatively sound banks and rush to take their money out. Moral hazard 11. The final ingredient has been the perception that many banks in the region are effectively government-guaranteed. This has created a problem of moral hazard whereby bank management can afford to indulge in reckless lending behaviour because they believe that government will bail them out if they fail. Similarly, depositors have less incentive to check the creditworthiness of the banks with which they place funds. Weakness in supervision 12. How did Asian banks get into this state of fragility?

Its third article states that “the Bank shall have as its purposes to look after the stability of the currency and the normal functioning of internal and external payments.” It then adds that “the authority of the Bank, for these purposes, shall include regulating the amount of currency and credit in circulation, the performance of credit transactions and foreign exchange, as well as the issuance of regulatory provisions regarding monetary, credit, financing and foreign exchange matters.” In addition, it establishes that “no public expenditure or credit of any nature may be financed either directly or indirectly with loans granted by the Bank.” Finally, article six states that “when passing its resolutions, the Board shall consider the general orientation of the Government’s economic policies.” This is a clear mandate for the Central Bank of Chile, by which it establishes instruments and mechanisms for the designation and removal of Board members, as well as vehicles for coordination with the Executive. In addition, its autonomy is further reinforced and legitimated through the achievement of said objectives and by the Bank’s communication and transparency policy, whose effects go far beyond the provisions in the law regarding the obligation to inform about its decisions. In this presentation I will address some of the main elements concerning the autonomy of central banks, as well as an evaluation of the principal accomplishments of the past twenty years. The reasons for pursuing autonomy High inflation is costly for society because it is associated with higher price volatility, which distorts resource allocation.
Road Map: Monetary and Financial Sector Policies for 2018 and Beyond  Delivered by  Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy Governor Central Bank of Sri Lanka 3 January 2018  1. Introduction Your Excellencies, Members of the Monetary Board, Senior Deputy Governor, Deputy Governors and Officials of the Central Bank, Distinguished Invitees, Ladies and Gentlemen, First, let me warmly welcome you to the presentation of this year’s Road Map. Continuing our tradition that was initiated in 2007, today we are pleased to present the eleventh Road Map of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. It is our belief that sharing our future policy direction and actions would help you to plan your business trajectory with more certainty. I hope this Road Map will enhance the transparency and clarity of our policies, which would help you to achieve your targets more effectively. The successful outcomes in your businesses would ultimately help us to implement our policies more effectively for the benefit of both the economy and people of Sri Lanka. The year 2017 was challenging. We have seen economy-wide effects due to inclement weather conditions. The drought and floods disturbed agriculture activities and agro based industrial activities. Spillover effects of these adverse weather conditions impacted the other sectors of the economy as well. As a result, economic growth is expected to be subdued and lower than we projected at the beginning of the year.

The positive outcomes led to an increase in the current account surplus to Rls 338 billion in 2005 in comparison with a surplus of Rls 195 billion in the preceding year. In keeping with these developments, the money stock increased by 11.6 percent. These economic developments took place in an environment marked by stability in domestic prices. The cost of living index increased by less than 1 percent during 2005. It is expected that the positive results of the economy would continue at the same levels in this year, God willing. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, These positive economic developments were achieved in spite of surrounding challenges, internal or external. The composition of the Kingdom's population represents the most prominent challenge. The Saudi youth group (male and female), younger than 30 years, exceeds 60 percent of the Saudi population which entails continued extensive efforts to build Saudi nationals in scientific, health and intellectual terms to carry out their future development role in the best manner. Your direct attention to satisfy the current and future needs of the country and citizens has been embodied by Your directives providing for using a portion of the additional revenues realized due to  BIS Review 111/2006  1  improved fiscal balance in vital areas, at the top of which is the development of human resources as being the first pivot and ultimate goal of development.
The Board of directors shall consist of not less than 5 members (Section 30(2);  iii. Every financial service provider must have a Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer who shall not qualify to hold office unless it is shown that they are fit and proper persons, above 21 years old, have not been convicted of a felony or offence involving dishonesty, are not mentally incompetent, have never been removed from office under the BFSA, have not managed a company that has gone into liquidation or entered into a composition with creditors (Section 31);  iv. The majority of directors must be from outside the bank (Section 32(1);  v.  Directors, Chief Executive Officers and Chief Financial Officers are expected to act honestly, in good faith and in the interest of the company whilst exercising due care, diligence and skill (Section 33);  vi. A director is required to declare in writing to the board annually, the names and addresses of the director’s associates and full particulars of every material interest (Section 35);  vii.

BoZ has issued Directives to all regulated financial institutions on combating money laundering to ensure that the potential threats posed by money launderers are limited; and  BIS Review 99/2008  7  iii. BoZ has also developed a supervisory framework aimed at conducting targeted inspections to ensure banks and NBFIs are complying with the anti-money laundering legislation and directives. 5.3  Improvement of credit culture  In order to improve the credit culture in the country, the BoZ issued the Credit Data (Privacy) Code and the Credit Reference Services (Licensing) Guidelines to facilitate the establishment of credit reference bureaux (CRBs). The guidelines were gazetted on 30 January 2006. Subsequently, the first credit bureau, namely, Credit Reference Bureau Africa Limited (CRBAL) was licensed on June 5, 2006 and was launched on January 11, 2007. The main task of a CRB is to provide lenders with factual information upon which they can base their lending decision. While CRBs facilitate sharing of information without approving or disapproving credit, or collecting debts they also assist consumers understand the responsible use of credit and help lenders in identifying good payers from defaulters. Once fully operational the credit bureau will: i. Allow for increase in credit extension because of better risk profiles;  ii. Reduce credit processing costs and times as well as loan write-offs;  iii. Lower borrowing costs; and  iv. Enhance the credit culture, which in turn will allow for the provision of the much needed finance for the development of various sectors.
19 18  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/speeches  18

Norman T L Chan: Keynote speech - HKAB & HKIB Distinguished Speaker Luncheon Keynote speech by Mr Norman T L Chan, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, at the HKAB & HKIB Distinguished Speaker Luncheon, Hong Kong, 26 September 2019. * * * Mary (Huen), Patrick (Fung), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,  Introduction 1. I have been Chief Executive of the HKMA for 10 years. This will be the last time I speak to you in my official capacity. 2. I would like to take this opportunity to look back at what all of us here have accomplished during those 10 years. 3. When I say “all of us”, I do mean everyone represented here today. 4. Under conventional wisdom, our relationship is not designed to be friendly or close. We all know that there is potentially going to be some sort of friction between the regulator and regulatees. If there were no friction, at least one of the two sides would not be doing their job properly. 5. But if we succeed in working together, we accomplish something of vital importance. We ensure that Hong Kong can fully trust the financial services that you provide and which keep our economy going. 6. Today, I want to look back over the last 10 years and see how well we have all done.
25  It has also been shown that when people are in groups of like-minded persons, and especially when they are socially isolated, they are prone to taking more extreme positions than they would on their own. The psychologist Irving L. Janis is particularly known for his research into groupthink. His analyses concerned US foreign policy, where groupthink might deserve much of the blame for competent persons making poor decisions. See Irving L. Janis (1972): Victims of groupthink; a psychological study of foreign-policy decisions and fiascoes, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 26  The psychologist Salomon Asch conducted a number of similar experiments in the 1950s. He found that “the tendency to conformity in our society is so strong that reasonably intelligent and well meaning young people are willing to call black white.” See Salomon E. Asch (1995): “Opinions and social pressure”, Scientific American, vol. 193, no. 5, pp. 31–35. 6  BIS Review 147/2010  exaggerated self-confidence is found in many occupations. 27 There is no reason to believe that we economists are so different from others in that regard. Norges Bank’s Executive Board consists of five external members with varied backgrounds, in addition to the governor and deputy governor of the Bank. The external members have influence over decisions on a par with the internal members. The Bank is in a peculiar situation in that the central bank governor is both administrative head of the Bank and chairman of the Executive Board.

Be assured that I am committed to supporting the implementation of the National Strategy on Financial Education through such campaigns. Ladies and Gentlemen The World Savings Day celebrations would not be successful without recognising individual and organizational contributions towards improving financial literacy in Zambia. In this regard, awards will be presented under nine categories namely: 1. Exceptional individual contribution to financial education, 2. Outstanding theme interpretation; 3. Exceptional leadership in financial literacy; 4. Champions award; 5. Most innovative financial education programme; 6. Outstanding financial literacy footprint; 7. Exceptional financial literacy media outreach; 8. Outstanding initiative by an educator; and 9. Best savings product of the year. I am delighted to grace this year's World Savings Day award presentation and wish the nominated participants all the best. In conclusion, I would like to thank the organisers and stakeholders under our partnership arrangement, in particular, the Bankers Association of Zambia, Securities and Exchange Commission, Pensions and Insurance Authority, Rural Finance Expansion Programme and DSIK for their continued support to the World Savings Day celebrations every year. THANK YOU  3/4  BIS - Central bankers' speeches  4/4  BIS - Central bankers' speeches
From the regulator’s point of view, it is difficult to leave risk evaluation entirely to each bank’s discretion particularly because of the need to assess how best each bank uses its capital efficiently in dealing with general and specific risks. For market risk, the present computation of the capital charge introduced in March 2006 will continue. The preparatory work in this area and parallel calculations are at a satisfactory level and we hope that banks will be fully ready by the beginning of 2008 to implement the processes they have already put in place. However, the implementation process does not stop there. The essence of Basel II is to move towards more advanced approaches which will require advanced risk management techniques and improved corporate governance. Adoption of advanced approaches For pillar I, CBSL will consider permitting those banks which wish to adopt the more advanced measurement approaches such as the Internal Ratings Based (IRB) approaches at a later stage, when the capabilities at both the supervisory level and at the banks have improved and the necessary infrastructure is in place. As a general principle, for the time being, CBSL will not mandate any of the licensed banks to adopt the IRB approaches. The banks themselves should conduct their own  2  BIS Review 3/2007  feasibility studies and analyze associated costs and benefits in order to decide whether to use the IRB approach.

The Accord in full is meant for the internationally active banks but other banks are expected to follow suit. Although international institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank have announced that the adoption of Basel II will not be a yardstick for measuring compliance with the international best practice, sooner than later it will be the international norm and they will start monitoring the progress. So, there is no point in debating whether or not we should implement Basel II. The debate, if at all, should be how best to implement it and, where possible, be ahead of others. Overall, the benefits to the industry in terms of improvements in risk management and corporate governance and the supervisory action embedded in the Accord cannot be ignored. Basel II has three mutually reinforcing pillars, namely, the Minimum Capital Requirement under Pillar I, the Supervisory Review Process which is Pillar II and Market Discipline or Pillar III. The whole purpose of this exercise is to make capital the key shock absorber in banking operations. For that, simple risk mitigation measures in Basel I were not considered adequate. Therefore, a risk sensitive capital requirement and risk mitigation practices were combined in a more meaningful manner. Banking is a highly leveraged and risky operation and it is imperative to mitigate risks. With or without the Basel Capital Accord, banks and financial institutions must find ways and means to identify risks, assess them and put in processes and procedures to deal with such risks.