Federal Reserve
US deadlines for regulatory proposals revealed
The US plans to kick its Basel II regulation machine into gear fairly quickly, according to a source with regulatory connections.
US regulators restrict Basel II adoption amid agency infighting
In Congressional hearings on February 27, top US bank regulators sharply criticised the proposed Basel Accord revisions, and used their criticisms to justify plans to apply the new set of international banking regulations to only the top 10 banks in the…
New chairman for Committee on Global Financial System
Roger Ferguson, vice-chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, was named chairman of the Basel-based Committee on the Global Financial System (CGFS), the Bank for International Settlements said today.
McDonough bows out from New York Fed
William McDonough, president and chief executive of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for the past 10 years, will retire on July 21 this year.
US Senate calls for structured finance probe
The structured finance businesses of leading financial institutions in the United States are set to face a major business practice investigation during the next six months, with top US regulators set to introduce a new code of governance for structured…
Greenspan says international rules reflect cultural differences
WASHINGTON – Efforts to synchronise individual countries' regulatory systems are far more than a technical exercise – they largely reflect differing conventions of business behaviour, especially attitudes toward competition, US Federal Reserve Board…
Fitch to investigate credit derivatives risk concentrations
Credit rating agency Fitch Ratings is concerned that the rapid growth and lack of transparency in the synthetic credit markets could be leading to alarming concentrations of risk with specific market participants.
Fed to explore operational risks in clearance of US government securities
The US Federal Reserve Board has established a private sector working group to recommend steps to mitigate operational risks in the clearance and settlement of US government securities.
Potential for instability over-hyped, says Ferguson
The potential for the new risk management instruments and techniques to produce instability has been overestimated, Federal Reserve vice-chairman Roger Ferguson told delegates at a conference in New York, sponsored by the American Institute of Certified…
Deutsche Bank reveals role in 9/11 liquidity facility
Michael Reuther, global head of funding at Deutsche Bank, has revealed today how the European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York created an emergency €50 billion ‘synthetic’ liquidity facility in the wake of last year’s World Trade…
Fed's Gordy criticises Basel II procyclicality adjustment
NEW YORK - The procyclicality ‘smoothing’ adjustment technique likely to form part of the Basel II capital Accord is sub-optimal, according to Michael Gordy, a senior economist in the research and statistics division of the Board of Governors of the…
Top regulators denounce attempt to resurrect OTC energy bill
The four most senior financial regulators in the United States have joined forces to express concern at legislative proposals to expand regulation of over-the-counter energy derivatives.
Greenspan defends Fed’s role in tech bubble
The US Federal Reserve’s chairman, Alan Greenspan, claimed that it is far from obvious that a bubble, even if identified early, can be pre-empted by a central bank without inducing a substantial contraction in the economy, but conceded that better models…
Op Risk Looks Back... To the 18th Century
The 300-year-old statistical methods of Thomas Bayes are experiencing a renaissance.
US central banker urges pillar 3 action now in light of scandals
Recent accounting scandals mean international banks should start improving their disclosure of risks and capital adequacy now and not wait for the pillar 3 disclosure provisions of the Basel II bank accord to take effect in late 2006, a senior US central…
Basel II models have little relevance for developing countries, US banker says
Banking supervisors in developing countries should focus on the risk environment in which banks operate because relying on banks to measure their own safety and soundness may give little useful information about a banking sector, a senior US central…
Risk managers leapfrog lending officers in bank hierarchy, says Greenspan
US Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan said risk managers are now overtaking loan officers in the decision-making hierarchy at financial institutions, with new quantitative risk management techniques a key factor behind this transition.
US swap spread narrowing set to continue
US swap spreads narrowed during the year’s first week of trading. But despite anticipation that the Fed will soon discontinue cutting interest rates, spreads will continue to be tight over the next few months, according to economic research from JP…
Op risk capital charge difficult to devise in imperfect Basel II, says US central banker
NEW YORK - The lack of an agreed methodology and credible loss data has made it extremely difficult to devise an operational capital risk charge under the terms of the Basel II bank capital accord, a senior US central banker acknowledged in mid-October.
Preparing for the worst
Small and medium-sized banks in the US and Europe are bracing themselves for Basel II. Gallagher Polyn examines how these institutions plan to adapt to the new Accord.
Fed arranges swap deals to smooth liquidity
The US Federal Reserve has agreed temporary swap arrangements with the European Central Bank (ECB), the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada designed to help international banks meet any shortfall of dollars needed to settle market positions created by…
The Op Risk questions which US banks must answer
US banking regulators want US banks to review and comment on all aspects of the new Basel capital adequacy accord proposed by global banking supervisors. The deadline for receiving comments is May 31, 2001.