"The book contains a collection of articles on the European Union and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), the Eurosystem, monetary law, central bank independence and central bank statutes as well as on financial law. The authors are current or former members of the Legal Committee of the ESCB (LEGCO). This book commemorates ten years of work by the Working Group of Legal Experts of the European Monetary Institute and by the LEGCO. It is dedicated to Mr Paolo Zamboni Garavelli, former Head of the Legal Department at the Banca d'Italia and member of LEGCO, who died in 2004."--Editor.
This report by the Central Bank Governance Group presents information intended to help decision-makers set up governance arrangements that are most suitable for their own circumstances. The report draws on a large body of information on the design and operation of central banks that the BIS has brought together since it initiated work on central bank governance in the early 1990s. The need to deal with chronic inflation in the 1970s and 1980s prompted the identification of price stability as a formal central bank objective and led to a significant reworking of governance arrangements. The current global financial crisis could have equally important implications for central banks, particularly with respect to their role in fostering financial stability. Although it is too early to know how central banking will change as a result, the report takes an important first step in identifying governance questions that the crisis poses.
When the term “governance” is associated with money, the mind goes directly to the traditional regulatory paradigm, i.e. the nation State-Central Banking-Currency. However, over time, there has been a steady erosion of the nation states’ sovereignty, also in the area of monetary law. This process of erosion is still working from within and externally to the nation State or, in other words, from upwards to downwards and vice versa. Moving from upwards to downwards, highly interconnected financial markets have urged the national competent authorities to improve the global level of coordination in terms of sharing regulatory standards, supervisory models and risk-monitoring procedures. In the downwards-upwards direction, the concept of sovereignty is critically revised from the perspective of new and alternative means of payment, thanks to the growth of e-commerce and mobile commerce and new complementary currency projects. The European Union is a feasible institutional context in which to investigate the development of the governance of money. Indeed, the EU, considered as a “unique economic and political partnership”, has not laid down a clear-cut definition of money, but the Member States have been carrying on a varying transfer of sovereignty and, in particular, of monetary sovereignty. This book examines money as a means of payment and a reserve of value within the framework of the European Union, with particular attention to community-based currencies. This book will prove an interesting and informative read for academics, students and policymakers with an interest in the development of monetary and financial systems.
The authors challenge widespread beliefs that business accounting practices are neutral and involve the mere reporting of objective data, revealing how easily balance sheets can be manipulated.
"This book is designed to provide the reader with an insight into the main concepts involved in the handling of payments, securities and derivatives and the organisation and functioning of the market infrastructure concerned. Emphasis is placed on the general principles governing the functioning of the relevant systems and processes and the presentation of the underlying economic, business, legal, institutional, organisational and policy issues. The book is aimed at decision-makers, practitioners, lawyers and academics wishing to acquire a deeper understanding of market infrastructure issues. It should also prove useful for students with an interest in monetary and financial issues."--Introduction (Pg. 20, para 8).
In recent years, revelations of grand corruption and the plunder of state assets have led to greater scrutiny of financial relationships with politically exposed persons (PEPs) senior government officials and their family members and close associates. Notwithstanding the efforts by many financial institutions and regulatory authorities to prevent corrupt PEPs from entering and using the financial system to launder the proceeds of corruption, there has been an overall failure in the effective implementation of international standards on PEPs. Implementation of an effective PEP regime is a critical component in the prevention and detection of transfers of proceeds of crime and, therefore, ultimately in the process of recovering them. 'Politically Exposed Persons: Preventive Measures for the Banking Sector' is designed to help banks and regulatory authorities address the risks posed by PEPs and prevent corrupt PEPs from using domestic and international financial systems to launder the proceeds of corruption. The book provides recommendations and good practices aimed at improving compliance with international standards and increasing supervisory effectiveness. It is an important tool for individuals, governments, financial and private sector companies, and international organizations involved in developing and implementing standards aimed at fighting corruption and money laundering, and trying to recover stolen assets and the proceeds of corruption.
This paper marks the launch of a new IMF series, Fintech Notes. Building on years of IMF staff work, it will explore pressing topics in the digital economy and be issued periodically. The series will carry work by IMF staff and will seek to provide insight into the intersection of technology and the global economy. The Rise of Digital Money analyses how technology companies are stepping up competition to large banks and credit card companies. Digital forms of money are increasingly in the wallets of consumers as well as in the minds of policymakers. Cash and bank deposits are battling with so-called e-money, electronically stored monetary value denominated in, and pegged to, a currency like the euro or the dollar. This paper identifies the benefits and risks and highlights regulatory issues that are likely to emerge with a broader adoption of stablecoins. The paper also highlights the risks associated with e-money: potential creation of new monopolies; threats to weaker currencies; concerns about consumer protection and financial stability; and the risk of fostering illegal activities, among others.
This book focuses on the enforcement of EU financial law on the national and supra-national levels. Emphasis is laid on the interaction between the EU and national levels (vertical interaction), as well as between the private, administrative, and criminal law levels (horizontal interaction). The book takes a multi-jurisdiction and inter-disciplinary approach and covers a range of issues that are highly topical, such as the new EU Anti-Money Laundering regime, and the ReNEUAL model for administrative law. Over the last few decades, EU financial law has grown exponentially. Virtually all these new rules and regulations require enforcement. However, the EU legislator generally has been reluctant to regulate enforcement at the national level, and often does not prescribe whether enforcement should take place through national criminal, administrative, or private law. This results in both practical and fundamental questions for the legal practitioner and the academic. This book addresses those questions. With contributions by leading academics and senior members of EU and national institutions, the book will be of interest to professionals dealing with financial law in their daily practice such as lawyers, bankers, policy makers, officers at supervisory authorities, and judges, but also for academics interested in fundamental questions of interaction between legal systems.
This paper argues that nonfinancial risk management is an essential element of good governance of central banks. It provides a funnelled analysis, on the basis of selected literature, by (i) presenting an outline of central bank governance in general; (ii) zooming in on internal governance and organization issues of central banks; (iii) highlighting the main issues with nonfinancial risk management; and (iv) ending with recommendations for future work. It shows how attention for nonfinancial risk management has been growing, and how this has amplified the call for better governance of central banks. It stresses that in the area of nonfinancial risk management there are no crucial differences between commercial and central banks: both have people, processes, procedures, and structures. It highlights policy areas to be explored.
Efforts to launder money and finance terrorism have been evolving rapidly in recent years in response to heightened countermeasures. The international community has witnessed the use of increasingly sophisticated methods to move illicit funds through financial systems across the globe and has acknowledged the need for improved multilateral cooperation to fight these criminal activities. The World Bank and International Monetary Fund have developed this guide to help countries understand the new international standards. It will hopefully serve as a comprehensive source of practical information for countries to fight money laundering and terrorist financing. It discusses the problems caused by these crimes, the specific actions countries need to take to address them, and the role international organizations, such as the Bank and the IMF, play in the process. This guide is a tool for countries to establish and improve their legal and institutional frameworks and their preventive measures according to international standards and best practices. -- From Foreword (p. ix).
