Posts

Bank of England to loose independence? A wind to flow over others soon? Why an urgent revamp is necessary?

Image
  Article's Background I happened to read an article titled " Jeremy Hunt urged to review Bank of England’s independence" published in an international website " The Telegraph" on 20 April 2024  (read the article here) . This article is about a written request of 40 senior Conservative Party lawmakers demanding the UK Chancellor of Exchequer (Finance Minister) for a review of the monetary policy independence of the Bank of England (BOE). The request has given several reasons why the present BOE is not in the interest of the general public. During the past few decades, almost all country governments have followed the BOE model of central bank monetary policy independence. This independence means that the central bank has the freedom to use its policy instruments to control the inflation at low levels, irrespective of the rest of the economy and government policies. Sri Lanka is the latest (14 September 2023) to this independence list which has already created en

CB's new macroprudential - A rocket science for preventing bank runs? or Another bureaucratic profession of no benefit to the public?

Image
Article's Background The Central Bank (CB) released a 12-paged pamphlet on "Macroprudential Policy Framework" on 14 March 2024 (see the press release) (see Pamphlet) . According to its contents, the pamphlet spells out the policy framework that will be used to secure the CB's statutory object of financial system stability as set out in the section 6 of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Act, No. 16 of 2023. Therefore, the framework is to comply with the macroprudential authority in Sri Lanka vested with the CB as stipulated in the Part X of the Central Bank Act which provides for relevant macroprudential objectives, powers and instruments. Both legal provisions and pamphlet seem attempting to articulate that this macroprudential framework is like a rocket science to ensure the achievement and maintenance of the financial system stability in the country. Therefore, this short article is released to show that  relevant macroprudential professionals of the CB have no idea of

Currency crisis lessons from Zimbabwe - Currency is whose responsibility? Central banks or governments?

Image
  Article's Background The central bank of Zimbabwe launched a new currency, Zimbabwe Gold, on 5 April 2024 and demonetized the existing currency,  Zimbabwean Dollar. This is its sixth attempt to stabilize the country's currency and thereby the economy that have fallen from crisis to crisis for the past 25 years where the economy fell to poverty from the rich agriculture and mining in 2000s. However, the local currency system has collapsed where several foreign currencies formally operate as the legal tender and other functions of money. All circumstances underlying the collapse of the economy are connected with lapses in country governance system although there is a central bank like in other countries. Therefore, the purpose of the short article is to highlight the importance of the country governance system for the preservation of the trust in and stability of the national currency and its value to drive economic activities and living standards. Ethnic conflict and authorita