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From the UK's Brexit challenge and US unilateralism, to trade wars and European immigration concerns, the unifying theme that preoccupied liberal policy-makers in 2018 was the political threat to economic globalisation and how best to share the benefits of an interconnected world.
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The blockchain technology behind well-known crypto-assets contains enormous potential for efficiency-enhancing and cost-saving applications for digitally recording subscriptions, safe custody and trading activities. Less benignly, there are widespread fears that an untrammelled move into an uncharted investment territory could, in the event of malfeasance or malfunction, critically undermine confidence and restrict future innovation.
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The OMFIF Bulletin monthly review provides readers with a recap of the meetings that took place over the past month and provides a sample of the forthcoming meetings in the next six months. The December Bulletin review covers meetings in Singapore, London and Geneva. To learn more about OMFIF Meetings and Membership, please email enquiries@omfif.org
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The issue of central bank digital currencies has come to the fore over the last two years. Although a relatively new popular phenomenon, digital currencies have existed for decades. This report, a collaboration between IBM Blockchain World Wire and OMFIF, explains the purpose of wholesale central bank digital currencies, as well as the motivations and business case for central banks to adopt wholesale CBDCs
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The Absa Africa Financial Markets Index, produced by OMFIF, provides a toolkit for countries seeking to strengthen their financial markets infrastructure. It tracks progress on financial market developments annually across a range a countries and indicators. This year's edition extends coverage to three additional countries - Angola, Cameroon and Senegal - and pays special attention to policies to enhance market growth, including financial inclusion and investor education.
DownloadAnnegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the new leader of Germany's CDU, faces a complex struggle to establish a grip on power, writes David Marsh. She will pursue a more conservative path in key areas compared with still-Chancellor Angela Merkel, with consequences for France and policies to stabilise the euro.
The degree of uncertainty over the future path of government policy on Brexit calls to mind the days running up to Black Wednesday in September 1992, when the UK attempted to raise base rates twice to defend the pound before crashing out of the European exchange rate mechanism, writes Trevor Greetham.
It came as a surprise when US Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell said in a speech that there was no 'pre-set path' for interest rate increases. But his address capped a dovish turn in the panel, rather than breaking new ground. There were clues along the way, writes Darrell Delamaide.
The UK intends to remain a member of the EEA on the same grounds as Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. This approach could unite many different viewpoints in parliament because, first, the UK would maintain control, and second, it leaves longer-term trade policy issues to be settled later, writes Lord (David) Owen.
For the last Bulletin of 2018, contributors were invited to review the state of globalisation. They address the increased importance of the regulatory component in regional trade agreements, and how competition from local firms may be a greater threat to multinationals than trade wars between superpowers.
Memories of Buenos Aires may last longer than for some other G20 meetings. President Donald Trump behaved well. Expectations were exceeded insofar as worse outcomes were averted. Trade stood out as the dominant issue and it was a mixed bag, writes Mark Sobel.
African policy-makers must pursue accelerated reforms to the continent's financial markets, principally to raise capital to meet the region's significant funding needs, writes George Asante. To achieve universal energy access by 2025, as much as $55bn annually must be raised in domestic and international capital.
The promise of tokenisation lies in reducing remaining illiquidity discounts by creating tokens that represent partial ownership rights to underlying illiquid assets. Once the market's rules are written, tokenisation could change the nature of liquidity in the investment universe, writes Pierre Ortlieb.
A discussion with Ignazio Angeloni, Member of the Supervisory Board, European Central Bank
Mon 10 Dec 2018
DECEMBER | London
Roundtable with George Magnus, independent economist at the University of Oxford China Centre
Tue 15 Jan 2019
JANUARY | New York
A city lecture with Vítor Constâncio, vice-president of the European Central Bank who served from June 2010 – May 2018.
Wed 23 Jan 2019
JANUARY | London
A discussion with Tobias Adrian, Director of the Monetary and Capital Markets Department, IMF
Thu 24 Jan 2019
JANUARY | New York
Asset and reserve management seminar
Thu 31 Jan 2019
JANUARY
A seminar on strengthening financial stability through using new technology in central banking regulation and supervision.
Fri 15 Feb 2019
FEBRUARY | 08:30
The 2018 Absa Africa Financial Markets Index launched in Bali alongside the IMF-World Bank Group meetings. In its second year, the index is a premier indicator of the attractiveness of Africa’s capital markets, for use by investors and asset managers around the world.
Stock market volatility tends to reach its peak in October, underlined by famous crashes in 1929, 1987 and 2008. Cross-currents in the world economy make this October particularly pivotal, especially in the light of the tug of war between good news out of the US and bad news out of China.
Global growth and inflation figures, in addition to rising commodity prices and interest rates, point to the risk of staglation over the summer months. The geopolitical backdrop, and the threat of a US-China trade war, also has a whiff of stagflation about it.
The world is experiencing one of the longest economic expansions since records began and there's no end in sight, with muted inflationary pressures keeping interest rates low. Stock markets like this not too hot, not too cold 'Goldilocks' backdrop.
Global infrastructure financing has fallen short of its potential.Private sector investment and institutional investor capital are often raised as possible solutions for filling the infrastructure funding gap.
This month’s poll focuses on the UK’s top accountancy firms. Participants were asked: ‘With many people attributing at least some of the blame for the collapse of services firm Carillion to the ‘big four’ UK accounting firms, should their oligopoly on the audit market be reviewed?’
