RBA

The Reserve Bank today released a report on the functionality of, and access to, the New Payments Platform. The report presents 13 recommendations from the public consultation that the Bank has undertaken with input and assistance from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The recommendations, if fully implemented by NPP Australia (NPPA) and its participants, should address the issues ...

Following a review, the Reserve Bank has assessed that Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions (ADIs) using the Committed Liquidity Facility (CLF) can increase their holdings of high quality liquid assets (HQLA) from 25 to 30 per cent of the stock of HQLA securities. This change is possible because the volume of HQLA securities has risen over recent years. To minimise the effect on market functioning, the increase will occur at a pace of 1 percentage...

At its meeting today, the Board decided to lower the cash rate by 25 basis points to 1.25 per cent. The Board took this decision to support employment growth and provide greater confidence that inflation will be consistent with the medium-term target. The outlook for the global economy remains reasonable, although the downside risks stemming from the trade disputes have increased. Growth in international trade remains weak and the...

After consultation with industry, the Reserve Bank has decided to implement the proposals it put forward in February to vary Standards No 1 and No 2 of 2016 to improve the clarity and operation of the net compensation requirements of the Standards. The Bank will also implement its proposed transitional arrangement to the varied Standards. The Standards limit interchange fees in designated card payment systems. The net compensation requirements were...

At its meeting on Friday 24 May 2019, the Payments System Board discussed a number of issues, including: Least-cost routing of debit card transactions. The Board has been supportive of dual-network debit cards because they provide convenience and choice to both consumers and merchants and can help hold down payment costs. Reports from the Productivity Commission, the Black Economy Taskforce and the House of ...

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has written to the CEOs of several major Australian financial institutions regarding their preparations for the end of LIBOR. This initiative is strongly supported by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) and the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rate) is deeply embedded...

At its meeting today, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 1.50 per cent. The outlook for the global economy remains reasonable, although the risks are tilted to the downside. Growth in international trade has declined and investment intentions have softened in a number of countries. In China, the authorities have taken steps to support the economy, while addressing risks in the...

The Financial Markets Foundation for Children (FMFC) has provided funding for the appointment of a new Chair in Neonatal Paediatrics with responsibility for rapidly advancing knowledge and practice in the field of newborn health and improving life outcomes for babies. As a full Professor of Monash University, the new appointee will be responsible for leadership and strategic development of neonatal paediatric academic research at the...

The Reserve Bank and the Australian Payments Council (APC) today issued a consultation paper seeking stakeholder views on the migration of messaging used in some parts of the Australian payments system to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 20022 payments messaging standard. The Australian payments system comprises a number of payment services,...

Joint statement from the South Pacific Governor's Meeting[*] At a meeting in Auckland yesterday, the Governors of the nine central banks agreed a vision for the group to ‘collaborate to promote the prosperity and economic wellbeing of our member nations’. The governors started a project to explore how to improve access to, and lower the cost of, capital flows and international...