What future for the CFTC?

The reauthorisation of the US regulator should be a formality, but the combination of Dodd-Frank implementation and the MF Global failure have made for a deeper discussion of the agency’s future.

Nicolás Maduro

The world watches post-Chávez Venezuela

President Hugo Chávez revolutionised life for some of the poorest in Venezuela, but also placed a heavy burden of foreign debt on the country’s economy. How will his successor approach these issues?

Turkey's ambitious 10-year plan

Turkey has set itself some ambitious targets for the next 10 years, not least wanting to become one of the world's 10 largest economies. There are a number of obstacles that it must overcome first, however, with a significant savings gap, a deep current account deficit and a poor record in attracting foreign direct investment.

Size trumps regulation for beached whales

The Senate report into JPMorgan's 2012 losses on credit derivatives suggests new capital regulations are just making investment banking groups even more complicated to oversee. But perhaps regulatory confusion will eventually shrink 'too big to fail' banks.

Financial transaction tax misses the target

Certain EU member countries want banks to foot the bill for plugging the budget deficit they helped to cause. But the resulting tax looks set to hit the real economy most of all.

Threat of contagion: a protestor warns of the impact on the rest of the eurozone of Cyprus’ proposed deposit levy

Cyprus bail-in threatens to infect eurozone

The situation in Cyprus is at crisis point, as The Banker goes to press, with banks closed to prevent a run in what analysts are calling the eurozone’s muddiest crisis so far. How did it come to this?

cover story March 2013

Collateral: the hunt is on

More people need it, there might not be enough of it, and much of it is locked up and cannot get to where it needs to go. Collateral is in demand and the hunt is on.

Will sovereigns regulate their own ratings?

The eurozone crisis has precipitated intense scrutiny of the sovereign credit rating process, but the sovereigns themselves are hardly impartial judges.

How Monte dei Paschi made the wrong kind of history

How Monte dei Paschi made the wrong kind of history

Management, shareholders and regulators all seem to carry some of the blame for allowing Monte dei Paschi to acquire Antonveneta, which created uncontrollable risks for what had previously been one of Italy's more conservative banks.

Basel III reshapes trade finance

Basel III reshapes trade finance

As Basel III regulations come into play, banks looking for a quick fix to bulky balance sheets are divesting their trade finance assets, creating a gap in the market that investor groups and other alternative financiers are keen to fill.