On December 17, 2009, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) published its much-anticipated proposals for strengthening the resilience of the banking sector and the international framework for liquidity risk management. The proposals are wide ranging and will have a significant impact on banks and other regulated financial institutions.

The global financial system needs better supervision, but this should not come at the expense of local regulatory expertise and participation in decisions that affect individual countries.

Ecuador's private banks are up in arms about the effects of government intervention on their profits. The country's finance minister, however, rejects such accusations, saying that the relationship between bank and customer was in need of a rebalancing. Writer Rodrigo Amaral in Madrid

Having emerged from years of civil war, Sri Lanka is in a position to address its long-term economic development and infrastructural regeneration. The country's central bank governor discusses his monetary policy for 2010 and explains how it will work alongside the government's reform plans. Writer Michelle Price

State-owned development bank Vnesheconombank became a vital tool for the Russian government to combat the financial crisis, not only at home but also in neighbouring countries. The bank's chairman explains how it is exiting the assistance phase and preparing a long-term role in the economy. Writer Philip Alexander

Poland has emerged as the most resilient economy in the EU during the global slowdown. However, The Banker's European Finance Minister of the Year is determined to stay ahead of the pack, and is now prioritising bringing down the country's budget deficit. Writer Philip Alexander

Institutionalising a process by which good ideas and technology meet to create profit-generating products and services is the central task of Citi Global Transaction Service's innovation programme, led by the bank's chief innovation officer, Gary Greenwald.

Many thought the revolution in mobile banking would be a long time coming. They were wrong. By Chris Skinner