As a result, to achieve the FOMC’s desired level of the federal funds rate, the Open Market Desk at the New York Fed (Desk) estimated the amount of reserves to add or subtract that would intersect supply and demand at the target interest rate directed by the FOMC.5 All else equal, if the Desk wanted interest rates to go up, it slightly reduced the amount of reserves; if it wanted rates to go down, it slightly increased the amount.6 So long as the Desk was able to effectively forecast the appropriate amount of reserves to add or subtract, temporary open market operations provided it with an efficient means to add or subtract them, and therefore allowed for good control over the federal funds rate.7 These operations were conducted as repos or reverse repos secured by Treasury securities or other high-quality collateral.8 Back then, a typical day on the Desk focused on forecasting the demand for reserves created by reserve requirements and other sources, and projecting autonomous factors affecting reserves.9, 10 With very small amounts of excess reserves in the system, there was a straightforward relationship between rates in a range of money markets. Thus, the Desk was able to target a rate in one part of the unsecured market by conducting small secured operations as needed with primary dealers. Since the financial crisis, the environment has changed in two important ways.
Eddie Yue: New and important frontiers of financial development reached in 2017 Welcome remarks by Mr Eddie Yue, Deputy Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, at the Hong Kong-London Financial Services Forum 2017, Hong Kong, 18 December 2017. * * *  Opening Richard, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. I would like to welcome you all to the Hong Kong-London Financial Services Forum 2017, especially our guests travelling from London. This is already the seventh Forum since the first Hong Kong-London RMB Forum convened back in 2012. The Forum has proved to be an effective platform for the private sectors in the two places to collaborate and promote the use of RMB in the international markets as well as to grasp the associated business opportunities. Last year, London and Hong Kong decided to broaden the scope of the Forum to cover not only RMB business but also other new and important frontiers of financial development including infrastructure financing, the Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative, green finance, as well as Fintech. Looking back, it was a good move. As 2017 is drawing to a close, I think most of you would agree that B&R and fintech are the two hottest buzzwords in the financial services sector this year. RMB Internationalisation But that is not saying offshore RMB business has been all quiet in the past year. On the contrary, 2017 witnesses important milestones in Mainland China’s capital account liberalisation.