Fritz Zurbrügg: After the minimum exchange rate – new monetary policy challenges Speech by Mr Fritz Zurbrügg, Member of the Governing Board of the Swiss National Bank, at the Money Market Event, Zurich, 26 March 2015. *  *  *  The speaker would like to thank Dirk Faltin for his valuable support in preparing this speech. He also thanks Marco Huwiler and Peter Kuster for helpful comments. Accompanying charts can be found at the end of the speech. Ladies and gentlemen A warm welcome to our traditional Money Market Event in Zurich. We are delighted that so many of you accepted our invitation to attend. A year ago at this gathering, I spoke to you about the Swiss National Bank’s (SNB) investment policy. At the time, I touched only peripherally on monetary policy and the minimum exchange rate of CHF 1.20 per euro. It will come as no surprise to you that this year I have decided to devote my talk exclusively to monetary policy. On 15 January of this year, the SNB discontinued the minimum exchange rate to the euro. This step attracted a good deal of attention around the globe and triggered dramatic price movements on the financial markets for a short time. It has significant implications for large sections of Switzerland’s economy. For the SNB, too, the decision to discontinue the minimum exchange rate was a momentous one. I would like to take this opportunity to explain our rationale for discontinuing the minimum exchange rate in more detail.
Denis Beau: Financial markets - driving innovation and connectivity Opening remarks by Mr Denis Beau, First Deputy Governor of the Bank of France, at the Paris Financial Seminar, co-organised by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Paris Europlace, Hong Kong, 16 January 2019. * * * Ladies and Gentlemen, I am very pleased to open this seminar jointly organised by Paris Europlace and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). A new year is usually the time when we regain confidence in the future and in our collective ability to prepare for it. ***  However there are many uncertainties weighing on the global economic outlook. In Europe, there are still many uncertainties about the outcome of Brexit negotiations and the vote over the withdrawal agreement. Caution requires that we all be prepared for a no-deal scenario. Public authorities and most importantly market participants have all prepared serious contingency plans to address and master the cliff-edge risks associated with such a no-deal scenario. As a result, we can expect that those risks will be appropriately managed, without financial stability implications, should such a scenario occur. Outside Europe, global trade tensions are also generating additional uncertainties. Protectionism can indeed be a temptation, but in my view it should not be an option. Let’s be clear: our economies are increasingly integrated, and research conducted at the Banque de France suggests that a rise in protectionism on a large scale (i.e. a generalised trade war scenario) would have a negative impact on global growth.