The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group updated its endorsement status after the Accounting Regulatory Committee backed amendments to the IAS 28 fair value option for associates and joint ventures. The changes address divergent interpretations affecting IFRS 18 classification and will apply when entities first use IFRS 18 from Jan. 1, 2027, subject to EU scrutiny, with earlier application permitted.

The National Bank of Moldova reviewed progress on aligning financial legislation with EU rules during meetings with European Commission and European Central Bank officials. SEPA processed 1.1 million transfers in its first 11 months, while the MIA instant payment system surpassed 1 million users.

The National Bank of Moldova has completed the first stage of the European Banking Authority’s assessment of Moldova’s prudential equivalence with the EU and is moving through the next stages. Governor Anca Dragu also reviewed reforms covering banking supervision, capital movements, payment systems and central bank independence with European Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque.

The European Central Bank finds that speeches and interviews between Governing Council meetings can move financial markets as much as formal policy announcements, especially at longer interest-rate maturities. A new database covering about 5,000 inter-meeting events also provides more precise estimates of how monetary tightening affects euro area inflation and unemployment.

The European Central Bank has launched an assessment with the Central Bank of Brazil into the feasibility of linking TIPS with Pix. A potential connection could support faster and lower cost instant payments between the euro area and Brazil and forms part of the Eurosystem’s wider cross border payments strategy.

BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank found Germany’s smaller banks resilient in aggregate, with their Common Equity Tier 1 ratio falling 3.8 percentage points to 14.6% under severe stress. Several dozen institutions would breach capital requirements, but fewer than in 2024. A revised threshold for Pillar 2 Guidance is expected to reduce the number receiving additional capital recommendations by about 40%.

The International Accounting Standards Board has completed technical discussions on revisions to IAS 28 intended to clarify the equity method and reduce diversity in practice. The revised standard is expected in the first half of 2027 and will apply from Jan. 1, 2029, with early application permitted.

Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission enforcement chief Michael Duignan advocated using early guidance, voluntary resolutions and settlements to secure faster enforcement outcomes and investor redress. He cited previously announced sponsor controls and settlements providing HKD 1 billion in the China Evergrande matter and up to HKD 1.5 billion in the Giordano case. Legislative drafting continues on conditional measures as an alternative to trading suspension.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore unveiled initiatives to prepare financial sector employees for AI driven job changes. Under the new IBF AI Workforce Co-Lab, 23 institutions will train more than 80,000 Singapore employees in critical AI skills by 2028 and develop role specific pathways for leaders, wealth managers and operations staff. Additional measures cover job redesign, career transitions and AI training for undergraduates.

Ukraine's National Securities and Stock Market Commission Chair Oleksii Semeniuk outlined how securitization could release capital for new lending and attract long-term private funding for Ukraine's economy and reconstruction. Following Parliament's adoption of the securitization and covered bonds law, market development will require secondary rules, suitable assets, issuers, investors, professional infrastructure and trust in the instruments.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development recommends expanding microinsurance and micro-catastrophe bonds to narrow Emerging Asia’s disaster protection gap. It calls for enabling regulation, simpler approvals, appropriate capital treatment, stronger local risk data and greater community involvement. Smaller catastrophe bond issuances and growing microinsurance coverage indicate scope to extend protection to households, small businesses and local governments.

The Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority has required consumer finance companies to build technology linking their databases to the authority, with governing controls due within six months. The systems must provide customer and solvency data, including real-time purchase information and classifications of repayment performance, to support closer supervision and earlier risk detection.