The Central Bank of the Philippines released Circular No. 1207, amending regulations for banks and non-bank financial institutions regarding eligible counterparties for Bangko Sentral issued securities. The update specifically pertains to trust entities transacting through investment management accounts.
The Central Bank of Iraq has completed its transition of external transfer activities from an electronic platform to Iraqi banks using foreign correspondent banks, aligning with international practices. The Central Bank will continue to support Iraqi banks in enhancing governance, compliance, and anti-money laundering efforts to bolster confidence among international and regional banks.
The Vietnam State Securities Commission has amended Vietnam’s Securities Law under Law No. 56/2024/QH15, effective 1 January 2025, with some requirements deferred to 2026. Key changes include expanding the definition of professional securities investors, adjusting conditions for public offerings, and strengthening public company rules. Amendments also clarify market infrastructure, including establishing a central counterparty in the cash securities market.
The India International Financial Services Centres Authority has issued the International Financial Services Centres Authority (Informal Guidance) Scheme, 2024, effective from 1 January 2025. The scheme outlines a framework for seeking informal guidance, with submission formats available on the IFSCA website.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC) participated in the 50th IOSCO Annual Meeting in Doha, engaging in discussions on ISSB sustainability disclosure standards, crypto-asset frameworks, and private finance vulnerabilities. The event included an IOSCO-OECD roundtable and sessions on retail investor protection. Egypt was announced as the host for the 51st IOSCO Annual Meeting in 2026.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia's Director General, Sou Socheat, led a delegation to the 43rd ASEAN Capital Markets Forum Chairs' Meeting and the ACMF International Conference 2025 in Vientiane, Lao PDR. The participation was approved by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Aun Porn Moniroth.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC) has released the list of candidates for the 29th Examination in the Securities Sector. The examination will take place on 9 May 2025 in Phnom Penh.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia has approved ACLEDA Bank Plc’s prospectus, authorizing the bank to offer debt securities to qualified investors under Decision No. 07/25 SERC/SSR.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia officiated the listing of SchneiTec Dynamic Co., Ltd., a special purpose vehicle for a 60MW solar power plant. It approved the issuance of a 15-year green infrastructure bond to qualified investors, aiming to raise KHR 196.64 billion (USD 49.16 million).
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia, alongside Royal Group Securities Plc., hosted its inaugural investor forum on "Long Term Investment in Securities Market" for civil servants. The event, held at the Non-Banking Financial Services Authority Building, attracted approximately 100 participants and featured speeches from SERC Director General Sou Socheat and other senior officials.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia supported a training programme on "Intelligence Investment" for professors and students, organized by Acleda Securities Plc with the Cambodia Securities Exchange and other partners. Presided over by SERC Deputy Director Seang Thirith, it covered investment basics, strategies, mutual fund investing, and trading account opening. About 100 participants attended, with speakers from SERC, CSX, Acleda Securities, and Banjaran Asset Management.
The Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia, in partnership with Canadia Securities Co., Ltd., hosted an investor education seminar in Phnom Penh on 20 March 2025. The event, supported by the Cambodia Securities Exchange and De Montfort University Cambodia, was attended by around 70 participants and chaired by SERC Director General Sou Socheat.
The Bank of England released Staff Working Paper No. 1,109, analyzing the impact of monetary policy on inflation expectations in the UK. The study finds that tightening shocks generally lower inflation expectations, with varied responses among households, firms, and financial markets. The paper highlights monetary policy's role in stabilizing inflation expectation dispersion 12–18 months post-shock.
The Philippine SEC has released draft rules to enhance fundraising and investment opportunities while strengthening investor protections. Key areas include oversight of crypto-asset service providers, Philippine Green Equity, seasoned issuer designation, and Sukuk issuance guidelines. The proposals aim to address consumer harms, systemic risks, and support sustainable and Islamic finance.
The Moroccan Capital Market Authority released its December 2024 report on share buy-back programmes and liquidity contracts, as per Decree No 2-02-556. Maroc Telecom reported buying 382,000 shares and selling 8,406 shares, while BCP's programme, running until October 2025, saw 107,884 shares purchased and 1,381,072 sold in December.
HM Treasury will maintain the exemption for pension funds from the clearing obligation for certain derivatives, with secondary legislation to prevent its expiration in June 2025. This decision follows stakeholder feedback on derivatives in liability-driven investment strategies and concerns over liquidity pressures from mandatory clearing. HM Treasury will review the policy with UK regulatory authorities.
The Central Bank of Eswatini revised its inflation projections for 2025–2027, citing higher food inflation due to adverse weather and risks from exchange rates and oil prices. The 2025 annual inflation forecast increased to 5.25% from 4.87%, with quarterly forecasts also adjusted upwards. For 2026 and 2027, forecasts were set at 4.80% and 4.57%, respectively, reflecting lower oil price assumptions and a slightly improved rand.
The Federal Reserve Board released a research paper developing predictive models for financial distress and closure of US colleges from 2002 to 2023. The study highlights pervasive missing data among institutions that close and demonstrates that machine learning models using comprehensive data outperform existing federal screening tools. Simulations suggest that demographic shifts could significantly increase college closures.
The Federal Reserve Board released a research paper introducing a framework for estimating time-varying impulse response functions in structural vector autoregressions using external instruments. The approach enhances kernel-based estimators for nonparametric time variation and provides asymptotic distributions, remaining usable with weak instruments. An empirical example evaluates the changing impact of global oil supply news shocks on US industrial production.
The Federal Reserve Board released research analyzing the impact of the Volcker Rule on trading revenue at the 21 largest US trading firms during the COVID-19 crisis. The study found that trading profits aligned with volume-driven fees and widening bid-ask spreads, suggesting the rule contributes to financial stability and reduced market shock exposure.
Australia's Department of the Treasury proposed the Scams Prevention Framework (SPF) after introducing the Scams Prevention Framework Bill 2024. The SPF mandates enforceable obligations on banks, digital platforms, and telecommunications providers to prevent, detect, and disrupt scams, with penalties up to AUD 50 million for non-compliance. It also establishes mechanisms for intelligence sharing and consumer redress, including a single external dispute resolution avenue via the Australian Financial Complaints Authority.
The European Central Bank's Macroprudential Bulletin outlines a framework to assess financial stability risks from leveraged alternative investment funds (AIFs), highlighting hedge funds and liability-driven investment (LDI) funds as most vulnerable. Using AIFMD, EMIR, and SFTR data, it reveals LDI funds' sensitivity to interest rate shocks and significant leverage in relative value hedge funds. Stress tests indicate substantial potential losses for LDI funds under interest rate shifts, with a broader European Systemic Risk Board analysis forthcoming.
The European Central Bank's Macroprudential Bulletin evaluates the Financial Stability Board's proposed minimum haircut framework for non-centrally cleared securities financing transactions, finding it would reduce leverage among euro area non-bank financial intermediaries. The analysis shows a 13% reduction in leverage on repo, with the largest borrowers experiencing a 42% decrease. The impact varies, with smaller declines for entities at the 75th and 90th percentiles.