CBIRC to Grade Banks on Services for Small, Micro Enterprises

13/04/2020

Commercial banks that receive the lowest scores will be subject to targeted business improvement orders and enhanced supervision.

Capital / Liquidity

Bangladesh Bank Frees Up Additional Bank Lending Capacity

13/04/2020

Bangladesh Bank has increased lending and investment limits for conventional and Shariah banks, respectively, and further lowered the cash reserve requirement and repo rate.

Market Infrastructure

Myanmar Awards Licences to Seven More Foreign Banks

13/04/2020

The preliminary licences were awarded to three Korean banks, two Taiwanese banks, one Hong Kong bank and one Thai bank.

AML / KYC

FATF Grants Pakistan More Time to Address AML/CFT Deficiencies

12/04/2020

Pakistan will now have to submit its progress report in August instead of April, and the FATF review scheduled for June will instead take place in October.

Fintech / Regtech

‘Mox Bank’ Becomes Latest Virtual Bank to Launch HK Pilot

12/04/2020

‘Mox Bank’ – backed by Standard Chartered, PCCW, HKT and Trip.com – has become the third virtual bank to launch pilot services in Hong Kong.

China Probes Abuse of Epidemic Control Lending Programme

12/04/2020

Local authorities are directed to review the list of companies that received loans under a central bank initiative aimed at channelling low-cost funds into epidemic control.

Securities / Derivatives

SC Malaysia Asks Fund Managers to Ramp Up Liquidity Stress Testing

12/04/2020

Stress testing should be conducted more regularly to assess the impact on fund liquidity and redemptions, and to pre-empt liquidity shortages before they occur.

Australia Commences Coronavirus SME Guarantee Scheme

12/04/2020

The 50% government guarantee under the scheme enables lenders to offer loans to SMEs “cheaply and more freely compared to ordinary business loans”.

New Zealand: Mortgage Deferrals Will Not Impair Credit Ratings

10/04/2020

Banks have agreed with credit reporting agencies that customers who defer mortgage repayments due to Covid-19 will not have their credit ratings downgraded.