Mr Brian Quinn, an Executive Director of the Bank, discusses some of the issues involved in the management and adequacy of banking liquidity. Reviewing recent trends, he argues that standards of liquidity have probably been declining under competitive and regulatory pressures, notably in the case of international banks; while a riskier environment and new financial instruments can generate unexpected liquidity pressures. These developments are likely to stimulate efforts to arrive at a common system of liquidity measurement; however, an agreed minimum standard seems some way off. Mr Quinn goes on to examine the problems of the setting of a liquidity requirement and explains the evolution of the UK approach towards renewed emphasis on the concept of a stock of liquidity as a supplement to the maturity profile.
The management of liquidity - Speech by Mr Brian Quinn