Long-term investment, the cost of capital and the dividend and buyback puzzle

The paper argues that interest rates are at extremely low levels to support banks, and the search for yield has pushed the liquidity driven speculative bubble from real estate, derivatives and structured products markets into the corporate debt market. Equities have rallied strongly too. This asset cycle is certainly helping banks reduce hidden losses on illiquid securities and could also help reduce the cost of equity.

Czech Republic-OECD Conference on Financial Education

The Czech Republic-OECD Conference on Financial Education: "Promoting financial wellbeing through financial education", took place on 16-17 May in Prague, Czech Republic.

Bank lending puzzles: Business models and the responsiveness to policy

Lending by banks is failing to support economic recovery, despite unprecedented low interest rates and policies to compress the term premium. This study explores the business activities of banks, with a special focus on their lending behaviour and its responsiveness to unconventional monetary policy.

Statistiques de l'OCDE sur la dette de l'administration centrale 2012

Les gouvernements sont parmi les principaux émetteurs de titres d’emprunt sur le marché mondial des capitaux. Cette publication fournit des informations quantitatives sur les titres d’emprunt d’État en vue de répondre aux besoins analytiques des utilisateurs tels que les pouvoirs publics, les spécialistes de la gestion de la dette et les analystes de marché. Les statistiques sont présentées selon un plan d’ensemble normalisé pour

Also Available

• OECD Central Government Debt Statistics

Statement to the German Bundestag's Finance Committee Hearing on the Draft Bank-Separation Law

This statement by Adrian Blundell-Wignall and Paul Atkinson was presented to the German Bundestag's Finance Committee Hearing on the Draft Bank-Separation Law (Drucksache 17/12601) on 22 April 2013.

Government Debt Management and Operational Risk: A Risk Management Framework and its Application in Turkey

The management of operational risk is at the heart of efficient government, but countries often fail to apply good or even routine operational risk management practices and have difficulty in understanding how to put the processes in place. This paper sets out a widely-applicable and relevant policy approach and management framework and illustrates its practical application in Turkey.

13th Tokyo Roundtable on Capital Market Reform in Asia

The implications of the European sovereign debt crisis for Asia, the globalisation of the funding of investments and the contribution of long-term institutional investors to growth were amongst the topics explored at the 2013 Tokyo Roundtable.

Banking in a challenging environment: Business models, ethics and approaches towards risks

This article summarises discussions from a financial roundtable addressing concerns about structural flaws in the way banks operate and are being regulated and supervised in the wake of on-going banking sector problems involving financial fraud and banking scandals.

The future of the Asian economic and financial community

This article by OECD Deputy Secretary-General Rintaro Tamaki focuses on three issues that will be important in shaping the future of the Asian economic and financial community: trade, funding long-term investment and strengthened regional financial co-operation.

Cyprus: Further compressing the coiled spring

Adrian Blundell-Wignall blogs about the policy mistakes and failure of collective responsibility that led to the Cyprus crisis and proposes alternatives to the myopic, badly conceived plan proposed by the Troika.