One Hundred and Thirty Years of Central Bank Cooperation: A Bis Perspective

46 Pages Posted: 20 Sep 2007

See all articles by Claudio E. V. Borio

Claudio E. V. Borio

Bank for International Settlements (BIS) - Research and Policy Analysis

Gianni Toniolo

University of Rome Tor Vergata - Faculty of Economics; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); Duke University - Department of Economics

Date Written: February 2006

Abstract

With the insight of 130 years of history, this paper tries to answer three questions: how did changing international monetary and financial conditions shape the targets and tools of central bank cooperation? What factors influenced its intensity? Did a structured organisation, such as the BIS, make a difference to its effectiveness? We show that while central bank cooperation through history was ultimately directed to ensuring monetary and financial stability, the conception of these objectives, the relationship between the two, the balance in their pursuit, and the strategies followed evolved over time reflecting changes in the monetary and financial environment as well as in the intellectual climate. In turn, the intensity of central bank cooperation was influenced by the state of international relations, the prestige and degree of autonomy of central banks and the technical nature of the issues requiring cooperation. We also argue that the BIS made a material difference, at least when conditions allowed.

Keywords: central bank, cooperation, Bank for International Settlements (BIS), monetary and financial stability, gold standard, Bretton Woods

JEL Classification: E50, F02, N10, N20, N40

Suggested Citation

Borio, Claudio E.V. and Toniolo, Gianni, One Hundred and Thirty Years of Central Bank Cooperation: A Bis Perspective (February 2006). BIS Working Paper No. 197, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=891902 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.891902

Claudio E.V. Borio (Contact Author)

Bank for International Settlements (BIS) - Research and Policy Analysis ( email )

CH-4002 Basel, Basel-Stadt
Switzerland

Gianni Toniolo

University of Rome Tor Vergata - Faculty of Economics ( email )

Via Columbia n.2
Rome, rome 00100
Italy
+39 06 7259 5734 (Phone)
+39 06 202 0500 (Fax)

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

London
United Kingdom

Duke University - Department of Economics ( email )

213 Social Sciences Building
Box 90097
Durham, NC 27708-0204
United States

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