What happens when an academic researcher becomes a policymaker? Recently, President Anthony Santomero shared some thoughts on this topic with members for the Downtown Economists Club in New York City. In particular, he talked about several conundrums he's encountered since moving from the...

Should monetary policymakers in the U.S. adopt explicit inflation targeting? After all, the Fed has steadily reduced inflation over the past 25 years without resorting to an explicit inflation target. But having achieved price stability, we must now deal with the matter of maintaining it. In...

The answer, says Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Anthony Santomero, is yes, no, and maybe. Yes, the government must absorb some of the risks inherent in the banking system in order to maintain the system's stability. No, regulations that ignore the self-interested reactions of...

President Anthony M. Santomero reflects on the economic challenges and changes during his tenure as president over the past six years and summarizes some of the Bank’s accomplishments.

President Anthony Santomero points out that conducting a successful monetary policy presents real-world challenges, such as evaluating where the economy is, where it is going, and where it should be going. But how do monetary policymakers make decisions about the economy in a world with...

The financial system is regulated to achieve a wide variety of purposes. However, the objective that distinguishes financial regulation from other kinds is that of safeguarding the economy against systemic risk. Concerns regarding systemic risk focus largely on banks, which traditionally have...

The role of the insurance industry in the retirement assets market is examined. The popular image of the industry as one in decline is scrutinized by drawing upon various governmental and industry data sources.<p> <p>Our examination begins with the traditional area of corporate pensions, specifically,...</p></p>

The virtual collapse of several Asian markets has triggered a series of aftershocks in the global financial markets. From the alleged contagion that spread the crisis to Russia and South America to the de facto collapse of Long-Term Capital Management (LTCM), the repercussions of these events...

Depository institutions play a crucial role in an economy. They create assets to finance a portion of government spending, i.e. deficits, and to support private sector expenditures for everything from plant and equipment to consumer durables. They also and simultaneously serve as a repository...

The loan commitment or credit line is today the most pervasive arrangement in bank commercial lending. Due to their increased prevalence, credit lines have come under increased regulatory scrutiny, especially as risk-based capital requirements have been imposed on banks in recent years.<p> <p>Two main...</p></p>