A New Approach to Estimating Portfolio-Balance Models of the Yield Curve Staff working paper 2026-33 Antonio Diez de los Rios Portfolio-balance models of the yield curve are notoriously hard to estimate. This paper offers a simple, two-step estimation approach that can be implemented with standard term structure estimation methods. In our application to U.S. Treasury data, our method recovers economically interpretable drivers of the yield curve. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E4, E43, E44, G, G1, G12, H, H6, H63 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Funds management, Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods
Hedge funds and bond market liquidity dynamics at the onset of the 2026 Middle East conflict Staff analytical paper 2026-42 Vincent Meh, Jabir Sandhu, Andreas Uthemann We investigate whether hedge funds contributed to Government of Canada bond market illiquidity at the onset of the Middle East war in early 2026. We find no evidence they did. Hedge funds remained active in primary auctions, while their secondary market trading remained broadly consistent with their usual relative-value strategies. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): G, G0, G01, G1, G12, G14, G2, G23, G24 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Funds management, Market functioning
Uncovering the use of haircuts in the Canadian repo market Staff analytical paper 2026-39 Sadia Anum, Jabir Sandhu, Adrian Walton We show that haircuts are rarely used in the Canadian dealer-to-client repo market and their usage did not increase materially during past stress events. Usage is concentrated among wealth managers and some foreign official institutions, likely reflecting regulatory or internal requirements. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): G, G0, G01, G1, G18, G2, G23, G28 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk, Financial system regulation and oversight
Tracking Heterogeneous Spending Patterns with Credit Card Microdata Staff analytical paper 2026-38 Jia Qi Xiao, Jackson Reid, Joey Daniels We present a measure of account-level credit card spending constructed using credit bureau microdata, capturing monthly spending for approximately 80% of adults in Canada. Our measure offers higher frequency than other publicly available consumption metrics, and can be disaggregated by age, geographic location and credit history. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): C, C5, C55, C8, C81, D, D1, D14, E, E2, E21, E3, E32, G, G5, G51 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Financial system regulation and oversight, Household and business credit, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Non-bank financial intermediation: Canada’s submission to the 2025 global monitoring report Staff analytical paper 2026-37 Thomas Thorn, Sylvia Xie We share insights about non-bank financial intermediation in Canada in 2024. These data were collected as part of the Bank of Canada’s contribution to the Financial Stability Board’s Global Monitoring Report on Non-Bank Financial Intermediation. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): G, G2, G21, G22, G23 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk
From Stress to Strategy: How Banks Balance the Scales Staff working paper 2026-26 Ruben Hipp, Javier Ojea Ferreiro This paper develops a stress-testing framework in which banks strategically adjust their balance sheets in response to regulatory constraints and market conditions. Applied to Canada’s largest banks, it quantifies the effects of macroprudential policies on lending and identifies systemic vulnerabilities through reverse stress testing. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C6, C63, C7, C73, G, G2, G21, G3, G32, H, H1, H12 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk, Models and tools, Economic models
Time-Inconsistent Manager Incentives and Capital Formation Staff working paper 2026-25 José-Víctor Ríos-Rull, Josef Schroth, Tamon Takamura, Yaz Terajima In a dynamic model with limited commitment, aggregate payout-based compensation induces managers to raise outside equity yet invest too little today. Per-share compensation eliminates the dilution motive and restores efficient investment, but it does so through slower capital accumulation that better protects incumbent shareholder value. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): G, G3, G32, G34, J, J3, J33 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market functioning, Models and tools, Economic models
The Boundaries of Bank Funding: The Case of Canadian Cash ETFs Staff analytical paper 2026-32 Jean-Sébastien Fontaine, Vincent Meh, Jayden Plener The rise and transformation of Canadian cash ETFs highlight that banking liquidity regulation affects more than bank resilience. By changing the relative attractiveness of deposits and securities, it can shape where asset managers allocate their cash across the financial system. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): E, E4, E44, G, G1, G11, G18, G2, G23, G28 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Funds management, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation
Central Clearing in Repo Markets: Do the Benefits Extend to Non-Dealers? Staff analytical paper 2026-31 Danny Auger, Adrian Walton This note examines whether central clearing of repos benefits non-dealer participants in Canadian fixed-income markets. While prior research highlights lower funding and balance-sheet costs for dealers, less is known about client effects. Understanding these broader implications is important for assessing central clearing’s contribution to market efficiency and resilience. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): E, E4, E44, G, G1, G12, G2, G21, G23 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure
Data Externalities, Market Power, and the Optimal Design of Central Bank Digital Currencies Staff working paper 2026-21 Yuteng Cheng, Jonathan Chiu, Mohammad Davoodalhosseini, Janet Hua Jiang This paper studies how a central bank should design a CBDC when private payment providers collect and monetize transaction data. It characterizes the optimal CBDC’s pricing and data policy, and shows how its effects on private payment use and total data depend on market power and data externalities. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): G, G2, L, L1, L14 Research Theme(s): Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures, Retail payments