Behaviour in the Canadian large-value payment system: COVID-19 vs. the global financial crisis Staff analytical note 2021-7 Alexander Chaudhry, Anneke Kosse, Karen Sondergard Unlike the 2008–09 global financial crisis, the onset of the COVID-19 crisis did not raise stress levels in Canada’s Large Value Transfer System. Swift changes to the Bank of Canada’s collateral policy and its large-scale asset purchase programs likely eased liquidity pressures in the system. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, E5, E51, E58, E6, E65 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Money and payments, Payment and financial market infrastructures
Payments on Digital Platforms: Resiliency, Interoperability and Welfare Staff working paper 2021-19 Jonathan Chiu, Tsz-Nga Wong This paper studies the business model choice between running a cash platform and a token platform, as well as its welfare and policy implications. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E4, E5, L, L5 Research Theme(s): Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures, Retail payments
Stablecoin Assessment Framework Staff discussion paper 2021-6 Alejandro García, Bena Lands, Dennis Yanchus We offer relevant authorities a three-step assessment framework they can use to understand, identify and quantify the risks associated with stablecoin and other cryptocurrency arrangements. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers JEL Code(s): D, D7, D78, D8, D81, G, G0, G01, G1, G18, O, O3, O38 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures
Estimating Policy Functions in Payments Systems Using Reinforcement Learning Staff working paper 2021-7 Pablo S. Castro, Ajit Desai, Han Du, Rodney J. Garratt, Francisco Rivadeneyra We demonstrate the ability of reinforcement learning techniques to estimate the best-response functions of banks participating in high-value payments systems—a real-world strategic game of incomplete information. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): A, A1, A12, C, C7, D, D8, D83, E, E4, E42, E5, E58 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures
Eggs in One Basket: Security and Convenience of Digital Currencies Staff working paper 2021-6 Charles M. Kahn, Francisco Rivadeneyra, Tsz-Nga Wong Digital currencies store balances in anonymous electronic addresses. This paper analyzes the trade-offs between the safety and convenience of aggregating balances in addresses, electronic wallets and banks. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, E5, E51, E58 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures
Safe Payments Staff working paper 2020-53 Jonathan Chiu, Mohammad Davoodalhosseini, Janet Hua Jiang, Yu Zhu In a cashless economy, would the private sector invest in the optimal level of safety in a deposit-based payment system? In general, because of externalities, the answer is no. While the private sector could over- or under-invest in safety, the government can use taxes or subsidies to correct private incentives. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, E5, E50, G, G2, G21 Research Theme(s): Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures, Retail payments
Security and convenience of a central bank digital currency Staff analytical note 2020-21 Charles M. Kahn, Francisco Rivadeneyra An anonymous token-based central bank digital currency (CBDC) would pose certain security risks to users. These risks arise from how balances are aggregated, from their transactional use and from the competition between suppliers of aggregation solutions. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, G, G2, G21 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial system regulation and oversight, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures
Predicting Payment Migration in Canada Staff working paper 2020-37 Anneke Kosse, Zhentong Lu, Gabriel Xerri Developments are underway to replace Canada’s two core payment systems with three new systems. We use a discrete choice model to predict migration patterns of end-users and financial institutions for future systems and discuss their policy implications. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C3, E, E4, E42, G, G1, G2, G28 Research Theme(s): Money and payments, Payment and financial market infrastructures, Retail payments
What do high-frequency expenditure network data reveal about spending and inflation during COVID‑19? Staff analytical note 2020-20 Kim Huynh, Helen Lao, Patrick Sabourin, Angelika Welte The official consumer price index (CPI) inflation measure, based on a fixed basket set before the COVID 19 pandemic, may not fully reflect what consumers are currently experiencing. We partnered with Statistics Canada to construct a more representative index for the pandemic with weights based on real-time transaction and survey data. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes JEL Code(s): D, D1, D12, E, E3, E31, E4, E42, E5, E52 Research Theme(s): Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures, Money and payments, Payment and financial market infrastructures
Liquidity Usage and Payment Delay Estimates of the New Canadian High Value Payments System Staff discussion paper 2020-9 Francisco Rivadeneyra, Nellie Zhang As part of modernizing its core payments infrastructure, Canada will replace the Large Value Transfer System (LVTS) with a new Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system called Lynx. An important question for policy-makers is how Lynx should be designed. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers JEL Code(s): C, C5, E, E4, E42, E5, E58 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Funds management, Money and payments, Payment and financial market infrastructures