Category: Other financial sites. Country: Switzerland.
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is an international organisation which fosters international monetary and financial cooperation and serves as a bank for central banks. The BIS fulfils this mandate by acting as: a forum to promote discussion and policy analysis among central banks and within the international financial community, a centre for economic and monetary research, a prime counterparty for central banks in their financial transactions, agent or trustee in connection with international financial operations. The head office is in Basel, Switzerland and there are two representative offices: in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People`s Republic of China and in Mexico City. Established on 17 May 1930, the BIS is the world`s oldest international financial organisation. As its customers are central banks and international organisations, the BIS does not accept deposits from, or provide financial services to, private individuals or corporate entities. The BIS strongly advises caution against fraudulent schemes. The BIS offers a wide range of financial services to assist central banks and other official monetary institutions in the management of their foreign reserves. Some 140 customers, including various international financial institutions, currently make use of these services. On average, over the last few years, some 6% of global foreign exchange reserves have been invested by central banks with the BIS and as of 31 March 2005, total currency deposits amounted to SDR 150.6 billion. BIS financial services are provided out of two linked trading rooms: one at its Basel headquarters and one at its office in Hong Kong SAR. The Bank continually adapts its product range in order to respond more effectively to the evolving needs of central banks. Besides standard services such as sight/notice accounts and fixed-term deposits, the Bank has developed a range of more sophisticated financial products which central banks can actively trade with the BIS to increase the return on their foreign assets. The Bank also transacts foreign exchange and gold on behalf of its customers.
In addition, the BIS offers a range of asset management services in sovereign securities or high-grade assets. These may take the form of either a specific portfolio mandate negotiated between the BIS and a central bank or an open-end fund structure allowing two or more customers to invest in a common pool of assets. The BIS manages the Asian Bond Fund, an investment pool for 11 Asian and Pacific central banks. The BIS extends short-term credits to central banks, usually on a collateralised basis. From time to time, the BIS also coordinates emergency short-term lending to countries in financial crisis. In these circumstances, the BIS advances funds on behalf of, and with the backing and guarantee of, a group of supporting central banks. The Bank`s Statutes do not allow the Bank to open current accounts in the name of, or make advances to, governments.
Address: Centralbahnplatz 2, Basel, Phone: 41 61 280 8080 Fax: 41 61 280 9100
