Central Bank Mandates, Autonomy and Accountability

Ten years after the financial crises of 2008, the governance of central banks continues to be a critical area of debate-embedded in this are the key aspects of central bank independence, accountability and transparency. Accordingly, several key questions have emerged regarding the role, functioning and governance of central banks:¿ What should the key priorities of central banks be in terms of mandates?¿ Given these pressing real time mandates of central banks, how to make them more...
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Ten years after the financial crises of 2008, the governance of central banks continues to be a critical area of debate-embedded in this are the key aspects of central bank independence, accountability and transparency. Accordingly, several key questions have emerged regarding the role, functioning and governance of central banks:¿ What should the key priorities of central banks be in terms of mandates?¿ Given these pressing real time mandates of central banks, how to make them more strategically and operationally accountable while preserving their strategic and operational autonomy?¿ What implications do the above have for central bank governance and transparency of central bank operations?¿ How to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency and adaptability of central bank functioning, especially in terms of ensuring the development of a stable, inclusive and accountable financial sector?In this seminal work, Ramesh S Arunachalam-a professional with 30 years of multi-country experience in finance, technology and regulation-explores the above questions and provides pragmatic suggestions on how the autonomy of central banks can be preserved while at the same time ensuring that central banks remain accountable to the people at large in their respective countries.