Some 100 representatives from academia, the business community and the community of banking and financial supervisors attended the Annual Global Conference of the European Banking Institute (EBI), which was held at the Bundesbank’s headquarters building. The significance of the low-interest-rate environment for banks and the new competition from fintechs were among the topics covered at the conference.

Joachim Wuermeling took office as a member of the Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank on 1 November 2016. The 56-year-old Wuermeling succeeds Joachim Nagel, who left the Executive Board on 30 April 2016 before the end of his full term.

According to Yves Mersch, member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank, the Eurosystem's monetary policy is working. However, in remarks made before an audience of Bundesbank students, he warned that, at the same time, it was important to move away from the special situation created by the low interest rate environment as quickly as possible.

From 1 December 2016, a new face will represent the Bundesbank in São Paulo. Eike Berner will take over from Marc Rennert, whom Executive Board Member Andreas Dombret thanked for the past four years' work at a celebration to mark the occasion.

Compared with central and state government debt, local government debt in Germany is moderate. However, there are major disparities in this regard, with many local authorities finding themselves in dire financial straits. In the latest issue of its Monthly Report, the Bundesbank explains local government finances and warns that lax oversight of local government by state government and the absence of risk premiums when obtaining financing could cause trouble ahead.

Nowadays, a key part of trading on international stock markets is being performed by computer algorithms designed to minimise the time lag between orders and their execution. In the current issue of its Monthly Report, the Bundesbank studies what effects these increasingly rapid trading activities are having on the German capital market.

Italy's Minister of Economy and Finance, Pier Carlo Padoan, believes that the current political and economic uncertainty is one of Europe's most pressing problems. Speaking at the Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main, he explained that it was therefore essential to build up confidence in the long term.

Students from various countries discussed Europe and European monetary union with Jens Weidmann, President of the Deutsche Bundesbank, and Klaas Knot, President of De Nederlandsche Bank, at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

Contactless technology is another way that your card or mobile phone can communicate with a retailer's point of sale terminal. Contactless payment is a feature that is being included with an increasing number of debit, credit and prepaid cards. Some mobile phones can also be configured for contactless payments.

G7 Fundamental Elements of Cybersecurity for the Financial Sector endorsed by G7 finance ministers and central bank governors on the margins of IMF annual meeting in Washington, DC