Fundi Tshazibana: The reform of interest rates

Opening remarks by Ms Fundi Tshazibana, Deputy Governor of the South African Reserve Bank, at the Market Practitioners Group Forum, 7 November 2020.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Central bank speech  | 
13 November 2020

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning and welcome to the Market Practitioners Group (MPG) Forum.

The MPG is a joint public and private sector body that was established by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) to facilitate decision-making on matters relating to the reform of interest rate benchmarks in our country. Since its establishment in October 2018, the MPG has had various interactions with industry stakeholders and has set up substructures to craft the design of alternative interest rates in South Africa. The MPG also leads South Africa's transition to a new and more robust interest rate dispensation. Importantly, the work of the MPG and its substructures, which I will allude to and contextualise shortly, forms part of a global agenda to strengthen existing interest rate benchmarks and identify alternative near risk-free rates.