Meginmál

Market activity

The main purposes of the Central Bank of Iceland’s market activities are to support monetary policy transmission, thereby supporting price stability, and to preserve financial stability.

The objective of transactions undertaken in support of monetary policy is to steer the supply of liquidity in circulation at any given time, affect interest rates in the interbank market for Icelandic krónur, and thereby promote the transmission of monetary policy across the yield curve in order to achieve the Bank’s price stability objective.

Decisions on applying the Central Bank's monetary policy instruments are taken by the Monetary Policy Committee; cf. Article 9 of the Act on the Central Bank of Iceland.

The objective of market transactions undertaken in support of financial stability is to provide counterparties access to liquidity in response to an unexpected and temporary liquidity shortage that could affect market efficiency or payment intermediation, or could otherwise cause instability.

Decisions on the application of the Central Bank’s financial stability policy instruments are taken by the Financial Stability Committee; cf. Article 12 of the Central Bank Act.

Rules on Central Bank of Iceland Facilities for Financial Undertakings

The Central Bank sets rules on transactions between financial institutions and the Bank. The rules currently in effect are the Rules on Central Bank of Iceland Facilities for Financial Undertakings, no. 1200/2019 (Icelandic), with subsequent amendments. The rules stipulate, among other things, who may be counterparties in transactions with the Central Bank, what types of transactions may take place, and what type of collateral the Bank deems eligible for loan facilities. The rules are reviewed and amended as needed.

Counterparties in transactions with the Central Bank

Counterparties in transactions with the Central Bank are commercial banks and savings banks. Icelandic branches of foreign financial institutions may also conduct transactions with the Central Bank.  Although financial institutions are authorised to conduct transactions with the Bank, they are free to choose whether or not to do so.

Overnight loans and current accounts

Overnight loans are loans that mature on the following business day. Their purpose is to ensure that interbank payment system participants always have a positive end-of-day balance. They are granted against collateral deemed eligible by the Central Bank, in accordance with the list of eligible collateral posted on the Central Bank’s website. Overnight lending rates are higher than other lending rates, and they form the ceiling of the Central Bank interest rate corridor and the upper limit for overnight rates in the interbank market for krónur.

Commercial banks and savings banks may hold current accounts with the Central Bank, which bear interest at the current account rate. However, the amount on which interest is paid is subject to certain restrictions, which are laid down in the Rules on Current Accounts and Non-Interest-Bearing Accounts with the Central Bank of Iceland, no. 1644/2022 (Icelandic).

Part A Government-owned institutions may hold current accounts with the Central Bank.

It is prohibited to overdraw accounts with the Central Bank.

Weekly market transactions

On Wednesdays, the Central Bank invites counterparties to participate in its market transactions.

For monetary policy transmission, market conditions determine whether the Bank offers loans or term deposits to financial institutions. The Bank adheres to the general rule of not offering loans and term deposits at the same time; however, in January 2022 the Bank opened a special liquidity window through which counterparties may take fourteen-day collateralised loans to preserve financial stability. In exceptional cases, the Bank may deviate from the general rule of not offering loans and term deposits simultaneously if it deems such deviation necessary.

Financial institutions’ liquidity position can change markedly from day to day, owing in part to activity on Treasury accounts. Monthly wage payments increase the amount of krónur in circulation, for instance, and payments of taxes and levies to the Treasury reduce it.

Policy instruments

The Bank may conduct transactions with counterparties via Central Bank facilities or in the markets. Differing circumstances can call for different types of facilities and policy instruments. Sometimes, facilities are not used for several years, yet they remain available if needed.

The Central Bank offers seven-day term deposits on Wednesdays. The interest rate on the deposits is the same as the Bank’s key interest rate and is 0.25 percentage points above the current account rate.  The deposits may be withdrawn before the end of the seven-day commitment period, subject to a redemption fee. After the market close on Tuesdays, the Central Bank announces the amount on offer the following day.  Counterparties wishing to participate in the auction submit bids, subject to a maximum of 60% of the total amount available.  If the combined amount of bids submitted exceeds the total amount on offer, the total amount is divided among the counterparties in equal proportions. Seven-day term deposits have been offered on a weekly basis since May 2014.

On Wednesdays, Central Bank counterparties are invited to apply for fourteen-day collateralised loans through the liquidity window, at an interest rate 0.5 percentage points above the Bank’s seven-day collateralised lending rate; cf. the press release of 14 January 2022. Interest rates on loans taken through the liquidity window are variable and are based on Central Bank rates at any given time. Central Bank counterparties may apply for a loan of up to 5 b.kr. versus collateral according to the Bank’s list of assets deemed eligible as collateral for Central Bank facilities. Counterparties are prohibited from taking loans if they simultaneously hold term deposits with the Bank. The Central Bank has offered fourteen-day collateralised loans on a weekly basis since January 2022.

The Central Bank imposes minimum reserve requirements on entities subject to such requirements, mainly deposit-taking institutions. The minimum reserve requirement is calculated as a percentage of the reserve base, which comprises deposits, plus bonds with a residual maturity of two years or less and issued by the financial institution concerned. The calculation is based on the average reserve base for the two months immediately preceding. The reserve amount is the requirement that an entity subject to reserve requirements must maintain on a daily basis over the reference period (reserve maintenance period), which extends from the 21st day of the month through the 20th day of the following month. Reserve requirements are satisfied via financial institutions’ reserve accounts with the Central Bank.  Reserve requirements are provided for in the Rules on Minimum Reserve Requirements, no. 585/2018 (Icelandic), with subsequent amendments.

The minimum reserve requirement is divided into a fixed reserve requirement and an average maintenance requirement. The fixed reserve requirement is fulfilled by deposit of the reserve amount to a separate fixed reserve account with the Central Bank, which is locked during each reserve maintenance period. The average requirement is held in the financial institution’s general reserve account (its current account with the Central Bank), whose average balance over each reserve maintenance period must equal or exceed the specified reserve amount.

Since 21 March 2020, only the fixed reserve requirement has been imposed. It is currently 3%.

The Central Bank can conduct transactions with market makers in the interbank foreign exchange market in order to mitigate exchange rate volatility as it deems necessary, to deepen the market, or to improve market efficacy. The Bank has both intervened and conducted regular transactions in the market. According to Item 8 of the Bank’s Monetary Policy Strategy, intervention in the foreign exchange market can enhance monetary policy efficacy in small open economies, with the aim of mitigating the short-term exchange rate volatility resulting from the shallowness of the market. Furthermore, if the Monetary Policy Committee is of the opinion that the exchange rate has deviated too far from fundamentals, it can decide that the Central Bank should intervene in order to affect the exchange rate. Regular foreign exchange transactions are transactions announced by the Bank in advance. The amount of krónur owned by market makers increases if the Bank buys foreign currency, and it decreases if the Bank sells currency. The Bank’s foreign currency transactions therefore affect liquidity in the banking system unless mitigating action is taken. The Central Bank publishes information on interbank foreign exchange market turnover in its Databank.

According to Article 20 of the Act on the Central Bank of Iceland, no. 92/2019 (Icelandic), the Bank may purchase or sell Government-guaranteed securities or other sound securities in the secondary market so as to achieve its monetary policy objectives. The Bank’s bond market transactions affect liquidity: the amount of krónur in the banking system increases if the Bank buys Treasury bonds in the market, and it decreases if the Bank sells them. The Central Bank has not been an active participant in the bond market but commenced such activity in May 2020, following an announcement by the Monetary Policy Committee. In August 2021, the Committee decided to stop submitting bids for the time being.

The Central Bank has other policy instruments at its disposal in addition to those mentioned above, chiefly to include the following:

  • The Bank may grant loans for both shorter and longer periods, but all loans that it grants are collateralised, as the Bank may not loan funds except against collateral that it deems acceptable.  The seven-day collateralised lending rate is at the centre of the interest rate corridor.
  • Repurchase (repo) transactions are contracts made between two parties who agree on the purchase or sale of securities that the Bank deems eligible for such transactions. A repo agreement has a predetermined maturity date, at which time the transaction is reversed.  The Central Bank has not engaged in such transactions.
  • The Bank can issue marketable securities in the form of bonds, bills, and certificates of deposit, and can sell them to counterparties. The securities are electronically registered at the securities depository, and their terms are set at the time of each issue.
  • The Bank can offer term deposits for short or long periods. Term deposits have the same impact on liquidity as bonds, bills, and certificates of deposit; i.e., the Central Bank draws liquidity out of the financial system.

The Central Bank and the Treasury

According to the Act on the Central Bank of Iceland, the Bank serves as the commercial bank for the Treasury.  Both the Treasury and various Government institutions are authorised to hold current accounts with the Central Bank. Interest rates on Government institutions’ current accounts are the same as those on financial institutions’ current accounts with the Central Bank. The Treasury is prohibited from overdrawing its accounts with the Central Bank.

Terms and Conditions

The terms and conditions for term deposits between the Central Bank and its counterparties can be found here.

Terms and conditions for term deposits(173.87 KB)

The Central Bank as lender of last resort

The Central Bank is authorised to grant liquidity facilities to specified credit institutions. These facilities may be in the form of overnight loans, collateralised loans, or repurchase (repo) transactions against collateral deemed eligible by the Central Bank. A list of eligible collateral is published on the Bank’s website.

Under distressed conditions, a financial institution may be unable to avail itself of conventional Central Bank facilities.

In order to safeguard the stability of Iceland’s financial system, the Bank may offer liquidity facilities to credit institutions against other collateral or subject to other terms than those usually set by the Bank; i.e., additional information about collateral, higher interest rates, and more stringent terms.

The Bank may also provide liquidity assistance to credit institutions when other funding options have been exhausted. Such facilities may be granted only if the credit institution’s liquidity needs are short-term.

The Central Bank’s’ roles include acting as a lender of last resort, in part because the Bank can theoretically create an unlimited amount of liquidity in the form of central bank money. Such last-resort lending is consistent with the Central Bank’s role in safeguarding financial stability and with its role as financial supervisor, which gives it access to information on the financial market and individual market participants.

In all cases, the Central Bank is authorised to grant loans only against collateral that it deems eligible.