We Didn’t Start the Fire: Effects of a Natural Disaster on Consumers’ Financial Distress Staff working paper 2023-15 Anson T. Y. Ho, Kim Huynh, David T. Jacho-Chávez, Geneviève Vallée We use detailed consumer credit data to investigate the impact of the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire, the costliest wildfire disaster in Canadian history, on consumers’ financial stress. We focus on the arrears of insured mortgages because of their important implications for financial institutions and insurers’ business risk and relevant management practices. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C2, C21, D, D1, D12, G, G2, G21, Q, Q5, Q54 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Household and business credit, Structural challenges, Climate change
The Rise of Non-Regulated Financial Intermediaries in the Housing Sector and its Macroeconomic Implications Staff working paper 2017-36 Hélène Desgagnés I examine the impact of non-regulated lenders in the mortgage market using a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model. My model features two types of financial intermediaries that differ in three ways: (i) only regulated intermediaries face a capital requirement, (ii) non-regulated intermediaries finance themselves by selling securities and cannot accept deposits, and (iii) non-regulated intermediaries face a more elastic demand. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E3, E32, E4, E44, E47, E6, E60, G, G2, G21, G23, G28 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk, Household and business credit, Models and tools, Economic models
The Relative Benefits and Risks of Stablecoins as a Means of Payment: A Case Study Perspective Staff discussion paper 2022-21 Annetta Ho, Sriram Darbha, Yuliya Gorelkina, Alejandro García Our paper contributes to the discussion about the utility of stablecoins for retail payments through an objective, evidence-based approach that compares stablecoins with traditional retail payment methods. The paper also provides insights that could be useful in the design of central bank digital currencies. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers JEL Code(s): D, D7, D78, O, O3, O38 Research Theme(s): Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures, Retail payments
The Bank of Canada’s “Horse Race” of Alternative Monetary Policy Frameworks: Some Interim Results from Model Simulations Staff discussion paper 2021-13 José Dorich, Rhys R. Mendes, Yang Zhang Bank of Canada staff are running a “horse race” of alternative monetary policy frameworks in the lead-up to 2021 renewal of the Bank’s monetary policy framework. This paper summarizes some interim results of model simulations from their research. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers JEL Code(s): E, E2, E27, E3, E4, E5, E52, E58 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Monetary policy framework and transmission
The Effect of Oil Price Shocks on Asset Markets: Evidence from Oil Inventory News Staff working paper 2020-8 Ron Alquist, Reinhard Ellwanger, Jianjian Jin We quantify the reaction of U.S. equity, bond futures, and exchange rate returns to oil price shocks driven by oil inventory news. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): D, D8, D83, E, E4, E44, G, G1, G14, G15, Q, Q4, Q41, Q43 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, International markets and currencies, Market functioning, Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures
Lending Standards, Productivity and Credit Crunches Staff working paper 2019-25 Jonathan Swarbrick We propose a macroeconomic model in which adverse selection in investment drives the amplification of macroeconomic fluctuations, in line with prominent roles played by the credit crunch and collapse of the asset-backed security market in the financial crisis. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E2, E22, E3, E32, E4, E44, G, G0, G01 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Household and business credit, Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Markov‐Switching Three‐Pass Regression Filter Staff working paper 2017-13 Pierre Guérin, Danilo Leiva-Leon, Massimiliano Marcellino We introduce a new approach for the estimation of high-dimensional factor models with regime-switching factor loadings by extending the linear three-pass regression filter to settings where parameters can vary according to Markov processes. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C2, C22, C23, C5, C53 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Economic models, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
The Neutral Rate in Canada: 2018 Estimates Staff analytical note 2018-22 Xin Scott Chen, José Dorich The neutral nominal policy rate serves as a benchmark for assessing the degree of monetary stimulus and provides a medium- to long-run anchor for the policy rate. Since quantitative measures of the neutral rate are subject to considerable uncertainty, Bank staff rely on four different approaches to estimate the Canadian neutral rate. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes JEL Code(s): E, E4, E40, E43, E5, E50, E52, E58, F, F4, F41 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Monetary policy framework and transmission
Canadian Bitcoin Ownership in 2023: Key Takeaways Staff discussion paper 2025-4 Daniela Balutel, Marie-Hélène Felt, Doina Rusu The Bitcoin Omnibus Survey is an important tool for monitoring Canadians’ awareness and ownership of bitcoin and other cryptoassets over time. In this paper, we present data highlights from the 2023 survey. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers JEL Code(s): C, C8, C81, E, E4, O, O5, O51 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech
The Trend Unemployment Rate in Canada: Searching for the Unobservable Staff working paper 2019-13 Dany Brouillette, Marie-Noëlle Robitaille, Laurence Savoie-Chabot, Pierre St-Amant, Bassirou Gueye, Elise Nelson In this paper, we assess several methods that have been used to measure the Canadian trend unemployment rate (TUR). We also consider improvements and extensions to some existing methods. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C5, C52, C53, E, E2, E24, E27 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Economic models, Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures, Real economy and forecasting