01.09.03

Nomination of Mr Yair Haim as Head of the Financial Stability Area

The Bank of Israel advises that on 1 June 2003 Mr Yair Haim assumed his role as Head of the Bank’s newly established entity for Financial Stability . This is one of the three areas placed by the Governor under the responsibility of Professor Avia Spivak, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Israel. Mr Haim’s appointment follows the work of the special team headed by Dr. Yitzhak Tal, set up by the Governor in the middle of 2001, which established the foundations for the Bank’s handling of the issue of financial stability.

More and more central banks throughout the world are establishing entities to deal with the issue of financial stability, and some countries have formally defined responsibility for financial stability as an important role of the central bank, alongside that for price stability. The following may be listed as factors that led central banks and international institutions, and particularly the IMF, to focus on the policy required to maintain financial stability: the closer relations between the various components of the financial system in each country; the central position in an economy occupied by the financial system, and the vital importance of its proper functioning and its stability for economic development; growing integration between financial markets throughout the world; and the worldwide outbreak of financial crises.

The Governor has decided that the new Financial Stability entity in the Bank of Israel, in conjunction with other departments in the Bank, will promote the stability of the financial system in Israel by:

  • developing tools that will enable the anticipation, prevention and resolution of financial crises;

  • gathering and analyzing data on the financial system, and constant monitoring of developments in it, focusing particularly on risks;

  • promoting reforms in the infrastructure of the financial markets and financial institutions;

  • coordinating with other authorities and entities responsible for other components of the financial system;

  • studying, researching and promoting knowledge of the subject.

Mr Yair Haim joined the Bank of Israel in 1979, and has held a number of positions in the Banking Supervision Department and in the Foreign Exchange Control Department; prior to his appointment as Head of Financial Stability he was Assistant Director of the Foreign Exchange Activity Department. Mr Haim (47) qualified in Business Management at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.


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