Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems

The Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems (CPSS) contributes to strengthening the financial market infrastructure through promoting sound and efficient payment and settlement systems.

It serves as a forum for the central banks of the Group of Ten countries (G10), monitoring and analysing developments in domestic payment, settlement and clearing systems as well as in cross-border and multicurrency settlement schemes.

Since June 2005 Timothy F Geithner, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, has chaired the Committee.

The CPSS undertakes specific studies in the field of payment and settlement systems at its own discretion or at the request of the G10 Governors. Working groups are set up as required. In recent years the Committee has developed relationships with other central banks, particularly those of emerging market economies, in order to extend its work outside the G10.

Through the publication of the Core principles for systemically important payment systems, the CPSS/IOSCO Recommendations for securities settlement systems and the CPSS/IOSCO Recommendations for central counterparties, the Committee has contributed to the set of standards, codes and best practices that are deemed essential for strengthening the financial architecture worldwide.

The Committee publishes various reports covering large-value funds transfer systems, securities settlement systems, settlement mechanisms for foreign exchange transactions, clearing arrangements for exchange-traded derivatives and retail payment instruments, including electronic money. The 'Red Book' on payment systems, which provides extensive information on the most important systems in the CPSS countries, is periodically revised and a statistical update of the data it contains is published each year.