Background

Updated: March 2022

In July 2004, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the European Central Bank, and each of the Group of Ten* (G-10) central banks announced their plans to support the development of a new publication focused on central bank theory and practice. Other central banks were invited to participate in this joint project, and there are now 54 sponsoring institutions.

From its initiation, the sponsors were committed to ensuring that the International Journal of Central Banking (IJCB) offer peer-reviewed articles of high analytical quality for a professional audience. The primary objectives of the IJCB are to widely disseminate the best policy-relevant and applied research on central banking and to promote communication among researchers both inside and outside of central banks.

Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., then Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, first proposed the idea of such a journal and discussed the concept with several BIS colleagues and with Ben S. Bernanke, then Chair of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, who agreed to serve as the initial managing editor. Charles Bean, then Chief Economist of the Bank of England, strongly supported the project, and the journal's governing body, comprising representatives from the sponsoring institutions, was established.

The journal's managing editor, co-editors  and associate editors coordinate solicitation and review of articles across a range of disciplines reflecting the missions of central banks around the world. While featuring policy-relevant articles on any aspect of the theory and practice of central banking, the publication has a special emphasis on research bearing on monetary and financial stability.

Managing editors of the journal and their affiliations during their terms as managing editor:

Christopher J. Waller
2022 - present, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

Luc Laeven
2020 - 2022, European Central Bank

Loretta J. Mester
2016 - 2019, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland

John C. Williams
2011 - 2016, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

Frank Smets
2008 - 2010, European Central Bank

John B. Taylor
2005 - 2007, Stanford University

Ben S. Bernanke
2005, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System


* The G-10 central banks are the Bank of Canada, Bank of England, Bank of France, Bank of Italy, Bank of Japan, Deutsche Bundesbank, Federal Reserve Board, National Bank of Belgium, Netherlands Bank, Sveriges Riksbank and Swiss National Bank