金融世界第 16 讲: 中央银行

在前几讲中我们介绍了 floating exchange rates 和 fixed exchange rates，浮动汇率与固定汇率。我们谈到了中央银行对市场进行干预会对汇率及经济活动产生的影响。

那么，什么是中央银行呢？它在一个国家的经济活动中扮演的是什么角色呢？在今天的节目中我们就要谈谈中央银行 central bank 或储备银行 reserve bank 的功能和职责。

各国中央银行在现代的经济活动中可以说扮演着举足轻重的角色。在欧洲，中央银行已经有几百年的历史。澳洲广播电台金融节目主持人巴里克拉克介绍说：

Central banks are key economic policy institutions in most modern economies. But around the world, the role and functions of central banks have been under challenge from changing fashions in monetary policy and form the deregulation and globalisation of financial markets. During its brief history, Australia's Reserve Bank has been required to act as banker to government, regulator of the financial system and administrator of monetary policy. 在大多数现代国家的经济中，中央银行是一个重要的机构。但是世界各国中央银行的角色和功能一直受到货币政策不断演变以及金融市场取消管制和全球化的挑战。在澳大利亚储备银行短暂的历史中，它被要求充当政府的银行、金融系统的调节人以及货币政策的管理者。

巴里克拉克在谈话中使用了这样一些词汇：

1 central bank 中央银行
2 reserve bank 储备银行
3 deregulation 解除管制
4 globalisation 全球化
5 regulator 管理者，调整者
6 administrator 管理人

澳大利亚墨尔本大学的银行史学家大卫梅里特对中央银行的职能也作了解释。他在谈话中用了这样一些词汇和短语：

1 exclusive 专门的，专有的，排他的
2 vitally important 极其重要的
3 lender of last resort 最后贷款者，为其它银行提供贷款的银行，这是中央银行的职能之一
4 commercial banks 商业银行
5 liquid assets 流动资产，指可以迅速变成现金而不会有价值损失或损失较小的资产
6 bail out 帮助...摆脱困境

现在我们听一遍大卫梅里特的谈话：

The central banks usually began their existence as a banker that dealt exclusively with the national government, that really provides credit to the government of the country and in return for so doing, gets particular privileges which quite often is a monopoly on the issue of paper money. 中央银行在问世之初通常都是只单独与各自政府打交道的银行，为政府提供信贷。作为交换，中央银行获得某些特权，通常是垄断货币的发行。

From that strength, as these banks become large and important they acquire, almost by natural process, a third and vitally important function and that is what we've called a lender of last resort. 借助这一实力地位，随着中央银行越来越庞大和重要，它们几乎是自然而然地获得了第三种功能，也就是我们所说的“最后贷款者”。
They cecome the banker for commercial bnaks. They're seen to be safe, other banks will put money on deposit with them. They become a leader of the banking community and in times of crisis it's this central bank that can assist bnaks who get into trouble. 它们成为商业银行的银行。它们被认为是安全的。其它银行会把钱放在中央银行作为存款。中央银行成为银行界的领袖。在遭遇危机的时候，正是中央银行能够为陷入困境的银行提供帮助。

Now, there's a price to pay to be in the club, to have a central banker, and that is usually there is a set of sort of informal rules grow up about the behaviour of the other banks. They will hold a certain amount of capital, they'll hold some of their liquid assets on deposit with the central bank. If you're going to be bailed out you have to abide by convention. 现在，要为参加这个俱乐部和拥有一个中央银行而出代价了。通常会产生一系列关于其它银行运作的非正式规则。它们需要保持一定数量的资本，需要在中央银行里存储一定的流动资产。若想得到中央银行的救助，就必需遵守规则。