Global banks' dollar funding needs and central bank swap lines

Key takeaways

• At $13 trillion, the gross dollar liabilities of banks headquartered outside the United States at end-2019 were nearly as high as before the Great Financial Crisis. Most of their dollar funding was booked outside the United States.
• We measure non-US banks' short-term dollar funding needs by comparing short-term dollar liabilities (including off-balance sheet FX swaps) with holdings of liquid dollar assets.
• The scale of the central bank swap lines are of similar magnitude to banks' short-term dollar funding needs. Swap line usage peaked in May at $449 billion and has subsided since. However, dollar funding needs of corporates may yet reveal a broader need for dollars outside the banking system.

Online appendix

The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the BIS or its member central banks.