Willy Chetwin - Advisor, Prudential Supervision Department
Fresh from the University of Otago with a BA in Classical Studies and BCom (Hons) in Economics, Willy Chetwin started as a graduate at the Bank in 2000. His time at the Bank has been spent in two teams.
“My first two years were in the Forecasting Team in the Economics Department. While there I was involved in quite a range of work,” he says.
“Some of the most interesting elements included preparing and presenting near-term sectoral forecasts and related papers for the Monetary Policy Committee; drafting text for Monetary Policy Statements; and work on examining and identifying indicators of core inflation in New Zealand.”
“Five years ago I moved to the Financial System Policy team, working on developing the policies that the Bank uses in its oversight of registered banks and the payment system.
“This has included work on policies seeking to manage risk from the outsourcing of functionality by banks; local incorporation rules for banks; drafting text on policy developments for Financial Stability Reports; representing the Bank at domestic payments-industry fora; and most recently reviewing the Reserve Bank’s policy on liquidity-risk management by banks.
“I’ve also been Secretary for our Financial System Oversight Committee, which considers policy matters to do with financial stability and efficiency.”
Willy says that the move to Financial System Policy required him to learn to use a range of new tools in the fields of accounting, finance and law, and expanded his understanding of how firms operate in the economy.
“There have been plenty of opportunities for additional training in those areas, as well as seminars specifically related to the subject matter I’m working on. For example, I’ve attended seminars on liquidity regulation and on financial economics for central bankers.
He is surprised he has ended up working on financial system policy for so long.
“I came here with the intention of working as a macro-economist, and I enjoyed doing that. Along the way, though, I became very interested in the Bank’s regulatory role, and in the challenging economic questions that come up when thinking about policies for the banking sector and payment systems.”
“Five years on, that material remains both challenging and interesting, which reflects both the breadth of issues I’ve dealt with and the complexity of some of the questions. The people I work with are great – they’re excellent at what they do and good to work with. They also ask the kind of hard questions that are needed for me to improve my own understanding and to produce the best analysis that I can.”
What most surprised him when he started at the Bank was the working environment and the support he received from his colleagues.
“It’s an enjoyable place to work and is reasonably laid back, but it remains professional,” he says.
“There has been plenty of support throughout my time here. When I first started I found that experienced staff were happy to help with questions or chew over a problem, and to point me in the right direction for references or reading to strengthen my background in an area that’s new to me.
“As I’ve spent more time here and begun to play a bit more of a role in representing the Bank externally, I’ve similarly had good support when I’ve been unsure about how best to represent the Bank’s position or to respond to challenges.
He is glad he chose to start his career at the Bank as it has given him a chance to develop his technical knowledge, his policy analysis, his ability to play representative roles, and to deal with people who are good at what they do and interested in their subject matter.
“The work has been stimulating, the people are excellent, and it’s a small enough organisation that I can see fairly clearly how my own work contributes to the Bank’s decisions and actions.
