Bezankeng Njinju

Research and Analysis

Our research informs the public and policymakers by examining economic issues of importance to those in our local communities, across the nation, and around the world.
- Research teams
- Publications
  
  We publish research and analyses to keep audiences informed of economic trends in our region and nationwide. View latest releases or explore our archive.
- Events
- Inflation questions?
  Visit our Center for Inflation Research for all things inflation—from general information on how inflation works and why it matters to the latest data and analysis on current inflationary trends.

Region and Community

We represent and gather information from the Fourth Federal Reserve District, spanning Ohio and parts of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Kentucky. These resources are useful for our region, the communities we serve, and communities across the United States.
- Our region
  
  Learn about our work to advance understanding of economic trends affecting the Fourth District.
- Our communities
  
  The Cleveland Fed offers numerous resources to promote economic opportunity for residents across our region and the US.
- Events
  
  Hear from local leaders and community development experts about economic problems their communities face and the solutions they are putting forth.
- By topic
  
  Looking for the Fed’s work on a particular subject? Narrow your search to the areas that interest you.

Education

Learn economic basics, dive into inflation, and get educational resources and games for yourself or to share with others.
- What’s new?
  
  Explore the latest educational resources from the Cleveland Fed—from interactive articles and video explainers to games.
  - Infographics on Inflation
  - Inflation 101
- Financial Literacy and Career Readiness
  
  Browse the Cleveland Fed’s suite of programs and resources for informative ways to learn about personal finance or career readiness.
- Visits and tours
  
  Visit us to learn more about our history and our ongoing work to promote financial literacy throughout our region.
  - Visit Us
- Financial Literacy Curriculum
  Learn more about resources supporting required high school, middle school, and elementary school financial literacy courses.

Banking and Payments

We supervise financial institutions, support American consumers’ financial security, and maintain the financial stability and payment systems for the US Treasury.
- Banking research and tools
  
  The Cleveland Fed provides a range of tools for tracking trends in the lending environment.
- For consumers
  
  Learn about the resources we offer to help people in the community navigate the financial system.
- For financial institutions
  
  Understand the various requirements for Fed-chartered financial institutions and discover the range of services available to them—from cash services and reserve balance data to the discount window.
- Supporting the financial system
  
  Find out how the Cleveland Fed supervises member banks to ensure financial-system stability and support the US Treasury.

About Us

We serve the American people as part of the US central bank. We support the US economy and our region by studying economic conditions and issues that impact our communities, serving financial institutions, and providing economic education and resources for all.
- Our leadership
  
  Meet the individuals leading our mission, including the president and executive leadership team, advisory council members, and the boards of directors of each Cleveland Fed branch.
- Who we are and what we do
  
  The Fed does more than inform monetary policy. Learn about the mission, structure, and role of our organization, both regionally and nationally.
- Sharing our work
  
  Community outreach, education, and research are central to the Fed’s mission. Connect with us as we share our work, latest publications, and welcome you to visit our learning center.
- We have a long-standing commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and opportunity for our employees and the communities we serve.

Person

Bezankeng Njinju is a contributing author and former employee of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.

Economic Commentaries

Economic Commentary

Mortgage Borrowers’ Use of COVID-19 Forbearance Programs

Lara Loewenstein Bezankeng Njinju

08.16.2022 | EC 2022-11

The guarantee of mortgage forbearance provided in the CARES Act is an unprecedented provision of flexibility for government-insured mortgage borrowers and has been successful thus far at limiting delinquencies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The terms of this forbearance are favorable to borrowers, and there is little required in terms of documentation of hardship, making requesting forbearance an attractive option even if borrowers are not facing hardship and do not need forbearance to remain current on a mortgage. Despite this, evidence indicates that so far CARES Act forbearance has largely been used by borrowers who did actually need it. The success of forbearance in providing households liquidity and in reducing mortgage delinquencies, and its many potential benefits relative to foreclosure in terms of aligning incentives among the borrower, lender, and neighboring homeowners, raises questions for how policymakers should approach mortgage policy during the next economic downturn and about how mortgage contracts are designed.

Topics: Lending and access to credit

Economic Commentary

PPP Loans & State-level Employment Growth

Murat Tasci Bezankeng Njinju Hana Braitsch

11.22.2021 | EC 2021-20

In this Economic Commentary, we focus on the first round of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans granted beginning in March 2020 until early August 2020, when turbulence in the labor market was pronounced, in order to demonstrate the PPP’s effects on local labor markets. We find that PPP loans helped mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic recession on state-level employment growth. States that received most of their funding early in the loan period had smaller employment declines than did states that received comparable funds later in the period.

Topics: Labor economics, State and local economies

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