Central banks join forces to ease credit crisis

A Fed official who briefed reporters said the auction system might erase some of the stigma associated with borrowing at the discount window by providing a cloak of anonymity. The move also addresses raising dollars for foreign investors with stressed U.S. assets. The U.S. central bank did so by opening foreign exchange swaps for up to $20 billion with the European Central Bank and up to $4 billion with the Swiss National Bank.