Andrea M Maechler’s Post

How do we at the Bank for International Settlements – BIS see the future of the financial system?   In my interview with the NZZ Neue Zürcher Zeitung, I explain how technology is driving changes to the financial system and what it means for central banks. Here two excerpts:   “People expect everything to be faster, simpler and cheaper. Thanks to WhatsApp, you can now make free calls all over the world. The same is expected of the financial system.”   And why could tokenisation potentially transform the way financial transactions take place? In its simplest form, “tokenisation enables the exchange of assets on a digital platform, just as it happens with cash in the physical world. But without the long processes of messaging, clearing and settlement that take place behind the scenes. This is still futuristic. But the BIS is taking a multi-pronged approach: we are designing the future and at the same time trying to improve the existing system.”   Read more in the full interview (in German):

Thank you @Jorg and colleagues for the invitation to speak at the meeting of the German Insurance Association. What a great opportunity to discuss in such a smart and engaging audience global economic perspectives, including ground-breaking BIS work on digital innovation .

Celebrating birthdays is always moving, and this was especially the case when we gathered in Basel to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Basel Committee. Participants came from all four continents and, thanks to a stellar conference program, provided much food for thought to us all. It was a true privilege to chair a panel with highly distinguished former and present central bank governors: François Villeroy de Galhau (Banque de France), Stefan Ingves (Sveriges riksbank) and Jean-Claude Trichet (European Central Bank). We gathered amazing insights and lived the motto of the conference: we looked back to look ahead!

Please join me in congratulating all of the BIS staff that have contributed to winning the 2024 Central Banking Green Award! This is a remarkable achievement. Kudos to the pivotal research done by our BIS economists, to pioneering work by colleagues in our Innovation Hub, to our Banking colleagues who spearheaded cross-border green bond funds for central banks, and to our our outstanding team in the Financial Stability Institute for providing top-notch environmental training resources. A special thank you to Corrinne Ho, Frank Packer, Maria Canelli, Christian Beslmeisl, Steffen Grosse, Patrick McGuire, Anja Wimmer, Peter Zoellner, Evertjan Veenendaal, CFA, FRM, Nertila Xhelili, CFA, Reto Kasper, Luiz Awazu Pereira da Silva, Benedicte N. Nolens, Maha El Dimachki, Fernando Restoy Lozano, Jeffery Yong and everyone else who has contributed to this work. Curious about the work the BIS has done in this front? Learn more on our website: https://lnkd.in/eFwC6eKi #CentralBanking #GreenAward #Sustainability #Finance #ESG #ClimateAction 🌍🌍

Grateful for the excellent relations with the Swiss authorities and proud of our „Swiss heritage“ (Switzerland has been the home of the BIS since its creation almost 100 years ago), Agustin Carstens, BIS General Manager, and I took the opportunity of the G20 meetings in Sao Paolo to meet with Karin Keller-Sutter, Swiss Minister of Finance, to discuss the role of the BIS and how we can continue to play a supportive role for Switzerland, also in the aftermath of Credit Suisse.

At the G20 meetings in Sao Paolo today, together with Sarah Breeden (left), Bank of England Deputy Governor for Financial Stability, I was able to congratulate first-hand OECD Chief Economist, Clare Lombardelli (middle) for her nomination as new Deputy Governor at the Bank of England. A strong addition to the Bank of England team! Bravo!

It was a pleasure to chair a panel at the High Level Meeting for Africa in Cape Town, South Africa this week. Co-hosted by the Financial Stability Institute and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, the meeting was co-organised by the South African Reserve Bank. My remarks looked at the path to resilience in the challenging macro-financial landscape. Disinflation appears to be largely on track, but risks remain. How can central banks and banking supervisors best face them? Find out here: https://lnkd.in/enhce4CD

Just came back from the G20 meetings in Brasilia. The International Monetary Fund and the Bank for International Settlements – BIS brought particularly strong contributions on the role of digital innovation in shaping modern finance and supporting economic welfare. The BIS was asked to examine next how different forms of digital money and assets could coexist in a tokenised financial ecosystem. Stay tuned! Special thanks go to Brazil G20 Presidency, including co-host Banco Central do Brasil Deputy Governor Fernanda Guardado and Governor Campos Neto and his senior management for their warm welcome and inspiring discussions, and to the outstanding BIS team (Alexandre Tombini, Jaime Cortina, Miguel Diaz Diaz, Stefan Avdjiev, Ph.D., and Előd Takáts).

What an exciting last few days we had in our BIS representative office for Asia and Pacific. It started with a great dialogue between BIS General Manager Agustín Carstens, Economic Advisor Hyun Song Shin and our BIS Hong Kong staff. It was a tremendous honour for Tao Zhang, Chief Representative of the BIS office for Asia and the Pacific, and myself to welcome Zhou Xiaochuan, a long-time colleague and former Governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC). Governor Zhou marvelled at our poster showing our three locations (Mexico City, Basel, and Hong Kong), remembering fondly of his numerous visits to Basel.

It was fun to be back in Tokyo in my new capacity as the Deputy General Manager of the BIS. Great meetings with central bankers, academics and business people - many old and new friends. Many thanks to Frank Packer (BIS) for his expertise.