Wolfram Seidemann, chief executive officer of G+D Currency Technology, joins John Orchard, CEO of OMFIF, to discuss how to overcome the major roadblocks, concerns and challenges of introducing a central bank digital currency and how policy-makers could address privacy concerns. They touch upon how a lack of financial literacy may impact the adoption of CBDC.

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis, CBDC has gained traction among public and private sector institutions. Central banks are actively looking at adoption of digital currency. Other points covered include universal usage, financial inclusion, resilience and data privacy. Finally, they discuss a frequently asked question: should CBDC be interest bearing?

Tamara Singh, head of Asia Pacific, speaks with Julian Vella, co-head of infrastructure at KPMG in Hong Kong, and Zheng Yu, professor at the school of international relations and public affairs at Fudan University, about the evolution of Asia’s special economic zones. They cover emerging trends in the development of fit-for-purpose cities, delving into the differences between special economic zones, charter cities and smart cities.

Since the Suez crisis and imperial retreat, the UK has seesawed between affiliation to the US and to Europe, for a while managing both. What drove its decisions and were there better choices? Does Brexit change the geopolitical logic? How will the UK square its economic and strategic imperatives? Talking to OMFIF’s John Orchard, Philip Stephens, chief political commentator of the Financial Times, discusses these themes following the publication of his book Britain Alone: The Path From Suez to Brexit.

OMFIF’s Danae Kyriakopoulou, chief economist and director of research, and Clive Horwood, managing editor and deputy chief executive officer, discuss the Sustainable Policy Institute’s Gender Balance Index, which will be launched on 8 March. In this podcast, they talk about the expansion of the report to include commercial banks, the importance of gender diversity and what to expect at the launch event.

To register for the event, please click here: https://www.omfif.org/events/gender-balance-index-2021-launch/

Charter cities can bring long-term economic growth through business and innovation enabled by well-functioning institutions. Mark Lutter, founder of the Charter Cities Institute, talks to OMFIF’s Kat Usita about the benefits that charter cities bring and successful examples. 

The euro area economy has not been spared from the damaging effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. After the first wave, it recovered well, but a second wave and new lockdowns have hampered growth. Philip Gerson, deputy director of the International Monetary Fund’s European department, discusses the effects of the pandemic on the euro area economy. Setting out key findings from the IMF’s December report ‘2020 consultation on common euro area policies’.

To listen to the Q&A, please visit: https://www.omfif.org/videos/euro-area-stability-view-from-the-imf/

Read the report here: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/CR/Issues/2020/12/21/2020-Consultation-on-Common-Euro-Area-Policies-Press-Release-Staff-Report-and-Statement-by-49979

Bhavin Patel, head of fintech at OMFIF, speaks with Douglas Arner, Kerry Holdings Professor in Law and director of the Asian Institute of International Law at the University of Hong Kong, and Charles Chang, deputy dean of academics, professor of finance and director of the fintech research centre at Fanhai International School of Finance, Fudan University.

In this two-part series they discuss the Chinese fintech space, focussing on payments, regulations and the Chinese central bank digital currency project. In the second part of their discussions, they discuss China’s digital currency/electronic payment. They look at how effective it may be, how it will integrate with a market dominated by the private sector, its possible disintermediation impact on incumbents, as well as how it can become a cross-border central bank digital currency.

Charles Goodhart, emeritus professor of banking and finance at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and Manoj Pradhan, founder of Talking Heads Macro, a research firm, discuss their book The Great Demographic Reversal: Ageing Societies, Waning Inequality, and an Inflation Revival.

The discussion, led by David Marsh, OMFIF chairman, centres on the effects of demography on price levels as relatively wealthy retirees stoke up global demand for goods produced by a shrinking labour force, leading to product scarcity and bottlenecks. Goodhart’s and Pradhan’s thesis, which they maintain could lead to sharp falls in bond prices from 2022 onwards as portfolios adjust to higher inflation prospects, has become a major talking point among international policy-makers.

Bhavin Patel, head of fintech at OMFIF, speaks with Douglas Arner, Kerry Holdings Professor in Law and director of the Asian Institute of International Law at the University of Hong Kong, and Charles Chang, deputy dean of academics, professor of finance and director of the fintech research centre at Fanhai International School of Finance, Fudan University.

In this two-part series they discuss the Chinese fintech space, focussing on payments, regulations and the Chinese central bank digital currency project. In this first part they discuss China’s fintech growth, how it became a global leader, the country’s approach to fintech regulation and newer entrants, and the likely effectiveness of the DC/EP in a private sector dominated market.