March 3rd 2021

The 29th IIMA International Financial Symposium
“Paradigm Shift 

– Post-Covid-19 Global Economy and Challenges for Policy Response –“

Although the global economy has been recovering after the Covid-19 pandemic against the backdrop of crisis response measures, there is an unprecedentedly strong sense of uncertainty about the future, including the resilience of the economy in the face of various expected structural changes, the normalization of ultra-low interest rates and expansion of public debt, widening inequality and the retreat of globalization. We invited distinguished experts from around the globe to discuss about the structural changes in the global economy and the fundamental shift (paradigm shift) required in terms of policy.

The panelists reported on the differences in the degree of recovery of countries and regions after the pandemic and their prospects, changes in globalization under the U.S.-China confrontation, and the acceleration of policy responses for green recovery. In the panel discussion, straight forward and constructive opinions were exchanged on such issues as the outlook for inflation considering structural changes such as supply chain reviews and decarbonization, the side effects of prolonged monetary easing and increased public debt and exit policies, and how to find a balance between competition and confrontation among nations and international cooperation. 

For more details, please refer to each presentation slide or our Occasional Paper No.38.

Date and Time

March 3rd, 2021 (Wednesday), 20:00 - 22:00 (JST), 19:00 - 21:00 (SGT) 

               11:00 - 13:00 (GMT), 6:00 - 8:00 (US ET), 3:00 - 5:00 (US PT)

Progress Lecture and Panel Discussion
Language

English (Simultaneous translation to Japanese)

Panelists (in alphabetical order)

  Tim Adams                             Presentation Slides
  President and Chief Executive Officer, Institute of International Finance (IIF)

  

Mr. Adams currently serves as President and CEO of the IIF since January 2013. Prior to joining the IIF, Mr. Adams was Managing Director of The Lindsey Group, an economic advisory firm based in Washington, DC. Previously, he served as Under Secretary for International Affairs at the U.S. Department of Treasury. In 1993, Mr. Adams co-founded the G-7 Group, a Washington-based advisory firm, and later headed their Washington operation as Managing Director. Mr. Adams holds a B.S. in Finance, a Masters in Public Administration, and an M.A. in International Relations from the University of Kentucky.


Andrew Fung BBS, JP                                                                     Presentation Slides
Professor of Practice (Finance), School of Accounting and Finance,
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Former Executive Director and Head of Global Banking and Markets, Hang Seng Bank Ltd.

Mr. Fung has over 30 years banking experience. He joined Hang Seng Bank in 2006, where he was appointed Executive Director in charge of Global Banking & Markets, and subsidiaries including Hang Seng Securities, Hang Seng Investment Management and Hang Seng Index Services, as well as the director of Hang Seng Insurance and non-executive director of China Industrial Bank. Currently he is also Chief Financial Officer, Henderson Land Development since August 2017. He attained his B.A. degree at the University of Hong Kong in 1981 and is an Honorary Fellow of the Lingnan University.


Philipp Hildebrand                                                                         Presentation Slides
Vice Chairman, BlackRock
Former Chairman of the Governing Board, Swiss National Bank

Mr. Hildebrand is Vice Chairman of BlackRock and a member of the firm’s Global Executive Committee. He also oversees the BlackRock Investment Institute (BII) and BlackRock Sustainable Investing (BSI). Prior to joining BlackRock in 2012, he served as Chairman of the Governing Board of the Swiss National Bank. In that capacity, he was also a Director of the Bank for International Settlements, Swiss Governor of the IMF and a member of the Financial Stability Board.


Kenji Okamura                                                                              Presentation Slides
Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Japan

Mr. Okamura is the Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, Japan’s highest civil servant in the international finance field. He joined the Ministry of Finance in 1985. In recent years, he held many senior positions in the International Bureau of the Ministry of Finance as well as in the Financial Services Agency. He also has experiences of external assignment, including in the IMF and a local government. He obtained a Bachelor of Law from the University of Tokyo and a Master of Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.


Xu Qiyuan                                                                                     Presentation Slides
Head of Economic Development Division, Institute of World Economics and Politics,
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Dr. Xu is a senior fellow of IWEP (Institute of World Economics and Politics), CASS (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences). He has been the head of economic development division in IWEP since 2014. He is an advisor to the international collaboration department in Ministry of Finance of PRC. His interests focus on China’s macro-economy and policies, RMB internationalization, China and US trade tension and its impact on supply chains. In 2019, he joined CF40 (China Finance 40 Forum) and took the position as the director of research department.


Zeti Aziz
Group Chairman, Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB)
Former Governor, Bank Negara Malaysia

Dr. Zeti served as the Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia from 2000 to 2016. Known for her role in successfully managing the 1997-1998 Asian Financial Crisis and its strong economic recovery in Malaysia, she was also active in strengthening regional cooperation. She was also unrelenting in working for ASEAN and East Asian regional financial integration. Dr. Zeti holds a doctorate in economics from University of Pennsylvania, and is currently the Co-Chair of the Asia School of Business in collaboration with MIT Sloan and is the Group Chairman of PNB.


Moderator

Hiroshi Watanabe
President, Institute for International Monetary Affairs

Mr. Watanabe after graduating from the University of Tokyo joined the Ministry of Finance of Japan (MOF) in 1972. Before retiring as Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs in 2007, he occupied various senior positions in the Taxation Bureau and others at the MOF. He later took high positions in the Japan Policy Bank and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) before his appointment as the President of JBIC in 2013. Since October 2016 he has been the President of the IIMA.