Warsaw Public Banking Conference
WARSAW PUBLIC BANKING CONFERENCE - THE ROLE OF DEVELOPMENT BANKS IN THE EUROPEAN ECONOMY
Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK) in cooperation with the European Association of Public Banks (EAPB) is organizing the Warsaw Public Banking Conference: The Role of Development Banks in the European Economy to be held on May 5th 2011 at Arkady Kubickiego, Royal Castle in Warsaw, Poland.
The conference is a high-profile event targeted at senior policymakers, economists and senior representatives of public banks and international financial institutions in Europe. The aim of the conference is to discuss the various models through which development banks operate and how, in fulfilling their mission, they are and could be used to support government and EU economic policy after the crisis. Exploring how state development banks and international financial institutions capabilities' can be made use of in the financing of sectors experiencing stronger budget constraints, such as infrastructure, energy, and innovation, is a necessary step in the discussion of devising appropriate exit strategies and policy solutions in the aftermath of the financial crisis and economic recession in Europe.
The repercussions of the crisis within the financial sector have decreased capital market liquidity and toughened access to funding for financial institutions as well as numerous sovereigns. Together with the economic downturn and de-leveraging process, that are adversely impacting credit availability, the policy landscape is changing. The new regulatory financial landscape is bringing with it new prudential regulation rules, accounting, corporate governance, and investment standards. In the EU a new pan-European financial regulation institutional architecture has been set up. Changing policy in the sphere of fiscal austerity arrangements, as well as sector-specific regulation of technology, infrastructure, transport and energy, as well as the shape of the next EU financial perspective, bring with it an opportunity to devise more robust policies towards the financing of investments.
While the problems of numerous commercial banks across both sides of the Atlantic have led to significant public investments in systemically important banks, many countries around the world have increased the role of development banks in order to spur lending during the crisis. Given the various missions of development banks, which encompass such goals as counter-cyclical financing, facilitating the financing of long-term assets, and complementing the financial sector and regional development, the exit strategies from the crisis should take into account these institutions' capabilities and the institutional environment in which they operate in, in order to make best of use the available instruments that will help spur long-term investments in the European economy.
This is the first time that such an important subject is raised in Central and Eastern Europe to initiate a discussion on public banking and provide best practice solutions regarding the topic of development banks, their role and activities after the financial crisis.
The one-day conference is aimed at senior bankers and policymakers from Poland and Europe and involves an intensive programme consisting of two main interrelated sessions on the increasing role of development banks in Europe and effective investment financing mechanisms in the post-crisis environment.
The morning session will be organized around presentations of the best practices among development banks and research on these institutions, to be followed by a panel discussion. Recommendations from the study on Public Financial Institutions in Europe will be presented by Dr Mathias Schmit from Solvay Business School.
The afternoon session will focus on presentations on the role of the public sector, the European Union and investments in the post-crisis environment, followed by two panel discussions. The moderator of the afternoon session is Mr Adam Smallman, Global Managing Editor, Dow Jones Investment Banker since 2000.
During the conference Mr Janusz Lewandowski, EU Commissioner responsible for Financial Programming and Budget, will give the Keynote Speech on the EU budget and EU policies after 2013.
The conference is organized as part of the European Association of Public Banks' (EAPB) Spring 2011 General Assembly hosted by BGK in Warsaw.