Macro-Finance Salon (No. 134): New Changes in the Realm of International Finance

On January 10th, Macro-Finance Salon (No.134), co-hosted by IMI and Chinese Academy of Financial Inclusion (CAFI), was held in room 1101, Culture Square, Renmin University. Mel Carvill, member of the Executive Committee of PPF Group and director of Home Credit delivered a speech entitled with “New Changes in the Realm of International Finance”. Qu Qiang, Director of China Financial Policy Research Center (FRC), An Guojun, Deputy Secretary General of Green Finance Committee, attended the seminar and made comments. The salon was presided over by Luo Yu, Associate Professor at the School of Finance, Renmin University of China. In his speech, Mr. Mel Carville pointed out that under the influence of globalization and financialization for decades, the role of the government has been reduced, the mutual influence of the economies of various countries has been strengthened, and the focus of production has shifted from production and services to the financial industry, which has led to frequent financial crises.  On the one hand, the crisis is caused by macroeconomic imbalance, credit boom and inflation; on the other hand, it is caused by improper behaviors of investment bankers, financiers and central institutions. The financial crisis has shaken the foundation of neo-liberalism.People's trust in market autonomy has been lost, and disappointment with the government has led to the prevalence of populism. In order to reflect on this issue, there has been a trend in recent years that companies shift from shareholder value orientation to stakeholder value orientation, that is, the needs of stakeholders must be taken into account in the company's behavior. Investors have also made more demands on corporate social responsibility. New investment concepts such as ESG investment are gradually prevailing. The government should take measures to crack down on monopoly, and companies should also focus more on long-term interests. In their comments, Professor Qu Qiang and Secretary General An Guojun discussed in depth the issues of free competition and government intervention, China's practice of inclusive finance, and how to prevent and manage the global financial crisis. After the guests’ speech, Mr. Mel Carville also answered questions raised by the participants about ESG's investment philosophy, negative interest rate and financial technology.

DOWNLOAD