A vision of the future financial system

Please join the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE) for an exploration of the upcoming report, “Finternet: The financial system for the future” by Bank for International Settlements general manager Agustín Carstens and co-founder and chairman of Infosys and founding chairman of UIDAI (Aadhaar) Nandan M. Nilekani. The discussion panel explains how the application of novel technological innovations could generate change in the financial system, delivering financial services that are cheaper, faster, more personalized, and more secure. This session discusses what we should expect from the financial system of the future and the practical steps that can be taken to hasten its arrival. The panel also discusses how central banks and other public authorities can play a catalytic role in promoting financial innovation, drawing on their own countries’ experiences, and exploring the potential role for unified ledgers as a vehicle to deliver a more innovative, efficient, and equitable financial system.  

The report lays out a vision in which individuals and businesses will have greater control over all aspects of their financial lives, allowing them to transfer any asset, in any amount, using any device, to any counterparty, at any time. Unified ledgers—programmable platforms that seamlessly integrate digital forms of money and other financial assets in a single venue—are the key vehicle to transform this vision into reality. They will bring innovations like tokenization, previously confined to the unregulated corners of the financial system, into a secure and regulated environment, and improve parts of the financial system that currently work well, while creating a venue for entirely new financial products and services.  

Carstens and Nilekani lead the event with opening remarks. The panel features governor of the Banco Central do Brasil Roberto Campos Neto, president of the Deutsche Bundesbank Joachim Nagel, and governor of the Bank of Korea Changyong Rhee. The program and Q&A session following the discussion is moderated by Adam S. Posen, PIIE president.