Central Banks, Climate Change, and Financial Inclusion (Summary of Private Roundtable Discussion)

Central Banks, Climate Change, and Financial Inclusion Abstract On March 31, 2021, the University of Michigan Center on Finance, Law & Policy convened a roundtable of central bankers, policy experts, and researchers to examine the intersection of climate change and financial inclusion. [...] Should central banks look to expand their mandate to deal with the effects of climate change to better serve the poor? If so, how? If not, why not? Participants defined household-level climate resilience as the ability to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to hazardous events. [...] ● The informal sector remains a significant part of the economy in many countries, and by definition, the central bank may have less ability to measure the impacts of climate change, much less provide solutions for those sectors. [...] ● Creativity and public-private partnerships may be required to respond in a crisis, such as when a mobile money provider helped distribute disaster-relief funds earmarked for a University of Michigan Center on Finance, Law & Policy Page 1 Central Banks, Climate Change, and Financial Inclusion rebuilding program and restricted the funds to usage in hardware stores at the direction of the governmen. [...] What are the financial stability implications of debt moratoriums for agriculture?) Conclusion While each country is different, participants agreed that there is much that central banks around the world can do to address both the acute and long-term impacts of climate change and the disparate impact on the poor.