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2024 International Finance Forum (IFF): A Year in Review

AUTHOR:IFF

FROM:IFF

TIME:2025-01-13

Editor's Note: Looking back at 2024, the global macroeconomic landscape was magnificent, full of many uncertainties and challenges but also plenty of hope and opportunities. Last year, the world economy stumbled its way forward amid a complex and changing international environment, experiencing the aftermath of geopolitical conflicts while also witnessing the vigorous rise of scientific and technological innovation as well as green transformation. Faced with unprecedented challenges, policymakers from countries all over the world either adjusted monetary policies to cope with inflationary pressures or promoted structural reforms to stimulate economic vitality, jointly drawing a picture of the ups and downs of the global economy. Given this ever-changing situation, the concept of cooperation and win-win outcomes has become increasingly important. While seeking to promote their own development, countries around the world have also been placing a greater emphasis on collaborative cooperation to jointly respond to global challenges.

Looking ahead to 2025, the global economic and financial landscapes will remain full of uncertainties, but for the IFF these uncertainties are what drive further exploration and research. We believe that this year will be full of both challenges and opportunities, and it will also be an important year for in-depth work. Looking ahead, we will stick to our original aspirations, enhance our platform’s influence and professionalism, strengthen international cooperation, expand our field of communication, and provide more valuable views, information, and collaboration opportunities for the global financial community. We look forward to working with partners from all walks of life as we write a new chapter in the field of international finance and promote the stability and sustainable development of the global economy and global finance.

 

IFF Catalog of Events in 2024

 

1. The IFF successfully held the Forum on the Financial Empowerment of Market Entities for High-Quality Development as well as the ‘Sharing and Advancing Together, Winning the Future with Industry’ Entrepreneurs Forum

2. IFF Academic Conference - Global Economic Prospects 2024

3. IFF Academic Conference - Looking at China’s Economy After the Meeting of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference

4. The IFF’s Washington DC Conference was successfully held during the 2024 World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings

5. IFF Academic Conference - Global Challenges and Opportunities Facing the 2024 G20 Summit

6. The 16th Global Carbon Pricing Conference - Fostering carbon-free sources of energy in the world: China, the EU and the US at the forefront

7. The IFF Artificial Intelligence Committee was established

8. The IFF was invited to attend the Kazakhstan Economic Freedom Conference

9. IFF Academic Conference - Filling the Gaps in the Global Financial Architecture: A Plan for Action

10. IFF Academic Conference - The Future of the Bretton Woods Institutions

11. The IFF successfully held its 21st Annual Meeting in Hong Kong

12. The winners of the 5th IFF Global Green Finance Award and 1st Belt and Road International Cooperation Award were announced

13. Three important international reports were published globally

 

1. The IFF successfully held the Forum on the Financial Empowerment of Market Entities for High-Quality Development as well as the ‘Sharing and Advancing Together, Winning the Future with Industry’ Entrepreneurs Forum

To support Yunnan Province in implementing the promotion of high-quality development, accelerate the building of an innovative Yunnan, help private enterprises in Yunnan better understand the new pattern of global economic trade in the new year, foster a deeper understanding of new opportunities for China's economic development, discuss new areas of high-quality development in Yunnan, further implement the concept of high-quality development, and help companies listed and to be listed in Yunnan Province better understand green finance, climate investment and financing, and the two environmental, social, and governance-related international financial reporting standards announced by the International Sustainable Development Standards Board, as well as to promote green finance and climate finance to support the development of Yunnan’s real economy, the IFF Research Institute was invited by the Yunnan Federation of Industry and Commerce and the Yunnan Branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to hold two themed forums in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province, on February 3 and February 26, 2024. Over 300 enterprises, including Yunnan provincial directly managed chambers of commerce, associations, and the top 100 private enterprises in Yunnan in 2023, participated in this forum.

 

2. IFF Academic Conference - Global Economic Prospects 2024

On February 28, 2024, the online conference ‘Global Economic Prospects 2024’ was held. During this conference, Ayhan Kose, Deputy Chief Economist of the World Bank Group and Director of the World Bank’s Prospects Group, systematically introduced the World Bank's outlook for both global and regional economic growth, including data and analysis on the global economy, China's economy, the American economy, and emerging economies. Kose placed particular emphasis on the importance of ramping up investment to promote economic growth in emerging and developing economies, and he also focused on global policy priorities. At the same time, Kose said that while global economic growth faced many challenges in 2024, rapid and sustained increases in investment are the best way to quickly resume production, improve labor productivity, promote global trade, drive foreign direct investment, reduce inflation, eliminate poverty, and improve the fiscal and financial conditions of emerging markets and developing economies.

 

3. IFF Academic Conference - Looking at China’s Economy After the Meeting of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference

On March 20, 2024, the online conference ‘Looking at China’s Economy After the Meeting of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference’ was held. The conference featured in-depth analysis and discussion on topics such as China's short-term and medium-term economic growth prospects, its attraction of foreign direct investment, and its trade status and other related trends, with some targeted policy suggestions being proposed.

Economists attending the conference said that the key to China's economic recovery was to stabilize its real estate market in the short term and promote structural reforms - including to the household registration system, consumption, taxation, and social security system - in the medium and long term. They pointed out that it would be possible but challenging for China's economy to achieve the government’s GDP growth target of about 5 percent in 2024, with the biggest challenge currently facing China's economy being the downward pressure on the country’s real estate market.

In addition, economists at the conference also discussed important key words mentioned at recent meetings of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, such as the use of foreign capital and ‘new productive forces’. The economists agreed that the key to these ‘new productive forces’ was to improve labor productivity through innovation.

 

4. The IFF’s Washington DC Conference was successfully held during the 2024 World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings

On April 15, 2024, the IFF held a high-level conference in Washington, DC with the theme ‘How to strengthen cooperation in an increasingly fragmented world’. The conference featured a special discussion on the severe challenges currently facing the international community as well as the strategies and paths to promoting international cooperation. Experts at the conference said that to cope with current complex global challenges, international organizations should actively promote reforms, give developing countries more of a voice, and invite the private sector to participate in multilateral cooperation.

Experts also pointed out that the world economy is currently becoming increasingly fragmented, and at the same time the climate change crisis is intensifying, scientific and technological innovation is developing rapidly, and geopolitical conflicts are causing huge shocks to the international financial and trade system. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the World Trade Organization (WTO) all urgently need reforms so that they can more effectively respond to today’s global challenges and revitalize the world economy.

 

5. IFF Academic Conference - Global Challenges and Opportunities Facing the 2024 G20 Summit

On May 8, 2024, an online conference with the theme ‘Global Challenges and Opportunities Facing the 2024 G20 Summit’ was held. During this conference, Joaquim Levy, former finance minister of Brazil, was invited to conduct an in-depth analysis of Brazil's G20 presidency, during which he emphasized the importance of climate action and climate adaptation. The conference touched on a wide range of issues including the history of the G20 and its global impact, as well as Brazil's presidency and its top three priorities.

 

6. The 16th Global Carbon Pricing Conference - Fostering carbon-free sources of energy in the world: China, the EU and the US at the forefront

On July 23, 2024, the Global Carbon Pricing Conference was successfully held, focusing on the topic of promoting the building of a global zero-carbon energy structure. Senior researchers, think tank leaders, leading corporate representatives, and policymakers from major economies such as China, the United States, and the European Union were invited to exchange ideas and discuss the innovations and efforts being made by all parties in actively promoting the global energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy and atomic energy, as well as building a global zero-carbon energy structure. The experts attending the conference also actively discussed successful case studies and feasible solutions to promote an energy transformation and accelerate the realization of global climate goals.

Experts in attendance stressed the importance of establishing a sound financial guarantee mechanism and a supportive regulatory framework, as well as sharing advanced technologies to overcome obstacles to the large-scale application of renewable energy and nuclear energy and to accelerate the global energy transformation. Conference attendees shared successful experiences and effective solutions in energy transformation practices and renewable energy applications in China, America, and Europe. Many experts highly appreciated China's positive achievements in the large-scale deployment of renewable energy and its important contributions to the global energy transformation.

 

7. The IFF Artificial Intelligence Committee was established

On July 29, 2024, the establishment of the IFF Artificial Intelligence (AI) Committee was announced during an online meeting. This committee aims to promote international exchanges and dialog in the field of AI, promote technological innovation and cooperation, ensure the peaceful and safe development of AI tech, and promote the building of a global AI governance system. Going forward, the IFF AI Committee will serve as a centralized communication platform for promoting cooperation among leaders in technology, finance, academia, and policymaking.

The meeting announcing the establishment of the IFF AI Committee was chaired by Patrick Glauner, a member of the Committee as well as Professor of AI at the Deggendorf Institute of Technology and founder and CEO of Skyrocket.AI. Guests at this meeting included top experts in the field of AI, senior legal professionals, industry elites, well-known scholars, and practitioners with extensive practical experience. The Committee will serve as a pioneering dialog mechanism for bringing together different stakeholders to discuss and share important progress and other related developments in the field of AI.

 

8. The IFF was invited to attend the Kazakhstan Economic Freedom Conference

Representatives from the IFF were invited to attend the first Kazakhstan Economic Freedom Conference, which was held in Astana on September 17 and 18, 2024. During the conference, IFF representatives delivered a keynote speech regarding ‘The proper place of emerging economies in the existing financial system’, discussing this topic with representatives from the US, Europe, and emerging economies. Conference attendees signaled a common desire for emerging economies to gain a greater voice and more influence in the global financial system, and they also reached a consensus on the urgent need to reform the global governance system.

 

9. IFF Academic Conference - Filling the Gaps in the Global Financial Architecture: A Plan for Action

On September 26, 2024, the IFF held a high-level conference with the theme ‘Filling the Gaps in the Global Financial Architecture: A Plan for Action’, which featured calls for major reforms to the global financial system to better respond to the challenges posed by climate change.

The conference was chaired by Gerry Rice, Vice President of the IFF and former Director of the Communications Department of the IMF and World Bank. Siddharth Tiwari - Vice President of the IFF, former Chief Representative for Asia and the Pacific at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and former Director of the Strategy, Policy, and Review Department of the IMF - was the keynote speaker, and during his speech he outlined the main contents of the Bretton Woods Committee (BWC) report. 2024 marked the 80th anniversary of the establishment of Bretton Woods institutions, and today there are growing calls for their reform and strengthening. Partly in response to such calls, the BWC report provides a roadmap for how the global financial system should develop in the 21st century.

 

10. IFF Academic Conference - The Future of the Bretton Woods Institutions

On October 21, 2024, the IFF held an academic conference on ‘The Future of the Bretton Woods Institutions’. Conference attendees engaged in in-depth discussions on what the world’s two major Bretton Woods institutions - the World Bank and the IMF - should do to vigorously strengthen future international cooperation and development while ensuring legitimacy and effectiveness.

The conference’s keynote speaker, former United Nations Under-Secretary-General Mark Malloch-Brown, emphasized that the challenges that these two major international organizations currently face are mainly reflected in two aspects. First, the global trend of political division is becoming more and more noticeable, the competition between the US and China is intensifying, middle powers are rising and becoming more influential, and countries’ expectations for participating in the decision-making of international organizations are also constantly changing. Second, the overrepresentation of European countries in the IMF and the World Bank has caused widespread controversy and greatly affected the credibility of these institutions. Malloch-Brown stressed that these two Bretton Woods institutions should undergo comprehensive reforms to make them more inclusive and representative so as to better adapt to today's multipolar world.

The conference provided valuable insights into the future development of the IMF and the World Bank. In today’s multipolar global environment, these institutions must undergo profound reforms if they are to adapt to new challenges and opportunities and continue to play an important role in promoting global economic stability and development.

 

11. The IFF successfully held its 21st Annual Meeting in Hong Kong

The IFF’s 21st Annual Meeting was held in Hong Kong, China on November 22 and 23, 2024. With the theme ‘Global Transformation: Forging a Better Future for International Cooperation’, the annual meeting attracted over 200 financial and political leaders, financial institutions, experts and scholars, and industry representatives from over 50 countries and regions together with notable international organizations to discuss new trends and challenges in the fields of global economics and finance.

Zhou Xiaochuan, Chairman of the IFF General Assembly, former Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and former Governor of the People's Bank of China delivered an important speech, as did John Lee, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, IFF Co-Chair, Chairman of the Council of Presidents of the UN General Assembly, and former Prime Minister of South Korea Han Seung-soo, fourth IFF Co-Chair, President Emeritus of the European Council, and former Prime Minister of Belgium Herman Van Rompuy, IFF Co-Chair and former Prime Minister of New Zealand Jenny Shipley, former US Treasury Secretary and Chairman of the Paulson Institute Henry Paulson, and various other Chinese and foreign guests. IFF Executive Vice President and former Secretary-General of the IMF Lin Jianhai presided over the 2024 IFF Annual Meeting’s opening ceremony.
    Nearly 20 topics were discussed at the 2024 IFF Annual Meeting, mainly focusing on the three major themes of international cooperation, China's development, and Hong Kong's status. The meeting also formed a number of consensuses around various aspects of international cooperation, including global green growth, support for carbon pricing, and support for eliminating poverty in the global south. The meeting also happened to be held at a critical time when China's economy was developing steadily. China's economic growth has an important impact on the post-pandemic global economic recovery, and the 2024 IFF Annual Meeting provided an extensive theoretical and practical basis for the formulation of China's economic and financial policies. Guest speakers at the meeting also discussed Hong Kong's status as an international financial center and emphasized the city’s important role in promoting global financial cooperation and green financial development.

The 2024 IFF Annual Meeting also attracted the attention of many Chinese and foreign media outlets, including Bloomberg, the Associated Press, Reuters, and the Xinhua News Agency. Over 230 media outlets reported on the meeting in an all-round manner through television, newspapers, and major online platforms, with keywords pertaining to hot topics in today’s global economy including those such as ‘international cooperation’, ‘green finance’, and ‘Belt and Road’. The media generally believed that the 2024 IFF Annual Meeting not only built an important platform for global economic governance and green finance, but also demonstrated the firm confidence and determination of countries around the world to work together to meet future challenges. From the pre-launch leading up to the annual meeting to its successful conclusion, the IFF’s global reach exceeded 73.2 billion times. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also congratulated the IFF on successfully holding the meeting.

 

12. The winners of the 2024 IFF Global Green Finance Award and 1st Belt and Road International Cooperation Award were announced

On November 22, 2024, the awards ceremony for the 2024 Global Green Finance Award and the Belt and Road International Cooperation Award was successfully held during the IFF’s 21st Annual Meeting. Many international financial leaders, government representatives, corporate elites, and well-known scholars gathered to witness this glorious moment.

The IFF established the Global Green Finance Award in 2020 to actively promote global green development through financial means, aiming to recognize and reward institutions and innovative solutions that have contributed outstanding achievements in the field of global green finance. With the resource advantages of the IFF's ‘high-level, high-quality, and international’ first-class think tank, this award actively promotes international exchanges, cooperation, and innovative practices in the field of green finance, and helps achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The successful holding of the IFF 2024 Global Green Finance Award resulted in the selection of 10 institutions as winners of the Annual Award and 10 projects as winners of the Innovation Award.

The IFF and the Silk Road International Association (SRIA) jointly initiated the establishment of the Belt and Road International Cooperation Award to encourage multiple entities to actively participate in international cooperation as part of the Belt and Road Initiative, promote the building of an open world economy, and to contribute to the world economy’s post-pandemic recovery, the improvement of global governance, and the realization of sustainable development. The award aims to commend and reward institutions around the world that actively participate in various international cooperation projects that are in line with the Belt and Road Initiative, as well as projects that are innovative and cooperative. With the resource advantages of the SRIA’s ‘high-level, high-quality, and international’ first-class think tank, the award promotes the power of the international community, the global market, and multiple entities by promoting the Silk Road spirit of "peaceful cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning, mutual benefit, and win-win outcomes ", and achieving the UN SDGs as part of the overall interests and well-being of mankind. A total of 10 international and Chinese institutions were winners of this first-ever Belt and Road International Cooperation Award.

 

13. Three important international reports were published globally

On November 22, 2024, the first day of the 21st IFF Annual Meeting, three major research reports were published, covering key topics such as digital currencies, AI, and financial stability. These reports provided profound insights and guidance for policymakers, industry practitioners, and the general public, helping to address current and future financial challenges.

The IFF Global Finance and Development Report 2024 comprehensively analyzed global and Chinese economic trends, focused on pressing challenges such as inflation, debt, and geopolitics, and provided various policy recommendations.

The IFF Global Digital Currencies Report 2024 explored the evolution, impact, risks, and regulatory framework of digital currencies, providing guidance for policymakers as well as industry participants.

The IFF Global Artificial Intelligence Competitiveness Index Report evaluated and compared the AI ​​development and competitiveness levels of different countries, with the aim of systematically assessing global AI capabilities and potential.

 

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