More Europe, not less
For the second time after German chancellor Angela Merkel spoke at the very first Leaders' Dialogue in 2007, the Roland Berger-sponsored event featured a keynote speaker from the Forbes list of the "Top 10 Most Powerful Women in the World".
In early June, Roland Berger, the Atlantic Council and German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung co-hosted the fifth Leaders' Dialogue at New York's famous Union Club. Guest of honor and the evening's keynote speaker was the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde.
Far away from final destination
The exclusive event featured a conversation with Ms. Lagarde on the ongoing economic crisis in Europe and ways to return the global economy to growth. The discussion was introduced by Roland Berger CEO Martin Wittig and editor-in-chief Wolfgang Krach and moderated by the Atlantic Council president, Fred Kempe.
In her speech, IMF Director Christine Lagarde called for further action to reform the global financial system, by strengthening crisis management tools and the overall architecture of the system. She said that five years into the crisis, while important steps have been taken, the goal of a safer financial system has not yet been secured.
Ms. Lagarde pointed out that the next steps by policymakers in the financial sector will be critical to breaking the damaging cycles of the crisis, which include deciding on and implementing policies. Without an immediate focus on repairing the health of the financial system, weak banks will continue to strangle growth.
In this regard, European banks are a priority to repair, she said, but because the world is deeply interconnected, restoring the health of the European banks lies in the interest of all. She called for more risk-sharing across borders in the banking system and deeper fiscal integration.
Further, she urged strengthening the architecture of the financial system with smarter regulation, stronger supervision, and appropriate private sector incentives. However, progress on regulation is only part of the solution and more needs to be done to strengthen the mandate and authority of supervisors. The ultimate goal for the financial system in her opinion is to build a system where there is profitability, certainly, but that does not come at the expense of stability.
In early June, Roland Berger, the Atlantic Council and German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung co-hosted the fifth Leaders' Dialogue at New York's famous Union Club. Guest of honor and the evening's keynote speaker was the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde.
Far away from final destination
The exclusive event featured a conversation with Ms. Lagarde on the ongoing economic crisis in Europe and ways to return the global economy to growth. The discussion was introduced by Roland Berger CEO Martin Wittig and editor-in-chief Wolfgang Krach and moderated by the Atlantic Council president, Fred Kempe.
In her speech, IMF Director Christine Lagarde called for further action to reform the global financial system, by strengthening crisis management tools and the overall architecture of the system. She said that five years into the crisis, while important steps have been taken, the goal of a safer financial system has not yet been secured.
Ms. Lagarde pointed out that the next steps by policymakers in the financial sector will be critical to breaking the damaging cycles of the crisis, which include deciding on and implementing policies. Without an immediate focus on repairing the health of the financial system, weak banks will continue to strangle growth.
In this regard, European banks are a priority to repair, she said, but because the world is deeply interconnected, restoring the health of the European banks lies in the interest of all. She called for more risk-sharing across borders in the banking system and deeper fiscal integration.
Further, she urged strengthening the architecture of the financial system with smarter regulation, stronger supervision, and appropriate private sector incentives. However, progress on regulation is only part of the solution and more needs to be done to strengthen the mandate and authority of supervisors. The ultimate goal for the financial system in her opinion is to build a system where there is profitability, certainly, but that does not come at the expense of stability.
