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Under Secretary Nelson to Travel to Brisbane, Australia for the Pacific Banking Forum
WASHINGTON – From July 8-10, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson will travel to Brisbane, Australia as the U.S. Department of the Treasury co-hosts the Pacific Banking Forum with the Government of Australia. While in Brisbane, he will also participate in a series of bilateral meetings with officials from Pacific nations and other partners in attendance.
The United States and Australia are proud Pacific nations with a shared vision to advance a free and open, connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient Pacific region. During Australia’s State Visit in October 2023, President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Albanese committed to supporting sustainable access to banking services across the Pacific and, in consultation with the countries of the region, jointly launched the Pacific Banking Forum to achieve this objective.
The Pacific Banking Forum will bring together policymakers, regulators, commercial banks, technical experts, and other stakeholders to support the Pacific Island Forum Secretariat’s correspondent banking initiatives. It will address the urgent problem of ‘de-risking’ and the decline of correspondent banking relationships in the Pacific, which affect local banks' ability to connect with international financial institutions and access cross-border payment services.
According to Treasury’s 2023 National Derisking Strategy, de-risking occurs when financial institutions terminate or restrict business relationships indiscriminately with broad categories of customers rather than analyzing and managing those customers' risks. De-risking undermines several key U.S. government policy objectives by driving financial activity out of the regulated financial system, hampering remittances, preventing low- and middle-income segments of the population from efficiently accessing the financial system, and hindering unencumbered humanitarian aid transfer and disaster relief. The forum aims to convene government and private sector representatives to advance creative solutions for combatting de-risking in the Pacific.
Last fall, Secretary Yellen met with Pacific Islands leaders during the US-Pacific Islands Forum Summit. She reaffirmed Treasury’s commitment to work together on mitigating threats to Pacific countries’ macro-financial stability by addressing climate change impacts, promoting fiscal sustainability, and strengthening correspondent banking relationships in the region. The United States and Australia will continue working towards supporting Pacific Island efforts in building health and economic resilience while advancing a positive vision for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
On Monday July 8th at 9:10 AM AEST / July 7th at 7:10 PM EDT., Secretary Yellen will deliver pre-recorded virtual remarks to the forum.
At 9:15 AM AEST., Under Secretary Nelson will deliver keynote remarks at the Pacific Banking Forum on Treasury’s efforts addressing de-risking while promoting financial inclusion and connectivity in the Pacific.
Remarks are open to press; media interested in attending or arranging an interview with Under Secretary Nelson should contact morgan.finkelstein@treasury.gov.
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