Queen Máxima attends high-level meeting on financial inclusion with central bank governors in Basel
Her Majesty Queen Máxima co-chaired the fifth high-level meeting on financial inclusion of international standard-setting bodies (SSBs) and regulatory bodies in the financial sector at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, Switzerland, on Monday 27 May. At this meeting with governors of central banks and representatives of regulatory bodies, she spoke about their role in improving access to financial services. Queen Máxima is the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA).
At the high-level meeting Queen Máxima spoke about the importance of working with SSBs to make financial services available to all while at the same time safeguarding global financial security. The SSBs set guidelines and standards for financial institutions in order to guarantee the integrity of their products and services. This includes regulations for banking and insuring supervision and the prevention of money laundering.
Since 2011 Queen Máxima has regularly attended BIS meetings. There she discusses how to provide secure and reliable access to financial services like bank and savings accounts, insurance, loans and digital payment services. The use of financial services increases opportunities for economic development, in particular for women, people in remote rural areas and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Thanks in part to cooperation between SSBs 1.2 billion adults worldwide have gained access to financial services since 2011. But 1.7 billion adults – almost 33% of the world population – still have no access (Global Findex 2017). In her speech Queen Máxima highlighted the key role that new technologies can play in allowing this group to catch up.
Benoît Cœuré, chairman of the BIS Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures and co-chair of the meeting, also gave an introduction. The meeting was hosted by Agustín Carstens, the BIS General Manager, who said a word of welcome.
Since 2009 Queen Máxima, in her capacity as UN Special Advocate, has been working worldwide to make financial services accessible to all, including low-income groups and SMEs, with the aim of improving their economic and social development opportunities. Since 2011 she has been honorary chair of the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI).