3 EXPERTS QUESTIONS

- What role can central banks play in reaching climate and sustainability goals?

- In order to reach the climate goals, there have to be very large-scale investments because we have to change the way we generate electricity, the way we travel and the way we make things. This means that the production techniques have to be completely rebuilt. This cannot be done without the mobilisation of private finance. So the role of the central bank is to be able to provide creative schemes like blended finance in order to attract private finance into these investment programmes.

- Do these goals mean the same everywhere?

- When people talk about green transformation, they usually have in mind net zero emissions of CO2 or the protection of biodiversity. That definition of sustainability is really not adequate for poor, developing countries. How can you tell a person not to cut down trees if this is how he feeds his family? So for these countries, economic growth is key. Green energy costs more. If it wasn’t, we’d already use it everywhere.

- Which Eurasian city do you expect to become the next dominant financial centre of the world?

- It could be Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Sydney, or even Bombay. I expect it to be Shanghai, largely because the Japanese economy is shrinking in relative size, whereas China has been expanding tremendously, first overtaking Japan in economic size and coming to equal the US in purchasing power. Also, it’s among the biggest traders in the world. So it is quite natural that a financial centre would be located there. ■