IFC: The World Bank and IFC gathered more than 300 senior financial infrastructure representatives from over 90 countries to promote the security and stability of financial systems that can mitigate future financial crises and increase access to financial services for households and businesses.

Financial Infrastructure Week 2011, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, began the week-long program to address three essential areas of financial infrastructure—payment systems and remittances, credit reporting, and secured transactions—and what national authorities, the private sector, and other stakeholders need to do to develop this financial-market infrastructure.

Global financial infrastructure is the backbone of every economy’s financial system.  The quality of a country’s financial infrastructure determines the efficiency of intermediation, the ability of lenders to evaluate risk and of borrowers to obtain credit, insurance, and other financial products at competitive terms.  Safe and efficient financial infrastructure provides stability for the global financial system.

“Everyone here this week, both public and private sector players, have a critical role in implementing holistic financial infrastructure reform,” said Janamitra Devan, World Bank-IFC Vice President for Financial and Private Sector Development.  “Emphasis must not only be put on creating fair competitive market conditions but also on developing a collaborative ecosystem where growth is achieved while promoting the safety and efficiency of our financial systems.”

During Financial Infrastructure Week 2011, new international standards will be unveiled for global stakeholder consultations—the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems-International Organization of Securities Commissions’ Principles for Financial Market Infrastructures and the World Bank’s new standards for credit reporting.

Throughout the week, participants will discuss topics at the heart of the international debate, deliberate on the new standards, and seek new approaches to better address current weaknesses in the financial infrastructure community.

The World Bank and IFC have been active in more than 100 countries supporting comprehensive reform programs in its commitment to promote and disseminate policy on financial infrastructure.  For more information about Financial Infrastructure Week 2011, visit: http://www.worldbank.org/paymentsystems/rio.