The 35th Australasian Finance and Banking Conference (AFBC) is organised by the Institute of Global Finance and the School of Banking and Finance, UNSW Business School. The Conference will be held on 14th–16th December 2022.

The AFBC is organised by the Institute of Global Finance and the School of Banking and Finance, UNSW Business School. The Conference will be held on 14th–16th December 2022.

The AFBC is the most significant and prestigious finance conference in the Asia-Pacific region. It brings together the world's foremost leaders of thought from the financial community, providing international academics and industry professionals with the opportunity to meet and share their research and interest in finance-related fields. The Conference Committee would like to invite all academics and practitioners to participate.

When and where

  • When: Wednesday 14th to Friday 16th December 2022.  The PhD Forum will be held on Tuesday 13th December 2022.
  • Where:  Hybrid, UNSW Business School, Sydney Australia

Keynote Speakers

Keynote speakers of the 35th AFBC:

  • Viral Acharya, New York University
  • Stijn Claessens, Bank for International Settlements
  • Robert Engle, New York University
  • Itay Goldstein, University of Pennsylvania
  • Dimitris Papanikolaou, Northwestern University
  • Gordon Phillips, Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth
  • Avanidhar Subrahmanyam, UCLA

International Forum on Climate Change and Green Finance

Keynote Speaker: Nobel Laureate, Robert Engle, New York University

The issues to be discussed include how to enhance global collective efforts and build capacity to sustain efforts for the protection of environment, water supply, access to clean water, measures that can mitigate those factors affected by climate change. Some issues and themes to be considered include: What are the required ingredients, policies, and measures to protect the environment and water supply; What level of collaboration at firm, country and global levels is required to accelerate the pace and scale of technological breakthroughs for these purposes: What are some of the challenges and opportunities associated with the protection of the local and national environment and water, what are the challenges associated with ESG; How can ESG be effectively incorporated into portfolio assets; What are the key elements needed to develop effective policies and measures for the protection of the environment and water and mobilise financial resources for them; What role does corporate governance play in contributing to the process of managing challenges associated with climate change. What are those factors that can contribute to environment, water and climate finance; Is there a role for stronger global governance of the environment, water and climate related issues. As a follow up to the COP27, an international forum on the environment, water and climate change will be held within the conference program to analyse and discuss various issues associated with the environment, water, climate change and climate finance, considering the outcomes of this summit.

An International Forum on FinTech and Central Bank Digital Currencies

Keynote Speaker:  Stijn, Claessens, Head of Financial Stability Policy and Deputy Head of  the Monetary and Economics, at BIS

The global financial system is in the middle of a technological revolution, with the Covid-19 pandemic having further accelerated the pace of digital change. With new digital technologies and greater connectivity have come many new entrants and forms of financial services, reshaping the global financial landscape.

Some of these developments have involved much policy and research effort devoted to CBDCs, a digital form of central bank money widely available to the public. While fast and convenient digital payments have been available from commercial banks and a growing number of FinTech companies for some time, a CBDC differs from existing digital money because it would be a liability of the Central Bank, and not of a commercial bank or private company.

Many major issues still need to be analysed and explored to gain a better understanding of the preferred design of CBDCs and their impact and implications for both banks and non-banks, and how these may differ between developed and developing countries. Issues include the relation of CBDCs to the effectiveness of monetary policy, their possible contribution towards more inclusive financial services, potential risks to the integrity and stability of national and global financial systems, and the related design and technological requirements.

PhD Forum

When: Tuesday, 13th December 2022

The 35th AFBC conference will include a PhD Forum for advanced Finance Doctoral Students who are currently working on their dissertation. The one-day forum will offer accepted students the unique opportunity to present their research and have their work discussed by distinguished academics.

At the PhD Forum, students will receive valuable advice about career development from one or two eminent scholars (one or two of the keynote speakers of the conference) and will discuss recent developments in finance literature with fellow students and faculty members.

The keynote speaker for the forum is Itay Goldstein: University of Pennsylvania