Our events
Sneak Preview of the World Development Report 2022: Finance for an Equitable Recovery
- The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on households and firms, and the interlinkages with pre-existing debt loads and economic fragilities.
- Present and anticipated state of debt distress and the prospects for business solvency
- Priorities for governments and lenders to manage rising levels of non-performing loans as borrowers supports are wound down
- Reform priorities to improve insolvency frameworks and create a orderly process for restructuring
- The impacts of the crisis on credit risk and the ability of lenders to provide adequate financing to businesses and households in the context of high economic uncertainty
- How innovations in the use of technology and data, and in tech-enabled product design and delivery, can increase visibility into a borrower’s future ability to repay, and improve recourse in the event of nonpayment
- Regulatory and supervisory frameworks for technology-enabled financial innovation
About the World Development Report (WDR)
The WDR is a flagship publication of the World Bank Group. Previous WDRs have examined how technology is changing the nature of work, trade and development in the age of global value chains, and how the changing data landscape is creatin opportunities as well as challenges. This year the WDR is focusing on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on financial markets, and how participants and policy makers can build back better for a resilient and equitable recovery. The report will examine the financial impact of the pandemic on household, firms, and governments, as well as the policy responses and consequent fiscal implications for government budgets and broader sovereign and private credit markets. As the economic disruptions to firms and households due to the pandemic echo in non-performing loans and defaults, proactive approaches to managing credit market disruptions will be important to recover. The report will present resolution strategies for lenders and debt restructuring approaches for households and firms, including in-court and out-of-court options to reduce debt burdens and pave the way for recovery. Of particular interest to SMEFF members, the report will examine how lenders can respond to the increased risk and reduced visibility of the pandemic lending environment, and how policy makers can foster innovations in lending alongside well-designed government support programs.
Leora Klapper is the WDR2022 Director and a Lead Economist in the Finance and Private Sector Research Team of the Development Research Group at the World Bank. Her publications focus on corporate and household finance, banking, entrepreneurship, and risk management. Her current research studies the impact of digital financial services, especially for women. She is a founder of the Global Findex database, which measures how adults around the world save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk. Previously, she worked at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and Salomon Smith Barney. She holds a Ph.D. in Financial Economics from New York University Stern School of Business.
Martin Holtmann is the WDR2022 Lead Author and Global Sector Manager for Financial Inclusion, MSME Finance, and Digital Finance at IFC. Martin started in banking with Deutsche Bank in Buenos Aires. As Project Manager and Managing Director, he spent twelve years with IPC, an access to finance and bank management consulting firm. From 1995 until 2001 he was the resident Manager of the EBRD Russia Small Business Fund. Prior to joining IFC, Martin was Lead Financial Specialist at CGAP, where he managed the Technology Team and also headed the “Retail Advisory Service”. As a faculty member of the Boulder Microfinance Training Program since 1996, Martin has helped to train more than 4000 banking executives and microfinance professionals. Martin is a graduate of the L.B. Pearson UWC in Victoria, B.C., Canada, and holds Master’s degrees from Trier University (Business Economics) and Harvard University (Public Administration).
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