The Financial Stability Board (FSB) Regional Consultative Group (RCG) for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) held its 18th meeting in a virtual form today 19 September 2020 to discuss recent global and regional macroeconomic and financial market developments.
The RCG MENA is co-chaired by Dr. Ahmad AlKholifey, Governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority and Mr. Rasheed Mohammed Al-Maraj, Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain. Members exchanged views on the latest financial stability implications of COVID-19, as well as any medium- or long-term threats to regional financial stability that might arise from the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic implications, including their policy responses.
The group received an update on the FSB's deliverables to the Saudi Arabian G20 Presidency. This includes the FSB's work on BigTech firms in Emerging Market and Developing Economies (EMDEs), benchmark transition, enhancing cyber resilience and cross-border payments.
At the end of the meeting, RCG members addressed the regulatory, and supervisory and oversight challenges raised by "global stablecoin" arrangements. They also exchanged views and shared experiences on how the recommendations from the "global stablecoin" report could be implemented in their jurisdictions.
In 2011, six regional consultative groups of the FSB were established responding to the call of the G20 Leaders at the Toronto Summit (June 2010), to bring together financial authorities from FSB member and non-member countries to exchange views on vulnerabilities affecting financial systems and on initiatives to promote financial stability.
The FSB's priorities are to promote the full implementation of agreed financial sector regulatory reforms, develop and implement regulatory and supervisory policies that serve financial stability, strengthen financial systems and finalize post-crisis reforms.
The current membership of the RCG MENA includes financial and regulatory authorities from Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Tunisia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
