Thursday, July 4, 2024 From July 8 to 10, Brian Nelson, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, will be in Brisbane, Australia, for the Pacific Banking Forum co-hosted by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Government of Australia.
During his visit, Nelson will engage in a series of bilateral meetings with officials from Pacific nations and other attending partners. As proud Pacific nations, the United States and Australia share a commitment to fostering a free, open, connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient Pacific region. In October 2023, during Australia’s State Visit, President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Albanese pledged to enhance sustainable access to banking services across the Pacific.
This led to the joint launch of the Pacific Banking Forum, aimed at achieving this goal in consultation with regional countries. The Pacific Banking Forum will gather policymakers, regulators, commercial banks, technical experts, and other stakeholders to support the Pacific Island Forum Secretariat’s correspondent banking initiatives. The forum will address the pressing issue of ‘de-risking’ and the decline in correspondent banking relationships in the Pacific, which hampers local banks’ ability to connect with international financial institutions and access cross-border payment services.
According to the Treasury’s 2023 National Derisking Strategy, de-risking happens when financial institutions terminate or restric.
