Council for Asset and Investment Management (CAIM)
The Council for Asset and Investment Management (CAIM) brings together senior executives from the global institutional investment community, including major asset managers, life insurance companies, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds collectively accounting for some $28 trillion in assets under management. The Council meets regularly to discuss topical issues pertaining to long-term investment, challenges for asset allocation, regulatory reforms affecting the financial services industry and the impact of structural change and new financial technologies.
In recent years the Council has established a robust dialogue with leading international policymakers, including via interactive small-group meetings alongside G20 Ministerial Meetings and during IMF/World Bank Meetings. The group also meets for regionally focused gatherings with officials and policymakers, which in recent years have included London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Tokyo, Shanghai, Buenos Aires, Doha, Jakarta and Lima as wellas New York and Washington D.C.
The Council advocates on behalf of institutional investors, both through dialogue and via position papers, policy letters, and submission of comments. Recent projects have included collaboration with the G20/B20 work on mobilizing private-sector funding for infrastructure investment; principles for strengthening investor/creditor rights; commenting on the EC Green Paper on Capital Markets Union; and a response to the ECB-BoE working paper on reviving securitization markets. Current work streams include the changing environment for secondary market liquidity, global debt and changing demographics, pension reform, heightened regulatory oversight of the asset management industry; development of EM local currency bond markets; and the impact of new financial technologies on the asset management industry. Both the infrastructure and sustainable finance working groups (see below) provide the Council with regular input and updates.
Infrastructure Working Group
Established in 2016 to build on sustained IIF member interest in infrastructure investment, the IIF’s Infrastructure Working Group brings together key public-private sector stakeholders, with the goal of finding and promoting practical solutions to close the infrastructure financing gap. Working closely with the IIF Council for Asset and Investment Management (CAIM), core topics for the Infrastructure Working Group include establishing infrastructure as an asset class, mobilizing private sector investment and helping galvanize public-private partnerships. In addition to major institutional investors from CAIM, the working group includes industrial companies, buy-side and sell-side financial institutions and key public sector officials.
Market Monitoring Group (MMG)
Launched in 2009, the MMG focuses on structural changes in financial markets, the regulatory environment, and the global economy that may be sources of potential systemic risks. The group convenes Chief Risk Officers and other senior market practitioners from banks and institutional investors as well as academics and specialized consultancies. The MMG monitors emerging vulnerabilities including those related to changes in liquidity provision and the impact of new financial technologies; mispriced assets, crowded trades and concentration risk; deterioration in business practices; and other nascent risks of concern to the industry and policymakers. The group explores ways to contain these risks and shares its views with market participants and public-sector bodies in an effort to enhance financial stability.
The MMG meets twice per year in person, typically alongside our IIF Spring Membership Meeting and in New York in early December. Meetings are supplemented conference calls as well as regular briefing and support from IIF staff. Particular emphasis is placed on regular communication with relevant public-sector bodies including the Financial Stability Board, the U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council, the European Systemic Risk Board, the IMF, and other key policy-setting bodies and research centers. Membership in this group is subject to co-chair approval.
Sustainable Finance Working Group (SFWG)
With over 100 members to date including banks, investors, service firms and non-financial corporates, the IIF SFWG promotes capital market solutions that support the scaling up of sustainable finance; identifies barriers to—and catalysts for—the broader mobilization of private finance, e.g. those related to regulation, the role of national authorities and multilateral initiatives; promotes effective climate-related disclosures across jurisdictions, notably through support for the implementation of the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and addressing data gaps; contributing to efforts to scale up sustainable investment and mainstream impact investment, including around taxonomy, rationalizing sustainable investment terminology and market infrastructure. The IIF SFWG works closely with official sector collaborators including the G20/B20, the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS), the IMF, World Bank/IFC and other multilaterals, national authorities and the regulatory/supervisor community to engage public and private sectors in dialogue around sustainable finance issues. Learn more
SFWG members are invited to participate in the following four subgroups to support its efforts.
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Regulatory and Policy Engagement Subgroup: Assesses global, regional and where appropriate national-level policy and regulatory initiatives to determine where the SFWG should engage with policymakers to scale up action to ensure a policy and regulatory environment conducive to sustainable finance. Develop an effective advocacy effort around key sustainable finance policy and regulatory initiatives—particularly at the global level—with key groupings. There will be a particular focus initially on risk management standards as well as disclosure requirements and work on taxonomy; going forward more emphasis will be given to corporate governance and other social/governance issues.
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TCFD/Data Subgroup: Supports members in identifying challenges to TCFD implementation, especially around risk and data analysis, and promote knowledge sharing—for example, by highlighting reporting that is consistent with the TCFD recommendations. This subgroup can also contribute to industry efforts towards promoting good practices via an industry survey and/or a stock-taking of progress on climate-related financial disclosures.
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Taxonomy and Impact Investing Subgroup: Contributes to efforts to develop standards that help catalyze private capital at scale to support sustainable development efforts. This includes helping promote international coherence and consistency across taxonomy initiatives (e.g. European Commission, UK Green Finance Task Force, China Society for Finance and Banking/EIB) and standard-setters (e.g. IOSCO, SASB, GIIN). Support efforts to rationalize the multitude of sustainable investment terms in use and raise awareness of efforts to develop common standards and methodologies around impact investment (e.g. the IFC Operating Principles for Impact Management). Looking across private and official sector initiatives, build dialogue and collaboration with initiatives such as the Equator Principles, the UN Principles for Responsible Investment, the WEF Future of Sustainable and Impact Investing etc. Support supply-side initiatives via public-private partnerships, including around investing in sustainable infrastructure.
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Climate and ESG Economics: The objectives are to engage with economists, policy experts, and other practitioners to better assess the rapidly-evolving fields of climate financial impact research and to pursue original research to evaluate the financial consequences of risks and opportunities related to climate change and other relevant environmental, social, and governance topics. The SFWG Secretariat has begun developing original research on an array of ESG-related financial products, on climate-related physical and transition risks to financial stability, and on mitigation and adaptation activities. A key area of research going forward will be related to scenario analysis and stress testing and how common industry approaches can be developed. Learn more
Committee on Sovereign Risk Management (CSRM)
The CSRM, composed of senior executives from IIF member firms, was established in 2001 to guide the Institute’s policy work on critical issues related to the prevention of financial crises. The CSRM undertakes broad-based efforts to advance policy issues in economies confronting challenges related to debt management; with a focus on sovereign debt crisis prevention and resolution as well as dealing with debt crises should they occur. The Committee has played an important role in the establishment of the Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring as well as the ongoing development of the voluntary contractual approach to sovereign debt restructuring.
Debt Transparency Working Group (DTWG)
In response to strong demand from our members and a range of private/public sector collaborators to support efforts to promote better disclosure in sovereign debt markets, the IIF has launched a Debt Transparency Working Group (DTWG) and welcomes new members. This group is tasked with creating a set of voluntary Principles for Debt Transparency—applicable universally but especially in emerging and developing countries, an idea consistent with the G20-endorsed Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring. Currently, DTWG members represent over 20 IIF member firms, including banks, insurers and asset managers. Additional outreach to IIF member firms and emerging market debt management offices (as observers) is underway; the group also has regular outreach to civil society organizations (CSOs).
The primary mandate of the Debt Transparency Initiative is to find ways to improve disclosure and make comprehensive debt data more accessible. Greater transparency has many benefits including improved credit assessment and decision making by lenders, better debt management by EM borrowers (including better access to funding and lower borrowing costs), and support for debt sustainability. Towards this end, the DTWG is currently developing a voluntary set of principles to promote transparency in sovereign debt markets. Although aligned with the framework of the existing Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring, the voluntary Principles for Debt Transparency will be a separately conceived initiative with its own integrity. A progress report on the initiative will be presented to the Group of Trustees in October 2018 for their consideration and support. The G20 has expressed support for IIF’s work on the Voluntary Principles for Debt Transparency in the Communiqué of the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Fukuoka in June 8-9, 2019. In the next year, the DTWG will be working on operationalizing the Voluntary Debt Transparency Principles, including finding an appropriate data repository to house the disclosed information.
The two groups below are not Committees of the Institute; however, the IIF’s Global Policy Initiatives Department acts as their Secretariat:
Group of Trustees of the Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring
The Principles were conceived in the aftermath of the sovereign debt crises in Asia, Russia and Latin America. They constitute a voluntary code of conduct between sovereign debt issuers and their private sector creditors that was agreed in 2004 and endorsed by the G20 Ministerial Meeting in Berlin that same year. The Principles incorporate voluntary, market based, flexible guidelines for the behavior of sovereign debtors and private creditors to promote and maintain stable capital flows as well as support financial stability and sustainable growth.
The Group of Trustees is the guardian of the Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring and it oversees the work of the Principles Consultative Group (PCG). It consists of current and former leaders in global finance with exceptional experience and credibility. The Group currently has three co-chairs: Governor François Villeroy de Galhau of the Banque de France; Dr. Axel Weber, Chairman of UBS AG and former President of the Bundesbank; and Governor Yi Gang of the People’s Bank of China.
The Group of Trustees meets once a year to review progress on implementation of the Principles within the framework of the international financial architecture and to review the implementation of the Principles as provided for in the Annual Report on the Implementation of the Principles. The Group’s mandate includes:
- Reviewing the evolution of the international financial system as it relates to emerging markets and other major debtor countries;
- Reviewing the development of the Principles, including their implementation; and
- Making proposals for modification of the Principles, if needed.
Principles Consultative Group (PCG)
Principles Consultative Group (PCG) is tasked with monitoring and encouraging the practical application of the Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring. The group’s membership includes finance ministry and central bank officials as well as senior representatives of the private financial community. Many of the PCG’s members were instrumental in the formulation of the Principles. Regular PCG conference calls provide an opportunity to discuss implementation issues, country cases, and implications of developments in global capital markets. The PCG welcomes a number of regular observers, including representatives of the IMF and World Bank/IFC staff, the IADB, the EBRD, the BIS, the ECB and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.