Asia-Pacific Regional Seminar on Digital Money and Payments in Transition
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- Asia-Pacific Regional Seminar on Digital Money and Payments in Transition
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Contact
For event inquiries:
International Monetary Fund
Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
Tel. 81-(0)3-3597-6700
Email: OAPEconomicSeminar@IMF.org
Overview and key themes
- The landscape of digital money and payments has undergone significant transformation driven by technological advances and evolving financial needs.
- Recent developments in crypto assets, including stablecoins, and progress in tokenization offer potential benefits while also posing risks to financial stability.
- Technological innovation is likely to accelerate further in the coming years and result in new digital solutions for payments and financial intermediation.
- There is a growing recognition of the importance of a reference guide and technical assistance to help countries develop sound policy frameworks for digital money and payments.
- The seminar focused on Asia-Pacific region issues, with particular attention to Pacific Islands Countries (PICs).
Organizers and cooperation
- Hosted by the IMF's Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (OAP).
- Organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance, Japan, and the Bank of Japan.
- The IMF’s CBDC Virtual Handbook, supported by the Government of Japan, is presented as a reference guide and a “living” document for policymakers and experts.
Seminar objectives and focus areas
- Introduce six new chapters on CBDC providing insights on:
- financial stability,
- payments competition,
- financial integrity,
- legal considerations,
- tokenized reserves,
- payment resilience in fragile and conflict-affected states.
- Highlight developments in cross-border payments and implications for the Asia-Pacific region.
- Explore how global innovations (stablecoins, tokenization) can be translated into practical solutions addressing regional needs and challenges in PICs.
- Signal the IMF’s ramping up of technical assistance to emerging and developing countries.
Structure and format
- There will be no specific Q&A sessions during the seminar.
- Two sessions featuring IMF Monetary and Capital Markets Department speakers and discussants from public sector authorities in Japan and other Asia-Pacific countries.
Speakers and roles (selected biographical highlights)
- Takashi Nagaoka — Moderator
- Director of the IMF’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.
- Previously worked in the Japanese government including Financial Services Agency; served in the IMF as an economist (1999-2002).
- Holds an LL.B. from the University of Tokyo and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
- Session 1 speakers and discussants
- Tommaso Mancini-Griffoli — Assistant Director, Monetary and Capital Markets Department, IMF
- Focus: digital currencies and payments, monetary policy, foreign exchange interventions, modelling, central banking operations and communication.
- Prior roles: Swiss National Bank, Goldman Sachs, Boston Consulting Group, technology startups.
- Holds a PhD from the Graduate Institute in Geneva; prior degrees from the London School of Economics and Stanford University.
- Mamerto E. Tangonan — Deputy Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (PCMS)
- Heads Payments and Currency Management Sector covering: interplay between digital money and physical currency; digital transformation of national payment systems; operation of the Peso RTGS payment system; currency production and gold refinery facility.
- Over three decades of experience across digital and traditional financial services and telecommunications.
- Civil engineer by education; completed programs at the Asian Institute of Management, Harvard Kennedy School, and Stanford Graduate School of Business.
- Shigeru Shimizu — Deputy Director General, Payment and Settlement Systems Department, Bank of Japan
- Focus: development and implementation of payment systems, including study of CBDCs.
- Joined the Bank in 1996; extensive experience in G7 and G20 coordination, liquidity risk management during the 2008 financial crisis, and Basel III implementation.
- Holds a law degree from the University of Tokyo and a Master’s in Public Administration from Harvard University.
- Session 2 speakers and discussants
- Tobias Adrian — Financial Counsellor and Director, Monetary and Capital Markets Department, IMF
- Leads IMF work on financial sector surveillance, monetary and macroprudential policies, digital money, financial regulation, debt management, and climate finance.
- Prior roles: Senior Vice President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; Associate Director of the Research and Statistics Group.
- Holds a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an MSc from the London School of Economics.
- Elizabeth Genia — Governor, Bank of Papua New Guinea
- First female Governor; appointed in December 2023 for a term of four years.
- Prior role: Assistant-Governor Corporate Affairs Group; led development of Gender Equity and Social Inclusion Policy.
- Holds an MBA from the University of Queensland and a Graduate Certificate in the Fintech Program from the Said Business School, University of Oxford.
- Esala Masitabua — Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of Fiji
- Appointed Deputy Governor on 1 January 2018.
- Career central banker at the Reserve Bank of Fiji since 1997; seconded to the IMF in October 2023 as Advisor to the Executive Director, South East Asian Constituency; resumed role as Deputy Governor on 12 November, 2025.
- Closing remarks
- Hideaki Imamura — Senior Deputy Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs (since July 2025)
- Responsible for multilateral policy coordination including G20, G7 and the IMF and bilateral cooperation with advanced economies.
- Joined Japan Ministry of Finance in 1993; former Executive Director for Japan at the World Bank Group.
- Holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Tokyo and a Master of Arts in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan (1997).
Agenda and timing
- 10:00 AM — Welcome & Introduction; Takashi Nagaoka, Director, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, IMF
- 10:05 AM — Central Bank Digital Currency: Further Navigating Challenges and Opportunities
- Speaker: Tommaso Mancini-Griffoli, Assistant Director, Monetary Capital Market Department, IMF; Presentation
- Discussants: Mamerto E. Tangonan, Deputy Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (Online); Presentation; Shigeru Shimizu, Deputy Director-General of Payment and Settlement Department, Bank of Japan
- Session notes: Introduction of six new chapters on CBDC focusing on financial stability, payments competition, financial integrity, legal considerations, tokenized reserves, and payment resilience in fragile and conflict-affected states.
- 11:00 AM — New Frontiers in Cross-Border Payments and Implications for Asia-Pacific
- Speaker: Tobias Adrian, Financial Counsellor and Director, Monetary Capital Market Department, IMF; Presentation
- Discussants: Elizabeth Genia, Governor, Bank of Papua New Guinea; Esala Masitabua, Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of Fiji; Presentation
- Session notes: Advances in stablecoins and tokenization may enhance efficiency of cross-border payments and remittances while posing regulatory and financial stability challenges; focus on translating global innovations into practical regional solutions, with attention to PICs.
- 11:55 AM — Closing remarks; Hideaki Imamura, Senior Deputy Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Japan
Content in this bundle
- Session1 Slide for Imf Seminar on Digital Money and Payments in Transition Dgmet
- Fiji’s Digital Money & Payments – Current Situation & Challenges
- CBDC: Further Navigating Challenges and Opportunities
- New Frontiers in Cross-Border Payments and Implications for Asia–Pacific
References
- Regional Office Website
- Digital Money and Payments in Transition
- Asia-Pacific Regional Seminar Series
- High-level Economic Policy Conferences
- Macroeconomist Training Program
- Japan-IMF Scholarship Program for Asia
- IMF CBDC Virtual Handbookand insights into the development of cross-border payments, focusing on Asia-Pacific region, especially the Pacific Islands Countries (PICs).