The Central Bank of Sri Lanka is to host a reserve management conference in Colombo, bringing together central bankers, sovereign asset managers, policymakers, economists and investment professionals from around the world, EconomyNext reported.
The event is scheduled for 10 and 11 September at The Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo.
“The conference aims to promote knowledge exchange, share best practices and foster international cooperation to enhance reserve resilience and support sustainable macroeconomic stability,” the Central Bank said.
What is on the agenda
The programme covers six themes:
- Challenges in building foreign reserves
- Challenges for Asia in a world of geopolitical fragmentation
- Digital and tokenised assets in official reserves
- Reviewing currency power and USD dominance in FX reserves
- The role of gold and alternative assets in reserve portfolios
- Enhancing reserve management through technology and AI
Speakers
Named speakers include Domenico Nardelli, Treasurer of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank; Ussrah Hussain, Director, Digital and Product Solutions at HSBC; Shaokai Fan, Global Head of Central Banks at the World Gold Council; and Ajay Kumar, Executive Director at the Reserve Bank of India.
Why the subject matters here
Reserve rebuilding has been the central plank of Sri Lanka’s recovery since the 2022 default, and the conference agenda maps closely onto the country’s own position. Gross official reserves have been accumulated under the IMF programme’s floor targets, while the external accounts remain under pressure — the current account was in deficit for a fourth straight month in July, at US$142mn.
Central government debt stood at US$95bn at the end of the second quarter, with gross public debt at US$97.95bn according to the Public Debt Management Office.
That a country only four years past a sovereign default is convening an international meeting on reserve resilience is itself notable, though the Central Bank did not frame it that way.
Not reported
EconomyNext did not say who is funding or co-hosting the conference, how many delegates are expected, whether sessions are open to media, or whether Sri Lankan officials will present on the country’s own reserve rebuilding. The Central Bank has not published a full speaker list.
