Reserve Management Seminar

2020 Event Highlights

At UBS Asset Management we have been hosting the Reserve Management Seminar (RMS) in-person for 25 years. It has come to be recognized as one of the leading events for central banks and sovereign institutions.

It goes without saying 2020 was a unique and challenging year in so many ways, which is why for the first time the event was held virtually, from Monday 28, September – Wednesday, 30 September.

The event offered investors from around the globe the opportunity to hear from some of the world’s most pre-eminent leaders in their field, across keynote speeches and panel discussions.

For those who were able to join us, we hope you enjoyed the event. If you were unable to join us or would like to watch any of the sessions again, please find the recordings and session summaries below.

Day One

Reserve Management Trends

60 minutes

The lower-for-longer environment, amplified by the Coronavirus crisis and ongoing trade tensions, is forcing reserve managers to rethink their asset allocation. With leading experts from the Bank for International Settlements, we discussed the results of the 26th UBS Survey of Sovereign Institutions and the best investment approach to navigate the current economic and financial environment.

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Will Globalization survive COVID-19? The winners and the losers

60 minutes

Globalization was already slowing down before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the global economy. In this session, UBS and IMD presented the highlights of the UBS-IMD White paper ‘Will globalization survive COVID-19? The winners and the losers’.

UBS RMS Survey

We believe the Annual Reserve Management Seminar Survey is among the most authoritative depictions of official reserve management activities available. This year's survey was conducted during July – September 2020 and collected responses central banks from all regions globally.

Day Two

Keynote - The Competition for Global Leadership in the Post-Pandemic World

40 minutes

Regionalization is the new globalization. Trade wars and protectionism, lockdowns and travel bans - all point to a world of limited mobility, trade, and investment outside of the North American, European, and Asian regions. We examine what the pandemic taught us about the comparative strengths and weaknesses of the world's three main power centers. and which is most likely to prevail.

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Keynote - Was the economy as bad as many feared?

45 minutes

The pandemic devastated the global economy in the second quarter. Uniquely, policy makers deliberately sought to lower GDP. GDP duly collapsed. But was the economy as badly hurt as many feared? Economic activity during the second quarter was bad, but not as bad as first thought.

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Monetary Policy and Central Banks

60 minutes

UBS Chairman Axel A. Weber shared his views on recent monetary policy and economic developments.

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The Green Finance Revolution

60 minutes

Immediately following UN Climate Week, Mark Carney, UN Climate Envoy on Climate Change and Finance and former Governor of the Bank of England, Axel A. Weber, Chairman of UBS Group and Huw van Steenis, Senior Adviser to the CEO & Chair of the Sustainable Finance Committee discussed the outlook for a green recovery.

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Day Three

Managing FX reserves in a post COVID-19 world - Alternative portfolios for central banks

60 minutes

The rise of alternative asset classes among institutional investors has been one of the most notable investment trends in recent years. But while alternative asset classes can provide additional and uncorrelated returns in the current low yield environment, the adoption by more conservative sovereign investors, is still lagging behind. What is the role of alternative asset classes in the portfolio especially of fixed-income heavy investors in a lower-for-longer post-COVID-19 world? How can traditional reserve management portfolios innovate?

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Digital currencies: technological innovation in global payment systems and central banks

60 minutes

Central banks from different parts of the world have started pilots on so called central bank digital currencies (CBDC). Following the mixed results from private sector initiative such as Libra central banks have taken the lead as global payment systems undergo a massive technological change. We examine What are the implications for reserve managers? How will CBDC impact reserve management? What are the implications for leading reserve currencies? How the rise of CBDC impact gold?

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Market Outlook: A conversation with our Head of Investments

Following the sharp sell-off in March and the subsequent spectacular recovery markets are again going through a new period of volatility. As the pandemic continues spreading across countries and the economic recovery at risk, what is the outlook for equity markets?

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