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Inaugural Singapore-France Economic Forum Strengthens Ties A High Level economic Forum that Explores Bilateral Economic Relations Between Europe and Asia
SINGAPORE, 24 November 2016 – Le Cercle des économistes, the Economic Society of Singapore, ESSEC Business School and Paris EUROPLACE, with the support of the French Embassy in Singapore and the local authorities – hosts today and tomorrow the first edition of the Singapore-France Economic Forum (Les Rencontres Économiques in Singapore).
Inspired by Les Rencontres Économiques d’Aix-en-Provence in France, the event will focus on ‘Europe and the Asian Century: Keys for the World Economy’ from an economic and financial perspective. The conference, which is taking place at the ESSEC Business School, Asia-Pacific Campus in Singapore on 24 and 25 November, will provide a platform for exchange and gathering of business leaders, academics, institutions, policy makers, think tanks, as well as students from both regions.
Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singapore Deputy Prime Minister & Coordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies, said, “Ties between Singapore and France have deepened and expanded into new areas in recent years. We face many common challenges, in a world where cooperative internationalism requires greater effort to sustain. There is much we can learn from each other, such as in strategies for enabling inclusive growth and spreading the benefits of open economies.”
As France’s first commercial partner in the ASEAN region, Singapore shares more than 50 years of bilateral relations and strong economic ties with France. The Lion City, as a leading global economic, trading, and financial hub, is a gateway to the Asian continent and to Southeast Asia, in particular. The region is experiencing a rapid growth that France is keenly watching, and the development of a dialogue platform that gathers academics, institutions, companies, and policy makers of both countries presents a shared opportunity for learning and exchange, deepening the mutual understanding between key stakeholders.
The two-day forum brings together a panel of 40 esteemed speakers from varied backgrounds (academia, business leaders, policy makers), and offers an in-depth exploration of the bilateral economic relations between Europe and Asia through a series of insightful presentations, panel discussions, and open debates. Key topics such as innovation, monetary policies, regulations, economic growth, and regional integration will be explored across eight broad sessions.
With the onset of the digital age, the push for Innovation can be keenly felt across the globe. One of the topics that the forum explores is the impact of innovation on economic growth. Issues such as the different dimensions of innovation, the concept of disruptive innovation, lessons from successful predecessors, and the downside of innovation will be discussed in detail.
Other sessions will touch on pertinent economic issues, such as the role of monetary policies in the aftermath of the decision on Brexit and of the US elections; how investment in Asia and the Euro area is impacted – by both new regulations in financial markets and the macroeconomic policies specific to these regions; the impact of macroprudential regulations on long term investment; and lessons to be learnt from the European political crisis.
These topics will be discussed by high-level speakers, among them:
Bertrand Badré, Visiting Fellow of the Peterson Institute for International Economics; former Managing Director and CFO of the World Bank Group Beh Swan Gin, Chairman of the Singapore Economic Development Board Benjamin Dubertret, Ambassador of France to Singapore Suet-Fern Lee, Managing Partner of Morgan Lewis Stamford LLC Anne Le Lorier, First Deputy Governor, Banque de France Enrico Letta, Dean of Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po Paris, former Prime Minister of Italy Kishore Mahbubani, Dean and Professor of Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore Christian Noyer, Former Governor of Banque de France Ong Keng Yong, Ambassador-at-Large at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Former Secretary-General of ASEAN; Executive Deputy Chairman, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University Jean Pisani-Ferry, Commissioner-General France Stratégie & Membre of Le Cercle des économistes Danny Quah, Li Ka Shing Professor of Economics, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore Edward Robinson, Assistant Managing Director (Economic Policy) and Chief Economist of Monetary Authority of Singapore Tan York Chor, Former Ambassador of Singapore to France Leslie Teo, Chief Economist and Director of Economics & Investment Strategy, GIC; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore Claire Waysand, General Auditor, Ministry of Economy and Finance; Member of Le Cercle des économistes
The full program and speakers’ list is available in the Annex.
Organizing Partners’ Quotes:
“The forum marks a key milestone in the relationship between France and Singapore, as we gather major stakeholders from both countries to foster dialogue and increase cooperation,” said Professor Jean-Michel Blanquer, Dean and President of ESSEC Business School. “As a business school, the interactions between key financial markets and the implications that they have on the world economy is of keen interest to us, so ESSEC is honored to host and play a vital role in the organization of such an important forum.”
For Mr. Jean-Hervé Lorenzi, President of Le Cercle des économistes, “During this time of incertitude, open economic discussions between keys actors from business or academic fields are essential. Les Rencontres Économiques d’Aix-en-Provence have been, for 16 years now, a major European moment of exchanges but it was important to bring those talks at a more international level, in Singapore. We believe that Les Rencontres Économiques in Singapore will help vitalize and deepen the relations between our two countries”
Professor Euston Quah, President of the Economic Society of Singapore, said, “At ESS, one of our objectives is to raise awareness of and stimulate public interest in economics. In Singapore, we have to date very few good platforms that allow for in-depth discussions on economic issues, so Les Rencontres Économiques in Singapore further presents an excellent opportunity for us to do so. As the world is getting more complex, it is crucial that we exchange insights, share issues, think about the future, and work together in new opportunities. We hope that the forum will spark off more active discussions amongst Singaporeans, especially with the younger generation.”
Mr. Arnaud de Bresson, Chief Executive Officer of Paris EUROPLACE, said, ““We’re delighted to be part of this forum as we believe there is great potential for more collaborations between the two countries’ financial ecosystems. In the context of Brexit, Paris is considered as the leading financial center in the European Union and is welcoming Singapore banks and investors which are developing euro activities. Through our participation, we hope to reinforce our connections with the Singaporean financial industry and develop concrete joint actions in the RMB developments, the accompanying of Fintech and the Sino-African business."
Communications Simultaneous translation in French/English will be provided throughout all sessions, and videos of the discussions will be made available on the event website after the conference. Interested participants may follow #RESing2016 on twitter for live updates of the forum.
For more information about the Singapore-France Economic Forum, visit http://lecercledeseconomistes.fr/evenements/rencontres-economiques-in-singapore/ and https://sites.google.com/a/essec.edu/rencontreseconomiques-sg/speakers.
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About Le Cercle des économistes
Le Cercle des économistes was created with the ambitious aim of stimulating the economic debate. Thanks to the diversity of opinion of its 30 members, all academics who hold or have held a position in the private or public sector, and numerous activities developed in partnership with French media, the Cercle des économistes has rapidly become a key player in the economic arena. Among a number of events, Le Cercle des économistes has been organizing every year, in July «les Rencontres Économiques d’Aix-en Provence”, gathering more than 220 speakers from all over the world with a public of 3000 people.
Le Cercle des économistes can provide its expertise with its thirty members, its network of international academics, institutions and business leaders as well as its experience in the organization of high quality economic debates.
For more information, please visit lecercledeseconomistes.fr. @cercle_eco Twitter Facebook
About Economic Society of Singapore
The Economic Society of Singapore (ESS) is a non-profit organization of economists and other professionals interested in economics. ESS brings together members of the economics profession in academia, the government and business sectors and provides a platform for discussions on issues facing the Singapore economy and the region. The primary objective of the Society is to raise public awareness, and stimulate public interest and debate, in economic issues. It does this by organizing conferences, talks, workshops and public lectures and by conducting studies on issues, either on its own or in partnership with other organizations. The objectives of ESS are to raise public awareness on Economic issues and to stimulate public interest in Economics, to encourage discussion on Economic problems with special reference to Singapore and to issue a journal and other special publications.
For more information, please visit ess.org.sg. ESS Facebook
About ESSEC Business School
ESSEC, founded in 1907, is one of the world’s top management schools. With 4,880 students; a faculty comprised of 138 full-time professors, 18 of which are emeritus professors, in France and Singapore, recognized for both the quality and influence of their research; a wide range of management training programs; partnerships with the world’s best universities; and a network of 47,000 alumni, ESSEC continues to foster a tradition of academic excellence and a spirit of openness in the fields of economics, social sciences and innovation.
In 2005, ESSEC opened a campus in Asia. ESSEC’s operations in Asia Pacific, strategically located in Singapore, present the perfect foothold for ESSEC to be part of the vibrant growth of Asia and to share expertise with the business community of the region.
For more information, please visit www.essec.edu and www.essec.edu/asia Follow ESSEC Business School on social media
ESSEC Twitter / Twitter ESSEC Asia / Facebook ESSEC / Facebook ESSEC Asia / LinkedIn ESSEC / LinkedIn ESSEC Asia / YouTube ESSEC
About Paris EUROPLACE
Paris EUROPLACE is the professional body which supports the France-based financial services industry and promotes Paris as an international financial center. Paris EUROPLACE gathers and expresses positions of market players as it seeks to strengthen the attractiveness of the Paris financial marketplace, establish constructive relations with European Institutions in a global financial context, stimulate research and financial innovation, and promote these objectives internationally.
For more information, please visit www.paris-europlace.com/en. Follow Paris EUROPLACE on social media
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Les Rencontres Économiques in Singapore - Singapore-France Economic Forum is organized with the support of Accenture, Air France-KLM, Amundi, Ardian, The Ascott Limited, BNP Paribas, bpifrance, Capgemini, Euler Hermes, Finance Innovation, International SOS, LVMH and Societe Générale.
Issued by Red Bug Communications on behalf of the organizers of the Singapore – France Economic Forum.
For media enquiries, please contact: Alina Tee Allea Francisco [email protected] [email protected] Tel: +65 6220 4787 Tel: +65 6884 9780 ANNEX A
Singapore-France Economic Forum (Les Rencontres Économiques in Singapore) Program and Speaker List
Thursday, 24 November 2016
12.00pm - 12.40pm Registration
12.40pm - 12.45pm Welcome by the organizing institutions
12.45pm - 1.30pm Opening address by Mr. Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Deputy Prime Minister & Coordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies Moderated by Euston Quah, Head and Professor, Department of Economics, Nanyang Technological University; President of the Economic Society of Singapore in the presence of H.E. Benjamin Dubertret, Ambassador of France to Singapore 1:35pm – 1:55pm Forum Introduction
2:00pm - 3:15pm SESSION 1: PANORAMA OF THE WORLD ECONOMY Keynote speech by H.E. Ong Keng Yong, Ambassador-at-Large at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Former Secretary-General of ASEAN; Executive Deputy Chairman, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University
Panel discussion: Richard Iley | Chief Economist, Emerging Markets and Asia, BNP Paribas Filippo di Mauro | Visiting Fellow, National University of Singapore Business School; Chairperson and Director, CompNet Ramkishen Rajan | Professor of Economics, ESSEC Business School Tan Kong Yam | Professor of Economics, Nanyang Technological University Naoyuki Yoshino | Dean of the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI); Professor Emeritus at Keio University, Tokyo, Japan 3:15pm - 3.45pm Coffee Break 3.45pm - 5:00pm SESSION 2: CAN MONETARY POLICY HELP RELAUNCH ECONOMIC GROWTH?
Manu Bhaskaran | Founding Director and Chief Executive Officer, Centennial Asia Advisors; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore Philippe Heim | Group Chief Financial Officer, Société Générale Anne Le Lorier | First Deputy Governor, Banque de France Edward Robinson | Assistant Managing Director (Economic Policy) and Chief Economist, Monetary Authority of Singapore Claire Waysand | General Auditor at the Treasury, Ministry of Economy and Finance, France; Member of Le Cercle des économistes 5:00pm – 6:15pm SESSION 3: WHERE TO INVEST IN AN UNPREDICTABLE WORLD?
Beh Swan Gin | Chairman, Singapore Economic Development Board Eric Brard | Global Head of Fixed Income and Member of the Executive Committee, Amundi Jérôme Nanty | Executive Vice President Corporate Secretary and Executive Vice President Human Resources, Air France-KLM Alain Pithon | Secretary-General, Paris EUROPLACE Leslie Teo | Chief Economist and Director of Economics & Investment Strategy, GIC; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore Radu Vranceanu | Professor, Head of Economics Department, ESSEC Business School
Friday, 25 November 2016
8.30am - 9.45am SESSION 4: WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF FINANCE?
Bertrand Badré | Visiting fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics; Former Managing Director and World Bank Group Chief Financial Officer; Chief Executive Officer, BlueOrange Capital André Cartapanis | Professor, Institut d’Etudes Politiques of Aix-en-Provence; Member of Le Cercle des économistes Joëlle Durieux | General Manager, Pôle Finance Innovation Mahamoud Islam | Senior Economist for Asia-Pacific, Euler Hermes David Lee | Professor of Finance, SIM University; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore Sudhir Pai | Chief Technology Officer, Global Financial Services Strategic Business Unit, Capgemini 9.45am - 11.00am SESSION 5: WILL INNOVATION LEAD FUTURE GROWTH?
Adam Burden | Group Technology Officer, Accenture Technology; Global Lead for Advanced Technology & Architecture, Accenture Arnaud Caudoux | Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Bpifrance H.E. Benjamin Dubertret | Ambassador of France to Singapore Vikram Khanna | Associate Editor, The Business Times; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore Gerald Yong | Chief Investment Officer, The Ascott Limited Kevyn Yong | Dean and Associate Professor, ESSEC Business School, Asia-Pacific 11.00am - 11.30am Coffee Break 11.30am - 12.45pm SESSION 6: FRANCE AND SINGAPORE: TWO COMPLEMENTARY MODELS THROUGH GLOBALIZATION?
Tan York Chor | Former Ambassador of Singapore to France Lee Suet-Fern | Managing Partner, Morgan Lewis Stamford LLC Jean Pisani-Ferry | Commissioner-General, France Stratégie; Member of Le Cercle des économistes Laurent Sabourin | Group Managing Director, International SOS 12.45pm - 2.00pm Luncheon 2.00pm - 3.15pm DISCUSSION: DONALD TRUMP – WILL EUROPE OR ASIA SUFFER MORE?
Enrico Letta | Dean, Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po Paris; Former Prime Minister of Italy Kishore Mahbubani | Dean and Professor in the Practice of Public Policy, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore
Moderated by Manu Bhaskaran, Founding Director and Chief Executive Officer, Centennial Asia Advisors; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore 3.15pm - 4.30pm SESSION 7: IS REGIONAL INTEGRATION A CONCEPT OF THE 21ST CENTURY? Keynote speech by Enrico Letta, Dean, Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po Paris; former Prime Minister of Italy
Panel discussion: Manu Bhaskaran | Founding Director and Chief Executive Officer, Centennial Asia Advisors; Vice President of the Economic Society of Singapore Christian Noyer | Honorary Governor, Banque de France Danny Quah | Li Ka Shing Professor of Economics, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore