Isidro Fainé Highlights the Social Responsibility of Banking to Realize a More Prosperous, Sustainable, and Equitable Society

The World Savings and Retail Banking Institute (WSBI) is hosting the International Meeting of Retail Banking Leaders 2023 in Colombia, which has brought together leaders from the retail banking sector from all geographical areas, international organizations, credit entities, and companies from Latin America.

The World Savings and Retail Banking Institute (WSBI), chaired by Isidro Fainé, which counts CECA among its main members, has held the International Meeting of Retail Banking Leaders 2023 in Cartagena de Indias (Colombia).

The forum has gathered leaders from the retail banking sector focusing on the latest global trends in financial inclusion, digitalization, cybersecurity, sustainable finance, and financial education. The meeting has become an excellent opportunity to promote the exchange of knowledge and best practices among representatives of WSBI entities from around the world, international organizations, credit entities, and companies from Latin America.

In his address at the meeting, Isidro Fainé, president of WSBI, the “la Caixa” Foundation, and CECA, stated that “over the past few years, we have witnessed unusual movements in interest rates, suffered a chain of financial crises, and had to adapt to drastic reforms in the regulatory frameworks of the banking sector. We are immersed in a complex, uncertain, and unstable landscape.”

However, the president assured: “I am optimistic about our future. We are determined to continue doing banking with a profound sense of social responsibility and to realize a more prosperous, sustainable, and equitable society. In this time of increasing inequalities, our social work is more important than ever. In our business model, we prioritize financial inclusion and carry out a broad agenda of social work activities,” he added.

Priorities for the Coming Years

The International Meeting of Retail Banking Leaders 2023 was held in the Colombian city of Cartagena de Indias under the title “Global Trends in Financial Education, Cybersecurity, and Sustainable Finance.” The topics addressed highlight the firm commitment of WSBI and its member entities to the priority work lines outlined during the last Assembly, held in 2021 in Paris, where Isidro Fainé renewed his mandate as president of the global organization. Financial inclusion, the promotion of sustainable finance, innovation, leveraging digitalization to enhance customer proximity, and strengthening solvency within the Basel IV framework were the priorities set for the coming years that were prominently featured in this new event.

Notable experts linked to the financial world from different jurisdictions have debated key issues shaping these trends under three panels: Success Stories in Digitalization and Cybersecurity; Sustainable Finance; and Financial Education as a Means for Financial Inclusion.

The opening was conducted by Peter Simon, General Director of WSBI-ESBG, and Diego Prieto Rivera, Regional President of WSBI for America and the Caribbean, and President of Banco Caja Social (Colombia).

The meeting also featured representation from the CECA sector: José María Méndez, General Director of CECA, moderated the panel focused on sustainable finance; Joan Rosás, Director of International Institutional Relations at CaixaBank, moderated the table on financial education; Carlos Morales Roviralta, Director of CaixaBank’s Representation Office in Colombia, and Eugenio Solla, Chief Sustainability Officer and member of CaixaBank’s Management Committee, participated as panelists.

Among the representatives of international organizations were Marcela Ponce Pérez, Director of the Climate Finance Program in Latin America and the Caribbean at the International Finance Corporation (IFC) – which is part of the World Bank Group – and Clemente del Valle, member of the Sustainable Development Investment Future Council and the Infrastructure 4.0 Community group of the World Economic Forum.

CECA and WSBI: The Value of Socially Responsible Banking

WSBI, established in 1924, represents over 6,400 savings banks and retail banks from 67 countries across five continents, with total assets of 15.6 trillion dollars serving over 1.7 billion customers – nearly 21% of the world’s population – providing financial services primarily to SMEs and families.

CECA, a banking association that groups together banks, savings banks, and foundations, is an active member of international associations – World Savings and Retail Banking Institute (WSBI) and European Savings Banks Group (ESBG) – representing the retail banking model characterized by the so-called 3Rs, a model with which CECA member entities fully identify: retail (retail-oriented), focused on financing families and SMEs; rooted (deeply embedded), anchored in the community, linked to and committed to the development of the territories in which they operate; and responsible (aligned with social work and sustainability).

CECA and WSBI represent and defend the interests of their associated entities, being present in multiple national and international forums. WSBI helps savings banks and retail banks worldwide to thrive. It focuses on international regulatory issues that impact the financial industry and provides a platform for knowledge exchange among member entities.