Banking, Pension Reform and Entrepreneurship As an example of our east-east approach, BFAC convened a seminar entitled 'Deposit Insurance: The Central European Experience' in Almaty in May 1999 to provide assistance and expertise to officials at the National Bank of Kazakhstan who are leading the effort to establish a deposit insurance scheme in support of the banking system. In a country where banking assets were estimated to be only around 7 % of GDP, deposit insurance was viewed by policymakers as an instrument which could help to reduce the perception of risk and, therefore, raise the level of confidence and participation of the depositor population in the banking system. In the field of pension reform, and working in cooperation with the Hungarian Association of Economists and the State Private Funds Supervision office, the latter responsible for oversight of pension fund management, our conference on 'The Global Perspective on Private Pension Fund Regulation' (October 1998) served as a forum for presentation of various approaches to regulation and supervision of reformed pension systems from around the world. A main theme of the event was that the shift from the public to the private sector in provision of pension benefits must be made in order to establish links between pension contributions and payments, and to introduce better returns on investment as part of future pension payments. Discussions focused on the multilateral and national perspectives: senior-level experts from the World Bank, the European Union and the OECD described their respective philosophies and strategies on the subject, and representatives of regulatory authorities form Australia, Argentina, Chile, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States presented their respective countries' policies and practical experience. The President of the Hungarian State Private Funds Supervision presented the host country's case. As part of BFAC's project to promote entrepreneurship in the innovative, or high-technology sectors, BFAC convened, in cooperation with the Hungarian Venture Capital Association (HVCA) three major conventions, in November 1998, 1999, 2000 respectively. Leaders in the venture capital field, ranging from policymakers in the United States to technology incubator managers in Israel, communicated their experience to Hungarian investors, entrepreneurs and policymakers. The event highlighted ways to commercialize talent in the high-technology sectors, and therefore to stimulate investment and small- and medium-sized business development. Venture entrepreneurship, the unique joining of forces between the spirit of enterprise and commercialization of scientific expertise and discovery, could play an important role in strengthening the competitiveness of the Hungarian economy and other economies in the region endowed with scientific and technological know-how. <<< Previous     Next >>>