Outcomes Statement of the Pacific Banking Forum

WASHINGTON – The United States and Australia hosted the Pacific Banking Forum to address the urgent problem of ‘de-risking’ and the decline of correspondent banking relationships (CBRs) in the Pacific from July 8-9 in Brisbane, Australia. The Forum, launched by President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, brought together Pacific Island Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, regulators, international financial institutions (IFIs), multilateral development banks, policymakers, and Financial Intelligence Units, as well as commercial banks, alongside senior officials from the U.S., Australia, New Zealand and Japan, to address critical issues with CBRs in the region.U.S. delegation was ledby Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson.The Forum supported the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat’sCBR Roadmap, a multi-year plan with recommendations, actions, and benchmarks for Pacific Island Countries and development partners to address the decline of Pacific Island CBRs.