After two years of incredible gains, the prices of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have plunged in recent months; and more turbulence is likely, according to the UN trade and development agency, UNCTAD.

In its latest podcast, the Geneva-based agency is talking about cryptocurrencies with economist Marina Zucker of UNCTAD’s debt and development finance branch.

Are cryptocurrencies here to stay? Is it time for governments to regulate them? Tune in to hear Ms. Zucker spell out the risks and share her ideas about solutions.

Audio Credit: UNCTAD

Photo Credit: Unsplash/André François McKenz

A tentative recovery in 2021 has been followed by increasingly gloomy developments in 2022 as risks began to materialize. Global output contracted in the second quarter of this year. Several shocks have hit a world economy already weakened by the pandemic: higher-than-expected inflation worldwide triggering tighter financial conditions; a worse-than-anticipated slowdown in China; and further negative spillovers from the war in Ukraine. IMF reports a decrease in the baseline forecast for growth to slow from 6.1 percent last year to 3.2 percent in 2022.

Farmers and pastoralists in the small village of Yarwa, in Sudan’s semi-arid region, face several threats to their way of life. Climate change and environmental degradation are damaging lands, destroying forests, and increasing the risk of drought, while the growth of commercial mechanized agribusiness is reducing their access to land. For a long time, small-scale farmers and pastoralists didn’t have any way of accessing finance to grow their businesses. And women, especially, were held back by societal norms, which gave them little say in financial decisions. Today, however, the 13 members of the Alwifaq women’s savings and credit group are charting a way to a better, more resilient future for their community.

Access to financial services is vital to global development, because having an account makes it easier to invest in health and education or in a business. Accounts also help families manage economic emergencies that can push them into poverty. As of 2021, 71% of adults in developing countries have an account with a financial institution or mobile money provider, an increase of more than 50% from a decade ago. Since 2011 the World Bank produces the Global Findex Database as the definitive source of data on global access to financial services from payments to savings and borrowing.

What is inflation, why is it happening, and what can governments do about it? IMF answers these questions in their newest series, Ask an Economist. Send your questions to AskanEconomist@imf.org

Remittances continue to matter more than ever, particularly in rural areas where they count the most and provide opportunities towards rural transformation. IFAD presents 12 reasons why.

Don Lolo has been growing coffee on the slopes of El Playón in Honduras for over fifty years. Now, thanks to from IFAD’s Rural Poor Stimulus Facility, he is using an online banking app to apply for loans, manage savings, and reach new buyers. Rural savings banks are a lifeline for small rural communities in Honduras, allowing small-scale farmers like Don Lolo to save and plan for the future. Sixty-six banks have benefited from the programme, which launched the app and provided bank members with tablets and training.

Officially recorded remittance flows to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are expected to increase by 4.2 percent this year to reach $630 billion. This follows an almost record recovery of 8.6 percent in 2021, according to the World Bank’s latest Migration and Development Brief released today. Remittances to Ukraine, which is the largest recipient in Europe and Central Asia, are expected to rise by over 20 percent in 2022. However, remittance flows to many Central Asian countries, for which the main source is Russia, will likely fall dramatically.

When was the last time you used cash? In his latest book, Eswar Prasad looks at a world, not that far off, where using cash will no longer be an option. Prasad is a professor of economics at Cornell University, and his book, The Future of Money, describes how digital currencies and other financial technologies are reshaping everything from consumer banking to monetary policy and international payments.

In this IMF podcast, he discusses the book with Finance and Development Magazine editor Chris Wellisz. 

Transcript

José Quisocala, set up a bank for social change in Peru at a tender age. Nine years on he is proud of his achievements, in seeking to impact society, especially the youth.

Growth slows as economies grapple with supply disruptions, higher inflation, record debt and persistent uncertainty, according to the IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook.

Global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows showed a strong rebound in 2021, up 77%, according to UNCTAD’s Investment Trends Monitor.

E-money is already a vital part of daily life for billions of people, especially in many developing countries, where many lack access to the banking system.

With inflationary pressures intensifying and Omicron generating new uncertainties, monetary policymakers face new and challenging tradeoffs. As the IMF warned a more frontloaded Fed response to dampen inflation risks could result in market volatility and create difficulties elsewhere—especially in emerging and developing economies. To avoid that, policy shifts need to be telegraphed well, as has so far been the case. Emerging market and developing economies should also prepare for increases in advanced economy interest rates through debt maturity extensions where feasible.

How and who should pay the costs associated with climate change? Climate finance is at the heart of the discussions at COP26. To date, IFAD has committed US$990 million in climate finance.