insurance firms - and involves our engaging with these firms on climate - related risks through prudential supervision. our work initially started by examining the impact of climate change on the uk insurance industry. general insurers in particular are at the front line of managing the physical risks from climate change, such as those from storms and floods. the impact of these physical risks was the focus of the report the pra published in 2015, alongside the governor ’ s speech at lloyd ’ s of london. we continue to deepen our activities in insurance - including in ensuring that the thinking that underpins the understanding of climate risk on the liability side of insurers ’ balance sheets is reflected also in thinking about the transition risks that might arise on the asset side of those balance sheets, something which we expect to share more of over the course of this year. our prudential work has also broadened to consider the impact of climate - related risks to the uk banking sector. we have now completed our initial engagement with the industry and are synthesising our findings. we expect to publish these later this year. from our prudential work, it is clear that consideration of the financial risks from climate change has significantly evolved over the last few years. there is a transition in thinking underway as climate is increasingly seen as a core strategic risk issue, rather than a matter solely for those managing firms ’ ‘ corporate responsibility ’ strategies. as i will come to later, while this transition in thinking is encouraging, and the direction is correct, we need to make sure the speed of progress is sufficient. carney ( 2015 ), “ breaking the tragedy of the horizon – climate change and financial stability ”, speech given at lloyd ’ s of london, september 2015. all speeches are available online at www. bankofengland. co. uk / speeches the second element relates to the bank ’ s financial stability objective. as discussed elsewhere, financial stability risks could arise from a late and sudden transition to a lower carbon economy. an abrupt transition could particularly impact carbon - intensive sectors. and as i said earlier, by the time climate change becomes a clear risk to financial stability, it may already be too late. the bank ’ s approach has therefore been to seek to reduce these risks to financial stability by engaging with initiatives which support an orderly market transition and facilitate a shift in financing to support climate goals. i want to talk about three specific areas : disclosure, green finance initiatives and the need for coordination. disclosure the bank has been

in place to increase access to financing for micro - enterprises at the government level, the banking sector with its large network of branches can become an important channel to enhance its services to this sub - sector. conclusion i envisage further expansion in selected markets outside barbados will likely become a key strategy for a number of the large domestic financial institutions. i expect in the near future that since credit unions in barbados will begin to match commercial banks in the range and quality of the services provided and that they will become virtual replacements for indigenous commercial banks. while the insurance companies which owned banks have disposed of their interests, greater coordination in the regulation of the financial sector will still likely occur as the services supplied by banks and insurance companies become less distinct. already registered retirement savings plans offered by commercial banks resemble an insurance product. in the future pension funds and insurance companies could become more integrated as individuals seek to supplement their pensions, following on the new pensions act. within the csme cross - border capital flows are likely to increase and a greater convergence of the financial system is likely to occur. cross - border ownership of shares in financial institutions is likely to increase and customers are likely to become more discerning as they compare products offered in other jurisdictions in the region. greater competition could mean that national development goals may have to struggle to re - assert themselves. emphasis in profitability and on credit ratings may mean that social and national economic objectives may become even more secondary to financial outcomes. this is likely to place greater onus on moral suasion and on assertions by government of national priorities. i envisage however, that the domestic financial landscape will evolve into a financial environment that will emerge to meet the future demands of the economy. we must aim for a world - class financial system that is best able to contribute to economic growth in an environment of financial stability. i wish you a most informative panel discussion session and i thank you for your attention. i now formally launch the public forum of the uwi alumni and the barbados institute of banking and finance.