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Saudi National Development Fund Partners with World Economic Forum

The agreement was signed at the NDF headquarters by Chief of Staff Khalid bin Ibrahim Shareef and WEF Head of Global Partner Development and Executive Committee member Alexandre Raffoul. SPA
The agreement was signed at the NDF headquarters by Chief of Staff Khalid bin Ibrahim Shareef and WEF Head of Global Partner Development and Executive Committee member Alexandre Raffoul. SPA
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Saudi National Development Fund Partners with World Economic Forum

The agreement was signed at the NDF headquarters by Chief of Staff Khalid bin Ibrahim Shareef and WEF Head of Global Partner Development and Executive Committee member Alexandre Raffoul. SPA
The agreement was signed at the NDF headquarters by Chief of Staff Khalid bin Ibrahim Shareef and WEF Head of Global Partner Development and Executive Committee member Alexandre Raffoul. SPA

Saudi Arabia’s National Development Fund (NDF) has concluded a partnership agreement with the World Economic Forum (WEF), with the goal of accession to the forum, according to an NDF statement.

The agreement was signed at the NDF headquarters by Chief of Staff Khalid bin Ibrahim Shareef and WEF Head of Global Partner Development and Executive Committee member Alexandre Raffoul.
According to the statement, the agreement aims to enhance the NDF's global standing through WEF's platforms. This will involve promoting the NDF's global position in development finance, communicating with other relevant external organizations, and collaborating with them to address challenges in development finance.

The collaboration will allow NDF to acquire the best global practices, find solutions, develop sound policies for the ecosystem, and maximize its economic impact. It will also foster partnerships with financial institutions and companies across various fields.
The partnership provides a platform for NDF to exchange knowledge and expertise with worldwide leaders from the public and private sectors. Additionally, the NDF will benefit from participating in year-round conferences, seminars, and workshops organized by the forum and gain access to the latest information, research, and reports across various economic, commercial, and social fields. This will help the NDF stay informed about the latest global trends and emerging technologies in economics and the financial sector.
The WEF membership includes the world's leading development finance institutions, such as the Islamic Development Bank, the African Development Bank, the World Bank Group, the China Development Bank, the Japan Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank of China, and other international financial institutions.
NDF acts as an umbrella for 12 development funds and banks in Saudi Arabia. Its mission is to boost their performance, foster collaboration among them, augment their economic and social impact, and keep finance and development loans flowing across various sectors. This is achieved by prioritizing investments in sectors with strong potential to align with and fulfill the goals and priorities of the Saudi Vision 2030.

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ECB President Fears Loss of Central Bank Independence

President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde attends a plenary session during the 55th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, 24 January 2025. EPA/MICHAEL BUHOLZER
President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde attends a plenary session during the 55th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, 24 January 2025. EPA/MICHAEL BUHOLZER
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ECB President Fears Loss of Central Bank Independence

President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde attends a plenary session during the 55th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, 24 January 2025. EPA/MICHAEL BUHOLZER
President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde attends a plenary session during the 55th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, 24 January 2025. EPA/MICHAEL BUHOLZER

Central bank independence is being questioned in parts of the world and greater political influence over policy could undermined their ability to keep inflation down, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Monday.

US President Donald Trump said last week he would demand that the Federal Reserve lower borrowing costs, claiming that he knew interest rates much better than people in charge of making that decision, Reuters said.

"While recent research suggests that de jure central bank independence has never been more prevalent than it is today, there is no doubt that the de facto independence of central banks is being called into question in several parts of the world," Lagarde told a Hungarian central bank conference.

The Fed is expected to keep interest rates on hold this week even as the ECB is likely to cut, arguing that inflation is coming down only slowly and that some policy proposals of the Trump administration could actually increase price pressures, likely drawing criticism from the White House.

Lagarde meanwhile warned that political interference could lead to a "vicious circle" that might result in central bank independence being undermined.

"Political influence on central bank decisions can also contribute substantially to macroeconomic volatility," Lagarde said in a video address to Hungary, where Prime Minister Viktor Orban's political ally, former Finance Minister Mihaly Varga, was appointed as the bank's next governor from March.

Lagarde said that persistent political pressure on a central bank increases exchange rate volatility, and raises bond yields and the risk premia.

This sort of volatility could make it more difficult to keep inflation down, raising concerns that independent central banks are failing to deliver on their mandates, Lagarde said.

Such a sequence of events, she said, could then undermine the social consensus and further amplify volatility in the economy.