The meeting will be hosted jointly by the Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India

The first G20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies (FCBD) meeting will be held in Bengaluru, Karnataka from December 13-15, 2022 in Bengaluru, marking the start of discussions on the Finance Track agenda under India's G20 Presidency, the Ministry of Finance said on Sunday.

The meeting will be hosted jointly by the Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India.

The G20 Finance Track, led by Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of G20 countries, focuses on economic and financial issues. It provides an effective forum for global economic discourse and policy coordination.

The G20 Finance Track discusses key issues of relevance for the global economy, encompassing the global economic outlook, the international financial architecture, infrastructure development and financing, sustainable finance, global health, international taxation and financial sector issues, including financial inclusion.

The First Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting will be held during 23-25 February 2023 in Bengaluru, the Ministry of Finance added.

Approximately 40 meetings of the Finance Track will be held in several locations in India. The discussions in the G20 Finance Track will ultimately be reflected in the G20 Leaders’ Declaration.

The upcoming meeting of G20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies will be co-chaired by Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs Ajay Seth and RBI Deputy Governor of RBI Michael D Patra Their counterparts from G20 member countries, and from several other countries and international organisations invited by India, will participate in the two-day meeting.

Discussions during the meeting will focus on the agenda for the Finance Track under the Indian G20 Presidency. This includes reorienting international financial institutions to meet the shared global challenges of the 21st century, financing cities of tomorrow, managing global debt vulnerabilities, advancing financial inclusion and productivity gains, financing for climate action and SDGs, a globally coordinated approach to unbacked crypto assets and advancing the international taxation agenda.

On the sidelines of the meeting, a panel discussion will be held on ‘Strengthening Multilateral Development Banks to Address Shared Global Challenges of the 21st Century’. A seminar on the ‘Role of Central Banks in Green Financing’ will also be held.

In his address at the Bali G20 Summit last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the need today is that the benefits of development are universal and all-inclusive. He has also said that India will strive to ensure that the G20 acts as a global “prime mover” to envision new ideas and accelerate collective action over the next one year.

The Ministry of Finance pointed out that India has assumed the G20 Presidency "at a time of multiple challenges, which include scarring from the COVID-19 pandemic, sharpened geopolitical tensions, rising food and energy security concerns, growing debt distress, inflationary pressures, and monetary tightening, among others".

A key role of the G20 is to provide guidance in dealing with such challenges, the ministry added.

The Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India will steer the G20 Finance Track agenda in an "inclusive manner" aimed at addressing the global economic needs of today as well as preparing for a better tomorrow.