Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Monday opened the DealBook DC policy project, moderated by Andrew Ross Sorkin of The New York Times, on the prospects for a recovery from the pandemic.
Highlights from the discussion:
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“We need to make sure that those most affected are not permanently frightened by this crisis,” she said. Yellen said. “There are a lot of different statistics we can use to judge success,” she said. “Success would be for me if we could return to the levels of unemployment before pandemic and see the re-employment of those who particularly lost jobs in the service sector.”
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“Obviously, an important task for a treasury secretary is to ensure that our country has a good fiscal rate,” she said. “If you do not spend what is needed to get the economy back on track quickly, it also entails a fiscal cost.” Although US debt levels were much higher than during the 2008 financial crisis, the share of interest payments as part of GDP today is about the same, she said. “I think we have more fiscal space than before because of the interest rate environment, and I think we should consider using that.”
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A so-called digital dollar maintained by the Federal Reserve and based on a blockchain could lead to ‘faster, safer and cheaper payments’, she said. There are also problems to solve first. ‘What would be the impact on the banking system? Would this cause a huge movement of deposits from banks and into the Fed? Would the Fed trade with retail customers or try to do so at the wholesale level? Are there concerns about financial stability? How would we manage money laundering and illegal financing issues? There are many things to consider here, but it’s worth a look. ”
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“I do not think Bitcoin is widely used as a transaction mechanism,” she said. Yellen said. “It’s an extremely inefficient way to execute transactions, and the amount of energy consumed to process those transactions is incredible.”
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“I find it exciting that so many American businesses are recognizing climate change, something that we need to address really meaningfully in the coming decade,” she said. Yellen said. The same goes for diversity in American business. “I do not know if there should be a law,” she said. Yellen said, but ‘first of all, I think it’s unfair. And secondly, in terms of the performance of organizations, there is a lot of research that shows that organizations that are diverse perform better in different ways. This is therefore an important goal and it is important to me at Treasury, where the promotion of diversity and inclusion will be an important goal. ”
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“We need to understand and set out the facts of the case,” she said of the hustle and bustle surrounding GameStop’s shares, noting that the Securities and Exchange Commission is preparing a report that could inform potential regulatory action. ‘Are investors adequately informed and protected? “I think this is a very important question and it is too soon to draw conclusions,” she said.
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And finally, why is it taking so long to add Harriet Tubman’s portrait to the $ 20 bill? “It’s a complicated manufacturing process, so it takes longer to issue a new set of accounts than you might think,” she said. “But I promise I will do everything in my power to expedite it, and I would like to honor Harriet Tubman in our currency.”
This is the first day of the DealBook DC policy project, in which top policymakers and business leaders come together to discuss the priorities to move the country – and the world – forward. Speakers today are considering the form of economic recovery, how to hold responsibility, the future of travel and where to focus stimulus funds. Register here to attend, for free from anywhere in the world.
Today’s Series (All Time Eastern):
09:00 – 09:25
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on the road to recovery
In addition to the $ 1.9 billion economic aid plan working through Congress, the White House is raising the prospect of another major spending package focused on infrastructure. Although the economy is recovering faster than expected, it remains fragile and uneven. To navigate this path is Janet Yellen, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve who took over as treasury secretary last month.
14:30 – 15:00
Attorney General Letitia James of New York on the Power of Liability
Letitia James has more prominent cases and investigations on her plate than most attorneys will manage in a lifetime. The way she uses her power – from the Amazon prosecutor on the safety of workers to exposing the under-reporting of deaths in nursing homes, the investigation into former President Donald J. Trump’s business dealings and many other actions – also highlights how states can shape national policy.
15:30 – 16:00
Ed Bastian from Delta on the future of travel
Last year was, according to the ‘the most difficult year in Delta’s history’ Ed Bastian, the CEO of the airline. The carrier reported a loss of more than $ 12 billion during the pandemic to a halt. In addition to the economic consequences of the pandemic, the airline is at the center of debates about health policies, such as whether masks should be mandatory and require coronavirus tests before traveling.
4 Pm – 4:30 Pm
Steve Ballmer of USA Facts about stimulus by numbers
Since retiring as CEO of Microsoft in 2014, Steve Ballmer kept him busy as a team boss of the National Basketball Association and founder of USAFacts, a nonprofit group dedicated to presenting data about the United States in easy-to-read formats. The group aims, in his words, to ‘find out what the government is really doing’ with taxpayers’ money, and highlight the areas where spending can have the biggest impact.