*  *  *  Strengthening the quantity and quality of capital held by banks has been a central element of post-financial crisis regulatory reform. Yet, as the topic of this conference reminds us, the crisis also exposed weaknesses in other financial intermediaries that carried systemic implications.
Russia and Ukraine account for nearly 30% of global wheat exports, while Belarus and Russia produce around a third of the world’s potash, a key ingredient in producing fertiliser, thereby exacerbating supply shortages. Third, global manufacturing bottlenecks are likely to persist in certain sectors.