The Public Banking Project to host new FiCS Global Research Network — PDB Academic
At the 2025 Finance in Common Summit (FiCS) held in Cape Town, South Africa in February, it was announced that the Public Banking Project at McMaster University will host the new Global Research Network (GRN) called Public Development Bank Academic ( or ‘PDB Academic’). Professor Thomas Marois, Director of the Public Banking Project, will lead the new GRN initiative.
Background to FiCS Global Research Network
Following the inauguration of the Finance in Common Summit (FiCS) initiative in 2020, an international collective of researchers and think tanks has been investigating the resurgence of public development banks (PDBs) globally as a driving force for societal and environmental transitions.
FiCS research on PDBs is now structured under the umbrella of the Global Research Network (GRN), an international collaborative effort involving dozens of researchers. The primary goal of the GRN, held within the FiCS Secretariat, is to nourish the thematic working groups and/or coalitions within the FiCS to produce pertinent academic and policy papers. These contributions are designed to be both rigorous and practical, aligning with the objectives of the FiCS community. The FiCS GRN aims to build a community of researchers worldwide, to identify important research topics on PDBs, to promote collective research, and to foster policy dialogue with policy makers and practitioners in ways that turns research into development impact.
With the announcement of the new GRN PDB Academic in Cape Town, there will be five GRN Work Streams:
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Global Financial Architecture (Hosted by University of Stellenbosch & the AFD)
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Private Sector Mobilization (Hosted by ODI & WRI)
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Sustainable & Solidary Investments(Hosted by WRI & I4CE)
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PDB Analytics (Hosted by FERDI & INSE, Peking University)
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PDB Academic (Hosted by PBP McMaster University & TBD)
The GRN PDB Academic is established based on three core objectives:
- To foster theoretically informed and empirically rich understandings of public banks;
- To strengthen the interface between academic research and public banking policymakers and practitioners;
- To support the training of a new generation of public banking scholars.
PDB Academic will provide a complimentary new GRN Work Stream, although it does not have a specific focus. Rather, PDB Academic is a space to foster longer-term, blue-sky, conceptual, and experimental research with an aim for publication in peer-reviewed academic outlets. Members from all GRN Work Streams are welcome and PDB Academic members are encouraged to associate with other GRN Work Streams should their interests align.
Additionally, PDB Academic will seek to support for the development of student scholarships, research grant proposals, and graduate student incorporation into the FiCS and GRN. In this way, PDB Academic looks to the future of public banks.
The GRN PDB Academic will be initially hosted by the Public Banking Project, McMaster University. Over the coming year, we will establish PDB Academic co-hosts from academic institutions in the global south and we will seek a United Nations partner.