European Central Bank hosts annual forum with Fed Chair Warsh on economic growth and AI risks

The European Central Bank’s annual Forum on Central Banking kicks off June 29 in Sintra, Portugal, and this year’s lineup reads like a central banking Avengers assembly. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, ECB President Christine Lagarde, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, and Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem will share a policy panel stage to discuss innovation, growth, and the question every market participant is asking: what does AI actually mean for financial stability?

For Warsh, this marks his first major international appearance as Federal Reserve Chair. That alone makes Sintra 2026 one of the most closely watched central banking events of the year, rivaling the Fed’s own Jackson Hole symposium in terms of market-moving potential.

What’s actually on the agenda

The three-day forum, running through July 1, carries the theme “Shaping Europe’s future: innovation, growth and stability.” Dedicated panels will tackle AI’s implications for financial stability. Jared Chatterji, Chief Economist at OpenAI, will contribute insights on AI’s role in economic development. Lagarde has emphasized AI’s crucial role in driving global growth and innovation, though the agenda explicitly includes the risks related to AI investments and inflation, two forces that continue to challenge central banks worldwide.

Tokenisation in digital finance gets its own spotlight as well. Central bankers have been increasingly vocal about tokenisation’s potential to reshape settlement systems and capital markets plumbing.

The forum will also explore the effects of migration on productivity and Europe’s role in global trade.

Why Warsh’s presence changes the calculus

The policy panel featuring Warsh, Lagarde, Bailey, and Macklem brings together three financial crisis veterans alongside one of the newer faces at the top of global monetary policy. Markets will parse every syllable from Warsh for clues about the Fed’s trajectory, especially with above-target inflation rates persisting across major economies.

What this means for investors

With Warsh making his international debut as Fed Chair, markets will be watching for any hint of divergence between US and European monetary policy. The tokenisation sessions are perhaps the most directly relevant for digital asset investors. The ECB has been among the more active central banks in exploring tokenised securities and wholesale central bank digital currencies.

Live streams and recordings of the forum will be available on the ECB website.

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