The Bank of Canada gets relatable with outreach
OTTAWA — When the Bank of Canada launched its new $10 bill in 2018, it hid a Space Invaders-like video game called Inflation Busters inside the bill’s web page, a fun diversion that caught on with a wider audience than usual for a central bank.
The throwback game, along with the Bank of Jamaica’s reggae music videos and the European Central Bank’s podcast series, is an example of how global central banks are getting creative in delivering their messages directly to the public they serve.
It’s a push that has become increasingly important amid the COVID-19 crisis and the rise of misinformation, a point made by the Bank of Canada’s governor, Tiff Macklem, at a major central banking symposium in late August.
Since starting the job in June, Macklem has used his platform to gently prod his fellow central bankers on building public trust and has spoken out on income inequality, a hot-button topic not normally discussed by central bank governors.
“These are really pretty big issues and important issues, and I take my hat off to Macklem for raising them,” said David Dodge, who was governor of the Bank of Canada from 2001-2008.
While reggae songs and video games are all the rage, the Bank of Canada’s everyday outreach is not likely to be trending anytime soon. Instead of “going viral,” the goal is to use non-traditional avenues to build credibility with a broader audience, including Canadians who get much of their information from social media.
“I think it’s incumbent on us to really ensure that as many Canadians as possible understand what we’re trying to achieve,” Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Lawrence Schembri told Reuters in an interview on the central bank’s engagement strategy.
“It’s a multi-pronged effort to broaden the base of our audience and to tailor the messages for them,” he said, “but at the same time ensure consistency across the different vehicles we’re using to communicate.”