(Reuters) – Monday’s launch of a new innovation centre by the New York Federal Reserve will help the bank explore the potential for a digital currency and assess the financial risk associated with climate change. It also addresses other concerns such as regulation and financial market infrastructure.

In partnership with Bank for International Settlements Innovation Hub (BIS), the center will assist the central bank in improving the current payment system, Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated in remarks for Monday’s virtual event.

“In particular, the partnership will support our analysis of digital currencies—including central bank digital currencies,” said Powell, adding that the center would focus on making cross-border payments faster and less expensive and provide new tools to help supervise financial firms.

Powell didn’t comment on Powell’s outlook on the economy and monetary policy during his remarks.

Fed officials are currently exploring the possibility of launching a digital U.S. Dollar. The Fed board is also working on a paper to explore policy implications surrounding the creation of a central bank-issued digital currency.

The New York Fed researchers also created a method to measure banks’ climate-related risk exposure. This could be an initial step towards assessing whether financial institutions are adequately capitalized to handle them.