Institutional transparency is also a basic principle for the proper functioning of independent public authorities, given that confidence in and the credibility of these institutions are the basis for their effectiveness. In this respect, the Banco de España has a Transparency Portal16 where it publishes institutional and planning information (functions, legal framework, organisational structure, plans and schedules, codes of conduct, the calendars of the Governor and the Deputy Governor, and personal data processing records), information of legal importance (documents with legal effects; documents subject to public consultation; reports, technical applications and guidelines; documents from international organisations), and miscellaneous economic information (contracts, agreements, management delegation agreements and concession contracts, cultural and social work, budget management, annual accounts, salaries of governing body members and senior directors, conflicts of interest of public employees, fixed assets and official vehicles, historical objects and art collection). The Banco de España also has a long-standing tradition of publishing statistics and analysis and research reports, including the Annual Report, the Financial Stability Report, the Economic Bulletin and the Statistical Bulletin. In addition to the information provided on our website, the Banco de España runs specific web portals such as the Bank Customer Portal; the Education Portal and Finance for All (on financial literacy); and portals encouraging the use of e-administration, such as the Virtual Office. Looking ahead, we have set ourselves the objective of improving the quality of our statistics and publications, along with their clarity and accessibility, bringing them within reach of the broadest possible audience.

Aside from QR codes, we have made a very good progress in terms of PromptPay, which is our electronic payment system and we have seen a very high uptake in usage of PromptPay, especially during the COVID crisis. The number of transactions per person per year increased and reached an all-time high. We have also extended to cross-border payments. We now have in place cross-border payments using QR codes with many of our neighbors such as Cambodia, Vietnam, as well as Japan. Most recently, we have connected our payment system, PromptPay, with that of Singapore, PayNow. This was the first global fast payment linkage and we have also seen a very satisfactory uptake on that front. Another opportunity for us in this area, building upon the digital infrastructure that we put in place, is mobile banking. We have seen a very rapid rise in the usage of mobile banking applications in Thailand. Thai people love their mobile phones and we have seen Thailand ranked number one globally in terms of usage of mobile banking applications for three years in a row. I think this is an example of opportunities that may arise and will come about as a result of putting in place the right kind of digital infrastructure to enable these things to happen. Aside from the initiatives I mentioned on the digital front, another important initiative that we have been undertaking is on CBDC or Central Bank Digital Currency.