Thirdly, competition will be further enhanced by the fact that RIX-INST is provided in a competitively neutral manner. Decisions about access and prices will be made free of any commercial interests that may characterise private systems of the same kind. This is particularly important in light of the entry barriers arising from network and scale effects and taking into account the future appeal of this specific type of payment, instant transfers of funds. A brief update on the status of the project:8 The new service is planned to go live in spring next year. I believe that we are well on track, not least due to good collaboration with our fellow central bankers within the Eurosystem, as well as the Swedish banks. At the same time, we are also exploring the potential to use the TIPS platform for instant payments between currencies like the krona and the euro. This could be a further benefit from this particular platform sharing. 8  More information about RIX-INST can be found at: https://www.riksbank.se/en-gb/payments--cash/the-payment-system---rix/new-service-in-rix-for-instant-payments/  11 [15]  New systems for wholesale transactions RIX-INST will be a service offered based on RIX, the Riksbank’s payment system. RIX is often referred to as the heart of the Swedish financial infrastructure. Among its existing services is RIX-RTGS which is used for large-value transfers between banks. It handles around 531,000 payments a month with an average value of approximately SEK 35 million. The yearly turnover in RIX-RTGS is about SEK 130 trillion, that is, near 26 times the Swedish gross domestic product.

Besides accessing global capital, a listing on the Singapore Exchange also helps the companies create overseas brand awareness and broaden shareholder base. It is an effective enabler in assisting the Chinese companies to pursue their international business strategies. Today, there are 143 Chinese companies listed on the Singapore Exchange. These Chinese listings cover a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, services, real estate, transportation, pharmaceutical and many other rapidly growing industry sectors. Particularly, some Chinese companies have chosen to leverage on Singapore’s competitive advantages in certain sectors including real estate and shipping. In the real estate sector, Singapore has attracted Yanlord Land Group, a leading developer of high-end residential properties in China, and CapitaRetail China Trust, the world’s largest China REIT, to list in our equity market. Yangzijiang Shipbuilding and Cosco Corporation, China’s largest shipbuilders, have also chosen Singapore as their international listing destination. Regional growth I expect Chinese companies’ regionalisation efforts to continue, notwithstanding the recent market volatility. The recent subprime crisis in the United States has dented investors’  BIS Review 46/2008  1  confidence but it is important to take a longer term view. The medium and long-term fundamentals of Asian economies are strong, driven in no small part by China’s economic engine. I believe we will continue to see strong intra-regional trading volumes and wealth creation. As the Asian economies grow, opportunities will arise in the capital markets for financing Chinese companies’ regionalisation, if not, globalisation efforts.