to set off major market disturbances. a crisis was narrowly averted when the counterparties were persuaded to purchase ltcm. i might say that in due course they got their money back : which only goes to show that a liquidity crisis can arise even when the solvency position of the institution remains positive. thirdly, we cannot ignore the threat of a “ major operational disruption ” ( mod ). what i mean by this is a natural disaster, a major act of terrorism like 9 / 11, or an it catastrophe such as we sought to mitigate in the y2k preparations. considerable time has been devoted to work in this area, on ex ante mitigants to provide predictability and help to enable the system to get back to work quickly. you need robust back - up sites, operating procedures, personnel regrouping plans and so much more. we are not on our own of course if a financial crisis does occur. clearly we would work closely with fsa and the treasury both directly and through the tripartite standing committee. the standing committee of representatives of the bank, fsa and treasury meets on a monthly basis and of course ad hoc. we discuss both individual cases of significance and specific threats which could be relevant to financial stability. the committee covers surveillance, strengthening the infrastructure and crisis management. for the latter, the objectives and roles of each party are outlined on the financial sector continuity website. the bank ’ s roles relate to ensuring the orderly functioning of the uk markets, including the maintenance of adequate liquidity and the functioning of payment systems. so we would act as the point of contact on operational and liquidity issues which might affect participants. meanwhile, the role of the fsa is naturally to monitor the health of the institutions which fall within its supervisory remit, and consequently any concerns or questions in this area will naturally be addressed to them. and the treasury will ensure that ministers are kept up to date so that government is able to act promptly. it also undertakes to ensure coherence between the financial sector and the operation of public sector continuity arrangements more generally. a current example of such co - operation between the three authorities and the private sector is the taskforce, on major operational disruptions, of which i am the chair. the taskforce was asked by treasury ministers to assess whether we need more statutory powers in this field, and it so what they should be. our findings will be published in the next few weeks : so please watch this space!

place within seconds ; the system development and innovation within financial markets makes it possible to transact from anywhere in the world 24 hours a day, seven days a week. blockchain technology blockchain technology, another example of the recently trending phraseology, enables the ordering ( grouping ) of various transactions in an inexpensive decentralised manner by making use of a number of servers. these transactions are not only limited to near - real - time payments but can also include financial market transactions and information relating to the settlement thereof. blockchain has the ability to reduce transaction costs, as it takes away the requirement for intermediaries and is completely decentralised. bis central bankers ’ speeches blockchain is still in its infancy and while regulators and markets are still trying to get to grips with the concept of bitcoin, newer or more innovative technologies are already on our doorstep. 3. cybersecurity the developments in cyberspace are a cause of concern for regulators, financial market participants, business and informed consumers. with the interconnectedness of systems and the ease of internet access, regulators need to understand the cyber - threats that the financial system is exposed to. nearly every week one reads about the latest victim of a cyberattack, and the targets range from banking systems through consumer information held by retailers to social media facilitators and even governments. the rapid developments in technology and the cyber - world have opened the doors to a new and uncharted frontier. companies and countries alike are trying to get to grips with this latest threat and to find ways in which to mitigate the risk while protecting their information and reputation at the same time. governments, central banks, financial service providers and companies are expanding their cyber - protection capabilities. this means there is a growing demand for the limited technical skills available in this environment. the focus is, however, not only on prevention. in responding to security breaches, one has to respond with agility and speed while trying to limit the damage done and importantly to ensure continuity of service. conclusion in conclusion, i would like to revisit the idea of a “ game changer ”. a game changer can be the discovery of something as small as a molecule or the invention of something that transforms the way in which we communicate, like mobile telephony. the way in which one looks at game - changing innovations will alter the way in which one sees the world and will affect one ’ s strategies and business plans. game change