gabriel makhlouf : opening remarks – “ enterprise financing and investment in ireland – tackling the challenges of covid - 19, digitalisation and climate change ” opening remarks by mr gabriel makhlouf, governor of the central bank of ireland, at the webinar “ enterprise financing and investment in ireland – tackling the challenges of covid - 19, digitalisation and climate change ”, jointly hosted by the central bank of ireland, economic & social research institute ( esri ) and european investment bank ( eib ) and held in partnership with the kemmy business school, university of limerick, 19 april 2021. * * * good afternoon, it is a pleasure to welcome you all to this webinar on enterprise financing and investment in ireland, with a particular focus on the challenges of covid - 19, digitalisation and climate change. we in the central bank are delighted to host this event with our colleagues from the economic and social research institute ( esri ), the european investment bank and the kemmy business school from the university of limerick. and i would like to thank all of our speakers today including minister for finance, pascal donohoe, minister of state for business, employment and retail, damien english, and christian kettel thomsen, vice - president of the european investment bank. an event like this highlights the wide range of actors and agencies that have an interest and a stake in the success and the resilience of the enterprise sector. indeed, our own presentation today is of work undertaken jointly with the esri, using data collected by the department of finance, highlighting just how important collaboration is in addressing the key problems facing our economies and our societies, and in navigating the uncertainty of the pandemic. the presentation of the eib and participation in our panel from a range of international institutions is also extremely welcome, allowing us to gain insights into the irish economy and wider issues facing the business sector from those observing from a distance. i would of course much prefer to meet you all in person, but nonetheless i am looking forward to our ‘ virtual ’ discussions. small and medium enterprises ( smes ) in ireland while our event today will touch on issues relating both to smes and larger corporate businesses, i will focus my remarks on the sme sector. we are all aware of the enormous impact covid - 19 has had on our societies and our economies. smes have certainly not been spared, particularly with many businesses having to close their

measures its degree of awareness of climate issues and its preparedness, or even implementation, of decarbonisation and adaptation measures. [ slide 12 ] following an initial testing phase, the climate indicator will be rolled out progressively, with priority given to sectors facing major decarbonisation challenges. " it will be deployed in liaison with all the players and sector - based initiatives, with the aim of not overburdening our businesses and smes " ( f. villeroy de galhau ). to devise a reliable and useful assessment for companies and in order to avoid any'greenwashing ', it is necessary to collect certain data from businesses, including information on tangible decarbonisation initiatives either undertaken or planned. naturally, to avoid overburdening companies, the banque de france will capitalise on existing reporting, especially csrd data and efrag standards. to perform this mission, the banque de france relies on its local branches, which are present in each departement, together with its existing relations with hundreds of thousands of companies forged through its traditional business of providing company ratings. data collection will be facilitated by " manager portals ", the banque de france's new online channel for communicating with businesses. the amendment to the french green industry act in respect of the climate indicator provides for the creation of a monitoring committee by the french ministry for the economy and finance, bringing together all players with an interest in the climate indicator ( i. e. public institutions, businesses, financiers, qualified individuals ) and tasked specifically with assessing the climate indicator methodology, its consistency with european standards and the reporting workload for companies. to ensure that our methodology is transparent, the banque de france regularly meets with businesses, professional federations, financial players and public authorities and keeps them informed of developments. between now and 2027, the banque de france climate indicator should become the most accurate tool for assessing the transition achieved by companies, their exposure to climate hazards and the degree to which they have incorporated climate issues. for france, this approach is an essential component in the success of the paris agreements. conclusion 5 / 6 bis - central bankers'speeches i hope i have clearly explained both the foundations and the reality of the central bank's pro - climate actions and convinced you that we are striving to make a full and fair contribution in line with the mandates with which we have been entrusted. but central banks cannot be the only players involved in greening