330 billion ; in comparison, the euro area ’ s m1 monetary aggregate amounted to eur 7. 5 trillion. some see crypto - assets as disruptive innovations poised to radically overhaul the way that our monetary and financing system works, changing it for the better. others believe that these are innovations that still need to find their market. or, to quote from a special issue on the subject published in september 2018 by the economist, a weekly economics magazine : “ cryptocurrencies look like a solution in search of a problem. ” given all this uncertainty, i would like to speak today from my perspective as a central banker, supervisor, mindful of innovations that could affect the effectiveness and security of our payment system, since this is a determining factor in the stability of our monetary and financial system. accordingly, i would like to share a few ideas and thoughts about where crypto - assets fit into the changes taking place in payment methods, and about the supervisory challenges posed by these new assets. i. to begin with, let me set the development of crypto - assets in the broader context of the changes affecting payment instruments. supporting this transformation is a core activity for us at the banque de france, in accordance with our statutory tasks of ensuring the security of cashless payment instruments as well as the quality of banknotes 1 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches in circulation. since banknotes are the only payment instruments with legal tender status, we have to make sure that they remain a secure and easily accessible payment instrument for anyone who wants to use them, especially the most vulnerable people in our society. given this twofold mission, we base our activities on a principle of neutrality and freedom of choice, which in turn means that we cannot favour one payment instrument over another and do not seek to influence people ’ s behaviour or preferences. 1. in the payment instrument landscape, we are currently seeing a twin trend as cash payments go down, while cashless payments undergo a transformation driven by behavioural changes and technological innovation. shifts in consumption approaches, such as the growth of e - commerce, are fuelling a steady decline in the use of cash in transactions, while the use of electronic payment instruments is increasing. statistically speaking, the volume of banknotes returned by the public to cash processing firms fell by over 10 % between 2012 and 2017. however, this decline needs to be put into context, because banknotes still dominate face - to - face transactions, particularly small - value transactions, as

. this is particularly important regarding wages in the public sector, the minimum wage in the economy, wages and other benefits of senior management in the private sector, and economy - wide pension arrangements. 4. structural changes move ahead with required structural changes in the economy to improve competition in key industries like financial services, energy, water, transportation and communication. 5. short - term interest rate if all these changes will be implemented the bank of israel will be able to gradually reduce the short - term interest rate while maintaining price and financial stability. the challenge ahead this is an extremely difficult package to implement. but we all remember the story from alice in wonderland, where alice met a cat at a cross - road : “ which way should i take ” asked alice. “ it depends where you want to go ”, answered the cat. “ i don ’ t care ” said alice. “ then ” retorted the cat, “ it does not matter which way you take ”. we know where we want to go. we know what is at stake. we should, then, get organized to implement the required changes to start growing again. we certainly have the potential to do it and i trust that we will.