strong local core in our banking system, which must remain our objective as i explained earlier. second, to avoid an unintended unilateral liberalisation of our full bank regime as a result of our wto commitments. mas will also issue up to three digital wholesale bank licences, which will be open to both local and foreign players. the digital wholesale banks will be introduced as a pilot, and 34. mas will review whether to grant more such licences in the future. safeguards 35. to ensure high - quality applicants, mas will set prudent baseline requirements on track record and sustainability of business models. mas will not allow value - destructive competition to the detriment of long - term financial system stability. we will also put in place safeguards to protect depositors, mitigate the risk of untested business models, and minimise costs to the financial system in the event of a failure. we will also ensure that digital banks will compete with incumbents on a level playing field. 36. as digital full banks will have access to retail deposits, mas will phase in their permissible activities via a two - stage process to minimise risks to retail depositors. it will also be required to be a member of the deposit insurance scheme. a digital full bank will commence as a restricted digital bank to build up its business model and internal processes, and gradually progress to become a full functioning full bank. mas will not prescribe a time period within which graduation to a digital full bank must be achieved. when the restricted digital bank first commences operations, it will be subject to an initial deposit cap of s $ 50 million, an individual depositor cap of s $ 75, 000, and generally be allowed to accept deposits from only a small group of depositors such as business partners, staff, related parties and selected customers. 37. mas is prepared to award up to five new digital bank licences - two full and three 5 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches wholesale. we will only award all five if the applicants meet the eligibility and admission criteria, including demonstrating a tangible proposition that is innovative and sustainable. 38. mas is working on implementation details, and expects to invite applications in august this year. 39. today in 2019, we are continuing the process of transforming our banking sector with a progressive opening to new digital banks. we are in a strong position to do so today, as local banks have responded well to changes in the competitive landscape and have in fact

banknote are the symbol of flag and national anthem - the main symbols of our national identity - accompanied with the portrait of the distinguished poet of the albanian national renaissance, at the same time, author the “ national anthem ”, aleksander stavre drenova - commonly known by the pen name “ asdreni ”. the presentation of a new series of banknotes means more than a simple change of its image. the bank of albania continuously improves the quality of the banknote in circulation, aiming to preserve its integrity. both new banknotes, like all the other denominations of the new series, contain advanced security features. they are produced with cutting - edge technologies for banknote printing and personalised by denomination. the 1000 lek banknote integrates the raised print in the portrait of pjeter bogdani, numerals, lettering, and in the short lines, which help the visually - impaired people to easily identify and recognise the banknote. the security thread turns into a dark solid line when holding the banknote against the light, and changes colour from green to purple at different angles ; the sun symbol with colour - changing image depending on the tilting angle ; and on the back, the iridescent stripe at the centre that displays the value 1000 leke. the 10000 lek banknote integrates the raised print in the portrait of asdreni, numerals, lettering and in other areas of the banknote, as well as the element which helps the visually - impaired people to easily identify and recognise the banknote. the watermark image ; the hologram accompanied by various optical effects ; the security thread which turns into a dark solid against the light and changes colour from green to purple depending on titling angel ; and on the back, the iridescent stripe at the centre that displays the value 10000 leke. a safe banknote means that we can use cash securely and easily for its identification as a genuine banknote. this is the foundation of a sound financial system : confidence in the core financial operations where currency has its implacable role as an intermediator. from 30 june 2021, the banknotes of the new series 1000 lek and 10000 lek will be legal tender in the republic of albania and will be used as means of payment, alongside the existing banknotes. seeing the beauty and quality of these banknotes, i can absolutely tell you that the work done for their realisation was too valuable. hence,