of deeper integration, then the global financial crisis provides no better example. this was preceded by an unprecedented period of stability – the “ great moderation ” ( bernanke ( 2004 ) ). a key cause of such stability was felt to be http : / / www. foreignaffairs. com / articles / 139104 / kenneth - neil - cukier - and - viktor - mayer - schoenberger / the - rise - of - big - data. bis central bankers ’ speeches improved risk - sharing. the integrated global financial system had scattered risk to the four winds, dispersed and diffused. the web appeared robust. robust yet, as subsequent events have shown, also fragile. at the same time financial integration was calming the waters on shore, it was brewing a storm at sea. the financial system ’ s tail was fattening. when that tail wagged in 2008, almost every country on the planet fell off the cliff - edge at an almost identical time. the world experienced its first - ever truly global financial crisis. this time was different. unprecedented levels of financial integration made that so. over the course of a 30 - year period, it had transformed the global financial system into a tangled cats - cradle, the ultimate robust - yet - fragile web. while everyone was shocked by the crisis, perhaps no - one should have been surprised by it. if the path of integration – social, economic, financial – continues skyward, next time will be different for other systems too. information and systemic risk consider next the link between information and systemic risk. here again the relationship is far from straightforward. increased information is generally felt to improve decision - making ; it allows us to re - optimise in response to news. facebook and twitter allow us to befriend and defriend, to like and dislike, in real time. ebay and amazon allow us to trade instantaneously. trading platforms allow us to buy and sell at sub - second speeds. matchmaking sites allow us to search for jobs and partners in our lunch - break. people, goods, services and money all now swim in a liquid real - time market. yet high - frequency information and decision - making may be neither costless nor harmless. to understand why, look inside your head. mri scans now enable us to do just that. what they show is that, neurologically, humans are schizophrenic by design. the brain is part impatient “ doer

with the size and nature of the work, investment policy, compliance with the financial solvency standards, and allocations of necessary technical provisions to ensure health and soundness of the companies ’ financial positions. it is imperative that the insurance industry remains competitive by developing and providing insurance products and services to the satisfaction of customers at all times. dear audience, we expect the insurance industry to continue to improve its performance and achieve balanced growth in accordance with corporate objectives and available resources. we also anticipate the industry to meet the needs of the market and beneficiaries to increase their confidence in the insurance activities. it is important that insurance companies strike a balance between the size of business and geographic expansion, and human and financial resources and operating infrastructure. i would like to conclude the speech by emphasizing the importance of the insurance sector with respect to employment and training of male and female citizens through paying more attention to the development of human resources and training policies and increasing saudization. sama has designed a compulsory exam on the basics of insurance activities to measure employees ’ competence and insurance providers ’ awareness of insurance fundamentals including laws, regulations and standards. companies are required to organize vocational and technical development programs to raise insurance awareness and help provide qualified manpower to serve the insurance sector and the country well. thank you for your attention. i wish you all a successful symposium. bis central bankers ’ speeches