remarks at the event to commemorate thirty years of banca d ’ italia in japan speech by ignazio visco governor of the bank of italy thirty years of banca d ’ italia in japan : anniversary celebration tokyo, 11 june 2019 governor kuroda, ambassador starace, distinguished representatives of japan ’ s authorities, of the financial and corporate sectors, of academic and research institutions, and members of the italian, european and international communities in tokyo, i am delighted to welcome you all this evening, and to see several personal friends among you, as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of banca d ’ italia ’ s tokyo representative office, which was officially inaugurated on january 27, 1989 by governor carlo azeglio ciampi, in the presence of the bank of japan ’ s governor, satoshi sumita. a special word of welcome goes to those of you who also attended that event. like the bank of japan and other central banks around the world, the bank of italy has long recognised the value of a stable presence in major international financial centres, for liaising with local authorities, disseminating information on and analyses of the respective economies, and for closely monitoring market developments. the bank ’ s first ‘ delegation ’ – as our foreign offices were, and still are formally called – was opened in london in 1917, soon to be followed by the new york office. our interactions with japan ’ s monetary and financial authorities had, of course, been under way well before the opening of our tokyo office. as governor kuroda recalled, in 1962 paolo baffi, then senior deputy governor ( direttore generale ) of the bank of italy, came to japan to deliver a series of lectures on international monetary policy, widely followed by officers from asian central banks, thus setting strong foundation to future closer relations between our two institutions. what i would like to remember today, however, is another episode that significantly enhanced this relationship. in late 1971, giorgio carducci and tommaso padoa - schioppa – two young bank of italy officers working in our research department – were dispatched to japan for a study mission by the then governor guido carli, and at the suggestion of the head of the research department, carlo azeglio ciampi – later to become through the years, governor of the bank, prime minister, minister of finance and president of the republic. their task was to analyse the financing model of japanese industrial expansion, and especially the role played

markets from a policy and research perspective taught me that evaluating the strength of a disinflationary process hinges on a good understanding of the interaction between wage formation and price setting 2 / 5 bis - central bankers'speeches dynamics. this can, in turn, inform the decisions of the central banks and support the dialogue amongst social partners, which played a positive role in some of the past disinflation episodes, as i mentioned earlier. * * * the adverse supply shocks that have hit the euro area predominantly originated abroad, and the global landscape in which the ecb operates is evolving rapidly. while fostering international cooperation is essential to addressing global challenges, it is not sufficient on its own. europe should act as one to address the challenges of our times. i was myself directly involved in the negotiations on next generation eu. the readiness to act together played a key role in restoring confidence and supporting the recovery from the pandemic alongside the ecb's monetary policy response. and it showed what we can achieve when fiscal and monetary policies work together. next generation eu has been a powerful tool for supporting the green and digital transitions, two transformative forces that are increasingly shaping the economic environment in which the ecb operates. without a successful energy transition, we will be exposed to the risk of more frequent inflation shocks. likewise, the digitalisation of payments and finance raises fundamental questions about the future of money. it creates opportunities for innovation, but also risks that we need to be alert to. without prejudice to its primary mandate, the ecb can do – and is doing – its part in ensuring that europe can navigate these challenges. the ecb has rightly taken steps to integrate climate change considerations into its monetary policy framework, its financial stability monitoring, and banking supervision. the ecb has also been at the forefront of the advanced economies when it comes to central bank digital currency. i have personally contributed to this endeavour as a member of the ecb's high - level task force on a digital euro. based on a legislative framework that is for you as co - legislator to define, a digital euro, if issued, would ensure our currency is fit for the digital age. alongside banknotes and coins, it would offer our fellow citizens a digital form of cash, i. e. a digital means of payment that is universally accepted throughout the euro area, that offers the highest protection of their privacy and that they can use free of charge, both online and offline. we also need to