a continuation of our policy of limited intervention and would imply a greater role to the market in managing the exchange rate. we expect that trade in currency derivatives can assist this area, by relieving pressure on the spot market and contributing to eradicate erratic and opportunistic behaviour, and thus reducing volatility. the launch of a global derivatives exchange in our jurisdiction is yet another indication of the growing sophistication of our financial system. i strongly believe that the domestic financial market is now mature enough to engage in derivatives trading under proper regulation. i would like to mention in the same breath the efforts of the bank to develop a secondary market for treasury bills and bank of mauritius bills. this will add greater depth and liquidity to the official paper segment of the market and perhaps pave the way for a bond and interest rate futures market. another initiative worth mentioning is the introduction of islamic financial services and the need for islamic treasury products. discussions have been ongoing with gbot for several months now to provide a platform for launching and trading such products. yesterday itself, the press reported that the stock exchange of mauritius ( sem ) and the central depository & settlement co ltd had approached the financial services commission to launch index futures trading, targeting the sem - 7 index. all these initiatives aim at remedying the deficiencies of our financial system to which i alluded earlier and which need to be addressed to achieve greater financial system efficiency and realize our ambition to become an international financial centre. the development of a vibrant market for trading currency derivatives, not just for the domestic market but for the region, is another element that would contribute to position mauritius as a world - class financial centre. it would help in forging deeper economic ties and strengthen our commitment to regional integration. such ties are mutually beneficial – for mauritius they can help to overcome the constraints posed by the small size of our domestic market and for our regional partners in africa, they can contribute to accelerate the pace of development. perhaps there can be no better testimony to our commitment to regional integration than the determined drive by some of our major banks to expand their operations in the region. as the process gathers momentum, others will follow suit ; and currency derivatives are set to take on greater importance in the risk management toolkit of our banks. this seminar comes at a time when policy - makers across the world are reflecting deeply on the role of the financial crisis in the global recession and the necessary changes to be made to the financial system to make it

jean - pierre roth : the euro – a stabilising factor in the international currency system summary of a speech by mr jean - pierre roth, chairman of the governing board of the swiss national bank and chairman of the board of directors of the bank for international settlements, at the fondation jean monnet pour l'europe, lausanne, 21 september 2007. the complete speech can be found in french on the swiss national bank ’ s website ( www. snb. ch ). * * * the euro is undoubtedly a success story. it has contributed to stabilising the international currency system. in europe, the former monetary disorder has been replaced by a new monetary order. the european payment system has become more transparent and price stability is guaranteed. switzerland, too, is benefiting from european currency stability. the swiss franc is taking advantage of a monetary environment that is considerably calmer than previously. the euro and the franc are coexisting very successfully. nevertheless, it would be wrong to claim that all the effects of european currency integration have already worked their way through to the real economy. in spurring on competition and promoting transparency, the euro is having an integrating effect. however, there are still considerable obstacles standing in the way of this integration process.