face the competition : with libra, facebook plans to introduce a product into the market that could call our role into question. we intentionally do not refer to libra as a currency since in germany, as in the euro area, the only currency in the meaning of legal tender is the euro. by contrast, as i understand it, libra is a 3 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches “ stable coin ” which is pegged to a currency basket and backed by suitable collateral. it therefore requires stable state monetary systems. at the moment, however, the facebook token still raises too many questions that are yet to be answered. what exactly will the technology be like? what rights and obligations do users and members have? how can money laundering and the financing of terrorism be tackled effectively? and that is only a small selection from my list of questions. 4 consequences for central banks and regulators as central banks, we are fundamentally open to innovation. and that is particularly true here in asia, perhaps even more so than in europe with its, in some respects, slightly more conservative set - up. but we must also ensure that the security and efficiency of payments continue to be guaranteed. in the case of libra, it is therefore essential that these unanswered questions are clarified and legal certainty is established. it might also be necessary to adjust the existing legal framework. one thing is clear to me : a means of payment that wants to be used globally, can be used by billions of people and will be integrated into a complex overall system with many participants must comply with high – very high – regulatory standards. this isn ’ t an attempt to nip such phenomena in the bud ; it is quite simply a necessity. after all, we still follow the principle : “ same business, same risk, comparable regulation ”. this ensures that no company is given preferential treatment or is disadvantaged, neither fintech player, nor bigtech firm nor bank. at the same time, it must be ensured that there is fair competition between all parties. in order to achieve this goal, we have also made it possible for third parties, including fintech firms, to gain access to account data with the introduction of psd2. we hope that competition will intensify as a result and payments will ultimately become even more efficient. the challenge is developing regulation for all providers, from which banks, fintech players and, above all, customers benefit. in this context, dialogue plays a major role, and evenings like

burkhard balz : fintech and bigtech firms and central banks – conflicting interests or a common mission? speech mr burkhard balz, member of the executive board of the deutsche bundesbank, at the german embassy, singapore, 11 november 2019. * * * 1 introduction ladies and gentlemen, your excellency ambassador dr sante, i am delighted to have the opportunity to speak to you here today at the german embassy. it was in 1965 that the german embassy in singapore was opened. however, german - singapore relations extend much further back into the past. as early as 1856, seven german merchants came together and founded the teutonia club on north bridge road, not even a 30 - minute walk from here. back then, people would meet up there to sing german songs together. we can quite happily do that today, too – perhaps a little later on in the evening – but my speech, in any case, focuses on the future of payments in germany and singapore. discussing the topic of payments has never been more exciting than it is now. in recent years, emphasis has increasingly been put on payments again as they are the “ gateway ” to stable customer relations for the banking industry. we are witnessing intense competition but also cooperation between banks, bigtech firms and fintech players. at the same time, there is a wealth of innovations and new technologies that could be applied in payments. from blockchain through real - time payments to using artificial intelligence, we are experiencing a large number of changes that have altered the way we pay – and will continue to do so. 2 fintech landscape in germany these developments have an impact on the market structure by lowering the traditionally high market entry barriers for new competitors. at the back end, for example, cloud computing can help to quickly and flexibly build up and reduce computing capacity with low fixed costs, and without taking the it system landscape that has evolved over time into consideration at all. this landscape is viewed increasingly as a “ burden ” and less and less as a strategic asset, particularly by established players, due to its complexities. at the front end, smartphones ensure that companies are able to make their solutions available to a large number of users in a short space of time. costs could be reduced here, too, as there is no need to maintain a cost - intensive branch network. moreover, these solutions are in keeping with the new digital age in terms of customer convenience. it is often young companies that use