started circulating in may last year. as i ’ m sure you ’ ll agree, the note you ’ re going to see is instantly recognisable as a ten. it certainly resembles the ten euro notes you have in your pockets, with its distinctive romanesque architecture. however, perhaps it will have more of a visual impact, as the images are larger and more defined, the colours are stronger and the bridge has added depth. when you take a closer look you ’ ll see the new ten has the same new features as the new five : a portrait of europa – a figure from greek mythology – in both the hologram and the watermark, as well as the emerald number, which changes colour from green to deep blue when you tilt the note. introducing a new banknote, especially one used as much as the ten, is a major undertaking. it requires a lot of planning and preparation to gradually replace the two billion or so ten euro notes currently in circulation. i would like to thank all who were involved in this process within the eurosystem. i would also like to thank the banks, retailers and other cash - handling professionals, who will, in the end, put those new notes in your hands. i know that banknote equipment manufacturers and suppliers are already working hard to ensure that the bis central bankers ’ speeches machines are adapted in good time so that the introduction goes smoothly, and i want to thank them as well for the vital part they play. we are announcing the date of issuance and are sharing the required technical information well in advance to give all parties enough time to get ready. the new europa series ten euro banknote will start circulating on tuesday 23 september this year. and now it ’ s time to see the new ten euro banknote. bis central bankers ’ speeches

vitas vasiliauskas : balancing fintech opportunities and risks welcome speech by mr vitas vasiliauskas, chairman of the board of the bank of lithuania, at the joint bank of lithuania - international monetary fund seminar " balancing fintech opportunities and risks ", rise, vilnius, 10 june 2019. * * * good afternoon, distinguished guests, innovators and leaders in financial technology, policy makers. welcome to the seminar, jointly organised by the imf and the bank of lithuania. over the years, we have successfully cooperated with the fund on a number of issues relevant to lithuania ’ s economy and financial sector. and, when it comes to fintech, we set a good precedent almost three months ago in end - march. back then, our member of the board mr marius jurgilas conducted an internal seminar on lithuania ’ s fintech experience at the imf ’ s offices in washington. today we find ourselves to be discussing financial technologies in vilnius – indeed, an appropriate follow - up. given the importance of the issue, we are deeply honoured to have imf deputy managing director mr tao zhang participating in the event. his presence is truly a recognition of lithuania ’ s achievements in the fintech domain. to help frame today ’ s debate, let me briefly depict lithuania ’ s fintech landscape from the perspective of a regulator. but first, i should perhaps explain why the bank of lithuania has put strategic emphasis on fintech. i will be frank and open : we have some very pragmatic reasons. the most important is the market concentration. the share of the three largest banks, as measured by assets, now exceeds 80 %. we also observe similar levels of concentration in key market segments, for instance, payments. this drives us to encourage new participants. in a truly competitive market, the incumbents can never feel at ease, because there ’ s always someone ready to take your slice of the pie. indeed, the free and dynamic market may be a harsh place. but it is best at providing the consumer with the highest quality services at a fair price. needless to say, for a public authority, promoting the benefit of consumers is one of our key goals. — being an integrated regulator, the bank of lithuania has developed a wide range of instruments to attract new players and stimulate competition. in fact, i find the recent guidance provided by the imf to well reflect our methods. this is particularly the case with the bali fintech agenda