to be limited so as to make the rules of the game clear for global investors. the council approach gives the resolution authority powers to discretionarily exclude any type of liability for reasons of impossibility within a certain time frame, or to avoid wide - spread contagion. in our view, there would have been a benefit in defining ex ante the categories of liabilities that could have been excluded. this means that investors will lack certainty about how the new framework will be used, and in my view it may slow down the process of reducing financial fragmentation. for instance, there will inevitably be a political economy dimension to how national resolution authorities decide to exercise their discretion, with creditor classes that have particular importance in different national contexts likely to be favoured. this will affect the level - playing field between member states. moreover, the brrd foresees that after 8 % of a bank ’ s liabilities have been bailed - in, the national resolution authority has the option to use its resolution fund to bail - out a further 5 % of the bank ’ s liabilities. however, some countries will have larger resolution funds than others, for instance if they have more banks paying into the fund. this means that these bis central bankers ’ speeches countries would be able to bail - out more domestic banks before they exhaust the fund than those with less resolution resources available, who would need to use more bail - in. this will also not help reduce fragmentation. the single resolution mechanism ( srm ) – comprising of a european resolution authority and a single resolution fund – could remedy both these fragmentation problems of the brrd, which is a further reason why it is so essential. first, a central authority would not be influenced by national preferences when applying discretion. second, a single resolution fund, financed by levies on the whole banking sector and with a european backstop, would be effectively de - linked from national budgets. however, these benefits will of course only apply to countries that join the ssm and srm. moreover, it is essential that the european resolution authority will be in a position to act swiftly – if needed over a weekend for example – in order to avoid uncertainty about its course of action with a specific bank. as you know, we await the release of the com - mission ’ s proposal on the srm which is expected tomorrow, and i expect it goes in this direction. as to its institutional structure, the first - best option would be to entrust a newly established

whole. microfinance for housing is believed to progressively upgrade poor families ’ homes. such upgradation would include improving existing rooms, adding a room, or installing water or electricity. based on their credit history microfinance for housing should be designed for the low - income households who wish to expand or improve their dwellings or build a home in incremental steps, relying on small loans raised over a period of time. it has to be a sustainable approach suited to the needs of the low - income market. mfis are considered to be the next best alternative for financing the ews and lig category. mfis, however, face challenges which prevent them from extending housing loans. the challenges are primarily due to the longer period of housing loans ( typically between five to seven years minimum, if not more ) as against usual micro loans of one to two years duration and due to the larger amount of loan compared to usual micro loans extended by mfis. typically, a house, particularly in the urban areas, will be about ` 1 lakh, whereas when mfis extend livelihood finance, between ` 10, 000 to ` 35, 000. if they have to lend to a significant number of people, the amount to be loaned has to increase substantially. this can lead to problem for mfis. another problem with the mfis is of availability of finance and ensuring regular collection of larger installments from the borrowers. recognising the importance of community - based financial institutions as delivery mechanisms for housing finance to the financially excluded, the nhb has initiated a housing microfinance programme by way of financial assistance to the mfis. the programme is based on an integrated habitat and partnership approach with customised product intervention aimed at supplementing various other financial sector interventions. private sector stakeholders today, technological innovations have transformed the conventional style of trade and commerce. there are numerous examples which reflect that with adoption of technology, the end - product can be highly improvised and made affordable to all segments of customers. some of the best examples would be the rapid technological innovation in the mobile telephone industry, marketing innovation in consumer non - durable sector, etc. it is high time that the real estate sector also invests resources for more research and development to enable construction of environment friendly, low cost houses. it is important to realize that the terrain of our country, climatic conditions of regions, economic conditions of people and the intensity of the problem changes as we traverse across the country.