certainty. changes in the dinar exchange rate against the euro were registered on the second decimal place. gross fx reserves worth eur 13. 5 bn at end - 2020 were higher by eur 113. 2 mn compared to end - 2019. by responsibly managing fx reserves, we also raised the share of gold, as a safe - haven asset, to 13 %, versus mere 5. 7 % in late 2012. owing to the efforts of policy makers to preserve our economy, despite the pandemic, the inflow of foreign direct investment to serbia exceeded eur 3 billion, which was the highest level in the region. this is concrete evidence that serbia has been recognized as a regional investment centre. for our people and our economy, this means more jobs, higher wages and new technologies. dear friends, a year ago, i reminded the public of our long lasting efforts to have dinar bonds of the republic of serbia included in the renowned j. p. morgan family of indices. at the time, i expressed hopes that we would manage to achieve this by mid - 2021. commitment and strategic efforts invariably produce results and, on 11 february, j. p. morgan announced its decision to include our dinardenominated bonds in this prestigious family of indices as of 30 june 2021. this has sent yet another powerful signal that serbia is a safe and desirable investment destination and that it will remain so in the coming years. for us, it is of key importance that our businesses and households have remained confident that the government and the central bank will at all times be there for them, at their side, taking care of jobs, wages, preservation of production capacities and liquidity. what do figures tell us? the number of formally employed persons in our private sector increased by around 42 thousand in 2020. dear colleagues, i believe that it is the task of institutions to make life easier and simpler for people and businesses so that they can use their time, as the most valuable resource, in the best possible way. over the past eight years, the national bank of serbia has demonstrated on its own example that, in terms of innovation and financial services, our country is on a par with the most advanced economies of the world, and sometimes even ahead of them. thanks to the state - of - the - art technology which we were among the first in the world to apply, our payment service users no longer need to go a bank, as they can now make instant payments safely and quickly,

##vid - 19 crisis broke out prevented a spiral of negative events triggered by psychological effects and panic reactions of market participants from happening. even during the crisis, serbia remained a regional investment centre committed to people, to improving the conditions of life and work, as well as to regional cooperation. nothing connects countries and people better than the economy and common interests! today, we are creating a future to the benefit of the human civilization which can only survive and thrive if it cooperates and works together. challenges remain ahead of us and our job never ends. but my message is that you can always rely on the national bank of serbia, the bank of all our citizens! i wish us all health, knowledge and love for our countries! may we have a successful conference! 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches