andreas dombret : the ssm – a supervisory level playing field for europe keynote speech by dr andreas dombret, member of the executive board of the deutsche bundesbank, at “ frankfurt 120 ”, frankfurt am main, 21 november 2014. * 1. * * introduction ladies and gentlemen thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you today at the beginning of our panel discussion. it is a pleasure to be here and to be able to share my views with you. in the following panel discussion, we will speak about the ssm and its consequences for the third parties framework. by way of introduction, i would like to share some of my thoughts on the ssm itself and its implications for a supervisory level playing field in europe. 2. a new supervisory level playing field for europe? the financial crisis has shown that banking supervision failed to keep pace with the increasingly international developments in the banking sector. instead, banking supervision – and regulation, too – remained confined within national borders. it was the financial crisis that finally underscored the need for harmonisation in the banking supervision sphere and the need for a more harmonised regulatory approach – ideally one which would eventually create a level playing field for supervisors and banks alike. we have done a lot of work in europe to meet these requirements – first and foremost by introducing the single rulebook. this package, amongst others, implements the basel iii framework and assures the harmonised implementation of the rules throughout all member states. for me, there are two watchwords for banking supervision and regulation which guide the way to a supervisory and regulatory level playing field : harmonisation and transparency. on the topic of harmonisation, the ssm will ensure that banks throughout the euro area are supervised according to a consistent set of standards. this will also enhance the effectiveness of banking supervision, because a joint supervisory approach can tackle crossborder effects more effectively than a purely national one. as for transparency, the ssm will operate on the basis of more comprehensive information, and it will benefit from cross - border comparisons and europe - wide expertise. pooling insights into different national and regional economic conditions, legal structures, and especially different banks ’ business and risk profiles, will facilitate a deeper understanding of the european banking sector. furthermore, banking supervision at the european level will reduce the probability of national supervisors affording preferential treatment to “ their ” banks, thus contributing to prudential transparency. but is harmonisation an end in itself? most certainly not : harmon

ernst welteke : the global economic situation speech by mr ernst welteke, president of the deutsche bundesbank and governor of the imf for germany, at the 2003 imf / world bank annual meeting, dubai, 23 september 2003. * * * i. i am pleased that the imf and the world bank are holding their annual meetings in the united arab emirates this year. for the first time, these meetings are being hosted by a country in this region. i am sure that the imf and the world bank have made an excellent choice in selecting dubai as the venue. i thank the united arab emirates for their warm hospitality and their splendid organizational performance. ii. the economic situation in many parts of the world has improved. the imf ’ s latest forecasts indicate that an upswing is under way. while we broadly share this view, we see, however, still a number of risks. in this context, i wish to mention three problems : first, there are widespread concerns that the large current account deficits and surpluses are not sustainable. reducing trade restrictions and internal imbalances would mitigate the risk of disorderly exchange rate adjustments. however, measures distorting exchange rates, trade, or capital movements are counterproductive. global economic problems require multilateral resolutions. second, despite some progress in consolidating government budgets, the risks associated with large budget deficits have by no means been averted : this is not least reflected in the recent rise in longterm interest rates. therefore, fiscal consolidation must be continued. this is a particular challenge in periods of insufficient growth. a medium - term fiscal framework could help to overcome these problems. third, monetary policy makers are currently facing an unfamiliar situation : for several years now, both inflation rates and nominal interest rates have been at their lowest level in decades. at the same time, there is ample liquidity which is still growing. new bubbles must be avoided. therefore, central banks must remain vigilant. as a central bank governor, i am particularly keen on making that point. iii. ladies and gentlemen, despite these risks, the economic upswing will broaden and gain strength. this will provide an opportunity which must be seized to fully implement the ongoing reforms. we all know that reforms may be painful in the short run. however, they provide the basis for higher growth in the long term for the benefit of all. iv. we have to make sure that the economic upswing stabilize