cover many issues : development capital flows and financial stability risk surveillance enhancing the global financial safety net and governance. the proposals have varying degrees of ambition and detail, and the same is true for the follow - up work in the g20 and in other fora. we reviewed the proposals on the table, most notably on strengthening global financial resilience through increased surveillance, particularly of risks, and through better integrated advice on monetary policy, macroprudential policy and capital flow measures. 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches while we acknowledged that all of the topics covered in the report are clearly relevant, approaches to address them are at times controversial. we also discussed the role of central banks, which is limited given their domestic mandates. still, there is recognition that, for example, capital - sending countries have a stake in global financial stability. major central banks, including the ecb, are therefore analysing the impact of monetary policy spillovers on financial markets and international capital flows. driving forces behind many topics discussed are international organisations, often cooperating with each other. there were also some concerns on the process and the fact that it is mostly driven by the g20. given the large number of topics, there was also some discussion on whether some prioritisation is desirable. more generally, in some areas further work and analysis is needed to strengthen our understanding of underlying issues, before the right reforms can be formulated. but don ’ t get me wrong : more analysis cannot be a pretext for inaction. in fact, there was a general consensus that progress is needed on many issues mentioned in the epg report. the discussion also highlighted that cooperation and multilateralism are key to finding solutions, even if many of the problems also need to be addressed at the domestic level. turning to global financial stability, its environment is challenging. risks are increasing and economic growth in many countries is slowing. we identified some of the major vulnerabilities, many of which, common to most countries around the table, such as high indebtedness, signs of mispricing of financial assets and increased risk - taking in the non - bank financial sector. risks differ in some cases and include political instability, capital flow volatility, high levels of non - performing loans or low bank profitability. it is crucial for us to not only directly address the visible vulnerabilities, but also to prepare for the unpredictable events by strengthening resilience in the financial sector. important actions in this

gertrude tumpel - gugerell : corporates in the single euro payments area – business as usual? speech by ms gertrude tumpel - gugerell, member of the executive board of the european central bank, at the “ panel discussion : cash management in 20 years ”, at the 20th finanzsymposium, mannheim, 17 april 2008. * * * introduction it gives me great pleasure today to take part in the 20th finanzsymposium, which has brought together some of the main corporates active in europe. the main topic of this session is the major changes that have been observed in the financial industry over the past few years, and the changes that may occur over the next two decades. after many years of economic and financial integration, i would like to address an issue that has so far received little attention from the corporate side : integration in the retail payments market. in this panel session, let us discuss the extent to which the most recent payment developments are having a positive impact on your businesses. since the launch of the single euro payments area ( sepa ) in january this year, it is no longer simply “ business as usual ”. through sepa, a single european market place has been created, which will be of great benefit to corporates. the sepa project will bring about a comprehensive, pan - european harmonisation of payment instruments for euro payments. in january 2008, the banking community successfully launched the sepa credit transfer, as well as a common framework for card payments. these will be followed by the sepa direct debit before the end of next year. the new single euro payments area enables customers to make payments anywhere in the euro area as quickly, safely and easily as they can in their own country. within sepa, all euro payments are treated as domestic payments and are carried out using a single set of payment instruments. the single market also stands to benefit considerably from the wide range of new opportunities that have been opened up through the launch of sepa, as it will promote competition and innovation, as well as improve conditions for customers. in this context, i would like to draw your attention to a recently published study on the economic impact of sepa, which was carried out by the ecb in close cooperation with a number of european banks. the study clearly shows that it depends on the interplay between two forces. on the one hand, greater competition resulting from the abolition of cross - border barriers will determine banks