more resilient – with multiple sources of raw materials, multiple production locations, and multiple warehouse hubs and distribution channels. the desire to mitigate china concentration risk has led to some diversification of production locations in asia. even before covid - 19, firms had started to adopt a “ china plus one ” sourcing and production strategy as wage costs rose in china and us - china trade tensions intensified. new production locations and value chains have emerged in vietnam, taiwan, and to some extent malaysia. the pandemic has added some impetus to this trend. but we do not expect extensive relocation of production out from china in the near term. the bigger force diversifying supply chains is the continued rise of asia ’ s middle class. middle class consumption patterns are boosting and reshaping intra - asian trade in goods and services supply chains that used to focus on asian exports to europe and america are increasingly diversifying to also meet final demand in asian markets. this means more regional trade routes and regional ports growing in importance. last year, 12 of the top 15 container ports in the world were in asia. as sailors navigating choppy waters would put it : “ we cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails. " and the wind is blowing towards asia. flexible supply chains are more resilient – where production can ramp up or down in line with changing demand and where alternative routes can be used quickly. in the wake of the covid - 19 pandemic, there is no doubt a rebalancing from just - in - time to just - in - case operations. but while inventories are likely to be somewhat larger going forward, maintaining huge stockpiles is expensive. smart firms are recognising the value of flexible supply chains and exploring alternative production possibilities from the stocks on hand. a good example of flexible production lines was seen in france earlier this year, where luxury goods manufacturer lvmh shifted its perfume factories to produce hand sanitisers within 72 hours of the government ’ s call for support. similarly, the factories of giorgio armani, gucci, and prada were repurposed to produce medical overalls to support the overwhelmed italian healthcare system. 2 / 7 bis central bankers'speeches improved visibility and transparency on shipments can help make supply chains more flexible and resilient. of course, it is not as easy to retrofit ships to carry different types of cargo as it is for airlines to convert passenger planes

back - stop ’ provider of liquidity, and can therefore provide liquidity insurance to the financial system, promoting financial stability. oliver wyman : fintech 2. 0 paper : rebooting financial services ( june 2015 ) and mckinsey : global payments report ( 2016 ). all speeches are available online at www. bankofengland. co. uk / news / speeches retailers. as designed, libra may substantially improve financial inclusion and dramatically lower the costs of domestic and cross border payments. 15 the bank of england approaches libra with an open mind but not an open door. unlike social media for which standards and regulations are being debated well after they have been adopted by billions of users, the terms of engagement for innovations such as libra must be adopted in advance of any launch libra, if it achieves its ambitions, would be systemically important. as such it would have to meet the highest standards of prudential regulation and consumer protection. it must address issues ranging from anti - money laundering to data protection to operational resilience. libra must also be a pro - competitive, open platform that new users can join on equal terms. in addition, authorities will need to consider carefully the implications of libra for monetary and financial stability. our citizens deserve no less. leveraging our position at the heart of the international financial system and one of the world ’ s largest fintech hubs, the bank of england will help lead the way on these issues at the g7, g20, the fsb, bis and imf. whatever the fate of libra, its creation underscores the imperative of transforming payments. the bank ’ s strategy to open access to a wide range of payment solutions combined with appropriate regulatory oversight of them maximises the likelihood that the payments revolution will meet the demands of the new economy and the needs of all our citizens. supporting more lending to smes through an open platform big data is opening up new opportunities for more competitive, platform - based finance of smes. artificial intelligence ( ai ) and machine learning ( ml ) techniques are already mining fields of data generated by online activity. this has the potential to yield enormous benefits for households and businesses by opening up new lines of credit, providing greater choice, better - targeted products and keener pricing. putting data to work is critical to closing one of the biggest funding gaps in the country. smes are the engine room of our economy, generating around 60 % of all private sector employment