jean - claude trichet : cultural days of the ecb – netherlands 2010 – interview in special edition of frankfurter allgemeine zeitung interview with mr jean - claude trichet, president of the european central bank, in special edition of frankfurter allgemeine zeitung ( faz ), published on 10 october 2010. * 1. * * what do you spontaneously associate with dutch culture? was verbinden sie spontan mit der niederlandischen kultur? for me, dutch culture is impregnated with the openness and modernism that derive from the netherlands ’ history and that characterise dutch society in so many respects. pushing boundaries and exploring new avenues are key components of dutch society and culture. and these elements very often find their strongest expression in the field of the arts. modern dance, architecture, design, literature and cinematographic production are just some of the many artistic disciplines in which dutch creativity excels. i am particularly happy that all these disciplines – together also with high - profile musical and theatrical performances – are central to this year ’ s programme of the cultural days of the ecb, which has been developed in close cooperation with de nederlandsche bank. and, of course, one cannot talk about dutch culture without recalling the significance of the dutch golden age in european history and arts. 2. what role do the arts and culture play for your personal “ well - being ”? welche rolle spielen kunst und kultur fur ihr personliches wohlbefinden? arts and culture are fundamental in understanding our roots and history, but they are even more important in helping us to deepen our knowledge and understanding of each other. in our increasingly complex and rapidly changing world, such understanding is essential if we are to address global challenges efficiently. and i find it fascinating to see how much new technologies have facilitated our access to the world ’ s immense cultural and artistic heritage. on a more personal note, i have always had a very strong interest in poetry and literature, and i am also very fond of music and stage performances, such as dance, opera and theatre. 3. what are you especially looking forward to this year? worauf freuen sie sich in diesem jahr besonders? each edition of the cultural days of the ecb is unique and has its own spirit. it is the sheer variety of events that always amazes me. and it is a repeated

##3 billion as of end - march 2006. our banks have also issued p79 billion in tier 2 capital as allowed under our regulations consistent with international practices. car ( capital adequacy ratio ) stood at 19. 4 percent as of end - march 20061 while loss provisions, which serve as cushion for expected losses have been significantly boosted from just 1. 44 percent of total assets in end - december 1997, to 2. 72 percent as of end - june 2006. bsp ’ s risk management initiatives now, let me guide you through the important historical highlights of bsp ’ s risk management initiatives. in 1995, the bsp recognized the greater risk exposure in the system brought about by derivatives activities. to mitigate this, the bsp issued circular no. 102 prescribing the minimum standards for risk management of derivatives. this was probably the first bsp regulation that specifically focused on banks ’ market risk taking activities and risk management practices. prior to this, risk management regulations were largely confined to basic credit risk management and to internal control issues. in 1997, the thrust of bank supervision started to shift its focus towards a more forward - looking view of risk management and whether a bank has the infrastructure to manage its own risks, instead of just mainly performing financial audit and compliance review. the objective was to address weaknesses in management and internal controls before financial performance suffers rather than being satisfied with identifying what went wrong after the fact. the bsp ’ s effort to focus on risk management is ultimately intended to give banks greater flexibility to respond to changing opportunities and challenges in the face of global competition under a more deregulated environment and at a time of rapid technological advances. traditional bank supervision tended to micromanage banks to avoid risks that seem too high. the new approach to supervision is now more focused on the assessment of the quality of risk - management practices and generally allows banks to take on greater risks so long as the banks demonstrate the ability to identify, measure, manage and price for those risks. this more liberal approach to supervision, which allows banks more opportunities for success, entails that the bsp emphasize the responsibility of the banks ’ board of directors and senior management to ensure the soundness and stability of their respective banks. the regulators ’ role is primarily to evaluate the quality of oversight and management provided by these critical actors – that is, the quality of corporate governance. strengthening banks ’ corporate governance has thus been the theme of a number of bsp regulations. in june 1997, circular