##b. the exact details of this arrangement are currently being worked out and will be communicated shortly. the sarb, on behalf of the national treasury has conducted a number of special treasury bill auctions to the value of r8 billion over the past few months. furthermore, government bond issuance has increased, while r58, 6 billion of the r153 bond was switched with market participants. the remainder of the r153 bond will be split into three legs on 31 august. the close relationship which the sarb enjoys with the national treasury and the market assisted in the smooth implementation of these transactions. we anticipate that we will continue to enjoy the same level of support going forward. 3. sarb reserves management we have heard a lot of talk about the dual responsibility some central banks might have for monetary policy and financial stability. less remarked upon is the fact that many central banks have become large wealth managers, clearly reflected by the international monetary fund ( imf ) 1 data which show that global reserves have increased from just over usd1, 3 trillion in 1995 to usd7, 0 trillion in the second quarter of 2008 ( global reserves declined to usd6, 5 trillion in the first quarter of 2009 ). along with this phenomenal growth in reserves, came the challenge of finding means by which to achieve higher returns. accordingly, some central banks slowly moved away from traditional asset classes such as treasury bills and public sector bonds to more sophisticated asset classes. needless to say, recent market volatility and credit concerns have exposed central banks to the vulnerabilities and risks which attach to such investment decisions. therefore, the importance of risk management in reserves management has increased exponentially. managers of foreign exchange reserves within central banks have become much more risk - averse since the global credit squeeze started, with safe assets being back in favour. with just over usd34 billion in net reserves, the management of these remains an important function of the sarb. being relatively new in the world of reserves management, the sarb has generally been a conservative manager. in line with most other central banks, the sarb tightened its investment guidelines for the management of reserves so as to avoid any potential losses. the greater portion of funds is invested in “ aa ” and “ aaa ” rated instruments and with similar - rated counterparties. there were no significant currency allocation shifts in the wake of the crisis. however, because the country ’ s foreign exchange reserves are diversified, currency fluctuations have impacted on returns as

plan. in support of this plan, central banks within the region working in collaboration with the banking community launched a payment system integration project that culminated in the implementation of the sadc integrated regional electronic settlement system ( siress ). according to the latest data, the implementation of the siress system has resulted in 43 per cent of eligible intra - sadc cross - border south african rand payments for the participating nine countries being settled through accounts that regional banks hold on the siress system, instead of via the normal cross - border correspondent banking system. at this relatively ‘ early ’ stage of siress ( implemented july 2013 ), the high percentage of crossborder transactions being settled via the siress system in real time is significant, and it could in future have an even more significant impact on correspondent banking activity within the sadc region. i take great pride in being able to share with you that siress has reached the zar 1 trillion settlement mark in the last week of april 2015. we also recognise that the emergence of regional solutions such as siress, requires regional authorities to resolve possible concerns that may arise from regulatory requirements within their business process flows to ensure that matters such as aml / cft and exchange controls, where they exist, are taken care of. it is my hope that the development of these initiatives will lay a solid foundation for facilitating trade and investment in africa. leveraging of current infrastructure, efficient securities market solutions and future infrastructure solutions may contribute to facilitating the ease of investment in the continent. the regional initiatives are also paving the way for the achievement of the integration agenda of the whole continent and i hope that in undertaking the separate regional initiatives, open standards are adopted to facilitate the ultimate integration of these regional infrastructures. what africa needs is to get the various regional systems to interact with each other so that settlement can take place seamlessly across the region. i also note that with the aim of leveraging the hands - on experience with projects in africa, one session in this conference will look at the rapid growth of the regional payment systems and how lessons learnt from these projects could be replicated in other regions. the regulatory session should explore how, taking a proactive stance in coping with new financial regulations, moving quickly to adopt global best practice in the various fields of compliance and addressing of issues relating to regulatory capital requirements can lead to competitive advantages. it is also with interest that i gather that for the first time, the 2015 arc will host an african round of the swift innotri