essential that we enhance public awareness and education. from this workshop, let us individually and collectively find ways to relay the message to the population. each and every individual can play a role in maintaining confidence in our currency by being encouraged to ‘ know our money ’. having a population that is knowledgeable and familiar with the security features of genuine banknotes can surely contribute towards efforts to prevent the introduction of fake money into our financial system, as well as minimising economic losses. on this note, i wish you all a fruitful seminar and look forward to the outcomes on how we can 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches move forward and join the global efforts to combat counterfeiting and uphold domestic financial system integrity. thank you. 2 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches

innovations in payments and regulation. innovative financial services have given rise to an increasing number of financial players, easing cross - border transactions, as well as providing consumers greater flexibility and choice, causing the monitoring of transactions to be more complex for financial institutions and public authorities. there are also instances whereby regulatory authorities are bypassed due to a lack of capacity and resources to monitor these innovative payment channels. it is therefore vital that work is undertaken to better understand the risks and vulnerabilities of innovative financial services and ensure that while we embrace innovation for economic growth, we also pursue responsible innovation, and manage the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing. the local financial sector has not been left behind and has to some extent experienced the ‘ fintech ’ phenomenon, ranging from increased use of electronic payment methods such as mobile and internet banking, as well as growing interest in cryptocurrencies. given this growing interest in fintech in seychelles, by consumers, the business community, as well as financial institutions, the central bank is currently in the process of engaging with relevant stakeholders to draft a national strategy on the adoption of fintech in the country. the strategy will be focussing on how fintech can effectively assist in the development of the financial sector, while taking the associated risks into consideration. it is imperative that we have close collaboration between key stakeholders working to regulate the domestic financial sector, so that there is a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and challenges of such developments, as such collaboration and synergies are crucial to addressing any concerns or challenges, as soon as they arise. as we further our discussions on the issue, let us explore the opportunities that new financial and regulatory technologies may present for us to improve the effective implementation of aml / cft measures, in our respective jurisdictions and in the region. seychelles is already embracing the potential of financial technologies, and we are delighted that council of ministers has accepted our nomination to host the esaamlg workshop on digital financial services, bureau de change and money remittances, which will be held next year. ladies and gentlemen, the reason we are gathered here is to engage in serious discussions and come up with plausible solutions to the challenges we face in relation to all three topics. there are surely success stories that exist in this room which will go a long way in helping others to address their respective situations. concerns about the risks that aml / cft present to the stability of our financial systems should be addressed collectively. events like this are therefore of utmost importance