samchain/econo-pairs-v2 huggingface dataset:
njuguna ndung ’ u : microfinance transparency remarks by prof njuguna ndung ’ u, governor of the central bank of kenya, at the african microfinance pricing transparency leadership forum, nairobi, 6 october 2011. * * * mr. ives terracol, regional director, agence francaise de developpment ; mr. chuck waterfield, chief executive officer, microfinance transparency ; distinguished guests ; ladies and gentlemen : it gives me great pleasure to be with you this morning during this important african microfinance pricing transparency leadership forum. before i make my opening remarks, let me take this opportunity to thank the organizers of this conference, microfinance transparency, for inviting me to share some thoughts on this pertinent topic. i would also like to extend a warm welcome to all the participants who have travelled from other countries to kenya and to say “ karibu sana ”. i hope you will take some time to enjoy our beautiful country with its rich culture and diverse tourist attractions. ladies and gentlemen, financial inclusion has been recognized now in development debates and action across the globe. this is more so in developing and emerging economies, which record the highest poverty levels and constitute majority of the world ’ s unbanked population. the drive to enhance financial inclusion is thus critical given that increasing evidence shows that it is key in reducing the economic vulnerability of households, promoting economic growth, alleviating poverty and sustainably improving the quality of peoples ’ lives. the push for financial inclusion is entrenched in government of kenya ’ s development blueprint, vision 2030 and lies at the core of the central bank of kenya ’ s strategic actions towards implementing this vision. it is in this regard that the central bank, together with market players, has embraced several initiatives and reforms aimed at enhancing the level of financial inclusion. these include licensing of deposit taking microfinance institutions ( dtms ) and credit reference bureaus ( crbs ) ; introduction of shariah compliant banking products, mobile phone money transfer services and the agency banking model. these measures and new institutions help in completing the financial infrastructure picture in kenya that reflects its market structures as well. ladies and gentlemen, in effect, we have seen a significant decline of barriers to entry into the financial sector, increased infrastructure distribution and innovative instruments targeting the lower segments of the population. these have resulted in tremendous increases in the levels, reach and depth of access to financial services. to highlight a few, bank accounts have grown

opportunity to acquaint ourselves with the global best practices on the same. we should remember that price is an incentive and can be a disincentive – it has to be appropriate. with these few remarks, i now declare this workshop officially open and take this opportunity to wish you fruitful deliberations. thank you bis central bankers ’ speeches
policy makers and donors.

ishrat husain : banking sector reforms in pakistan article by mr ishrat husain, governor of the state bank of pakistan, reproduced from blue chip - the business people ’ s magazine, january 2005. * * * why did we need reforms in the banking sector in the first place? why is it so important to have healthy and buoyant banks? what is the exact role of state bank of pakistan and how does it go about performing this role? where does the government come in this picture? how do these reforms serve the interests of a common citizen as a consumer, depositor, and businessman? these and a host of other questions arise in the minds of a layman who is not so familiar with all the jargon and specialized terminology of finances. we start with the simplest proposition : financial sector development and economic development are inter - related. no economy can grow and improve the living standards of its population in the absence of a well functioning and efficient financial sector. banks in pakistan account for 95 percent of the financial sector and hence good health of banks is directly related to economic growth and development of pakistan. what was wrong with the pakistani banking system that such massive reforms had to be undertaken? banks in pakistan have been catering basically to the needs of the government organizations, subsidizing the fiscal deficit, serving a few large corporations and engaging in trade financing. there was no lending to small and medium enterprises, to the housing sector or to the agricultural sector, which create most of the growth and employment in pakistan. most important, the financial system suffered from political interference in lending decisions and also in the appointment of managers. the middle class which is the backbone of any economy was not given due attention by the banking sector. there were legitimate reasons for such an errant behaviour. first, the government ’ s fiscal deficit was so high that most of the deposits the banks used to get, were loaned to the government and government corporations. this was safe lending which fetched good returns and the banks made good profit out of it. naturally, there was little incentive for them to do anything else except lend to the government which was both risk free and highly remunerative. secondly, the government owned most of the banks. in the government banks the staff worked like typical government employees, coming to office at 9 : 00 a. m., checking files ; having nothing important to do and leaving at 5. 00 p. m. without doing much work. these banks suffered from
##ly so as to ensure that the above - mentioned risks to price stability do not materialise.

lucas papademos : interview with il sole 24 ore interview with mr lucas papademos, vice president of the european central bank, conducted on 19 february 2007 by mr beda romano, il sole 24 ore. * * * what type of recovery are we seeing? according to the latest estimates, growth in the euro area was 2. 8 % in 2006 almost double the growth rate recorded in 2005. the economic recovery was mainly driven by aggregate demand – both domestic and international. private investment – both business and residential – rose strongly and private consumption growth also strengthened. gross exports increased substantially and played an important role in stimulating domestic demand, but the contribution of net exports to gdp growth in the euro area as a whole was marginal, as imports also rose at a fast pace. on the supply side, there were positive signs of structural improvements in the labour market and these are reflected in a further rise in employment. over the past eight years, the average annual increase of employment was 1. 2 %, four times higher than the corresponding figure in the eight years before the start of monetary union. in this context, it is encouraging that productivity growth also increased. is the increase in productivity structural or cyclical? it is still too early to say with certainty. however, it seems to me that the increase in productivity mainly reflects cyclical factors, although there is evidence, including suggestive anecdotal evidence, that in some sectors of the european economy and in some countries of the euro area gains in efficiency have been achieved that are of a structural or permanent nature. these gains are the result of the introduction of economic reforms, for example the deregulation of markets, and of the efforts of companies to be more competitive in the increasingly globalised economy. why such caution in assessing the increase in productivity growth? several facts suggest caution : first, labour productivity in the euro area increased at an annual rate of 1. 2 % in the first three quarters of 2006, which is approximately equal to the average annual rate recorded during the past fifteen years. second, much of the increase occurred in industry, primarily for cyclical reasons, while in the services sector – which today represents 70 % of the european economy – productivity growth remained sluggish. indeed, in the third quarter of 2006, it declined to just 0. 3 %, year - on - year. what explains this divergence? it is mainly due to the fact that in services competition is relatively limited, unlike in industry, which is much
these forecasts are based on the assumption of a three - month libor of 0 % and a depreciating swiss franc. in the foreseeable future, there is no risk of inflation in switzerland. if foreign demand were to fall off more sharply than expected, downside risks to price stability would emerge. global economic outlook following a very weak second quarter, the global economy picked up again slightly in the third quarter, benefiting from the resumption of production following the earthquake disaster in japan. the decline in commodity prices during the third quarter also had a positive effect. in japan, the us and china in particular, aggregate economic activity strengthened slightly. in the euro area, on the other hand, economic growth was weak. the outlook for global growth is nevertheless subdued, and has, if anything, deteriorated since the last monetary policy assessment. the most recent us economic data have been somewhat better than expected, but the escalation of the european debt crisis has clouded the economic outlook for the euro area. bond yields for fiscally weak states have risen markedly. the growing unease among market participants is also reflected in the increased volatility on the financial markets. mounting borrowing costs and the high level of uncertainty are contributing to a marked worsening of the business climate in the euro area. bis central bankers ’ speeches the snb has adjusted its growth assumptions for the euro area over the next three years substantially downwards. for the rest of the world, on the other hand, our forecasts remain essentially unchanged. uncertainty about the future outlook for the global economy remains extremely high. in particular, the european sovereign debt crisis poses grave risks for the international financial system and the real economy. swiss economic outlook in switzerland, the pace of growth slowed considerably in the third quarter. according to preliminary estimates, annualised real gdp increased by only 0. 9 %. in particular, the substantial appreciation of the swiss franc over the summer is weighing heavily on the swiss economy. exports fell sharply. at the same time, domestic final demand stagnated. the economic slowdown was accompanied by a slight decrease in technical capacity utilisation. in manufacturing, it is now around the long - term average. in the construction industry, it has declined slightly, but remains at a very high level. narrow profit margins and mounting concerns over the international outlook held companies ’ demand for labour in check. the introduction of the minimum exchange rate has corrected the massive overvaluation of the swiss franc and has given

of actions to rebuild confidence in the creditworthiness of banks and governments, as well as the taking of decisive steps towards a banking union. thank you for your attention. see bakk - simon et al. ( 2012 ) cited above. bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches
##2s endeavours will continue to be a success, and i look forward to continuing our cooperation with the csds and with market participants. thank you very much for your attention. bis central bankers ’ speeches

a single market act ii will follow by the end of this year. but there are many other ongoing initiatives, some of which had been started even before the outbreak of the financial crisis. europe ’ s new supervisory structure has been developed in acknowledgement of the fact that the financial system of the eu is now very much interconnected, and the externalities arising from it are no longer confined to the national level. there is also a comprehensive set of new legislation which aims to reform financial market regulation, covering not only the trading level, but also – for the first time – the infrastructure for clearing and settlement. bis central bankers ’ speeches all these initiatives aim to create a level playing field in europe, to remove barriers to competition, to facilitate cross - border business, and ultimately to strengthen the process of financial market integration. however, we should not forget that financial market integration needs to be complemented and supported by the integration of the underlying infrastructure. the eurosystem ’ s most fundamental contribution to integration in this field is the creation of t2s. t2s is therefore part of this important integration process. it brings to it an operational dimension. it provides the integrated infrastructure necessary for creating a single market for settlement services in europe. for this reason, the european authorities, and in particular the ecofin council, have expressed their support for this project on more than one occasion. today ’ s event is therefore not only important for the market participants involved, but also for europe. i would like to warmly congratulate the csds that are here with us today and have signed the t2s framework agreement. without your valued support and active participation, t2s would simply not have been possible. i would also like to congratulate all those involved in the governance of t2s. it is thanks to the combined efforts of all the t2s governing bodies that we have been able to reach this milestone in the project. today ’ s signing of the t2s framework agreement will mark the start of an entirely new phase of the project. from now on, the eurosystem and the csds will be even more closely united in this mutual enterprise. the staff of our respective organisations will increasingly need to work together – like a single team – for the success of t2s. the time between now and the launch of t2s will pass by quickly. much has already been achieved, but much of the hard work still lies ahead. i am confident that our common t
methods for predictive information activity, professor khalsa has been working recently on matters of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, as they 1 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches influence strategic and national security issues. this is an area that has emerged at the overlap between ( a ) monetary and banking phenomena, ( b ) information technology advances, and increasingly salient ( c ) geopolitical and geo - economic developments. obviously, it is part of our mission here at the national bank of romania to monitor, understand and assess these and related phenomena which may affect - both positively and negatively - the romanian monetary system and banking system and more generally our economy. that being said, the reason we have invited her here today is related to this specific aspect of her more recent work. so far we have seen blockchain and cryptocurrencies mostly discussed and assessed from the perspective of information technology and economic theory. we are interested at the same time to see how the cryptocurrency problem is also perceived from the perspective of an analysis largely rooted in the experience of intelligence studies and practice, and of an expert in strategic decision making in conditions of risk and uncertainty. we are also interested to see how such an expert is framing the problem of cryptocurrency as a massive economic challenge to the national economies, a problem requiring a strategic assessment of the alternatives ; to see how an expert in structured analysis may present the issue in a systematic, methodical way. last but not least, we are interested in the evaluations which are emerging out of this exercise, including the opportunities as well as the warnings. hence the title of the presentation : " bitcoin versus central bank digital currency ( cbdc ) : the most important economic decision nations have ever faced. analytical frameworks for comparative assessment and strategic decisions. " in terms of how we are going to proceed, the event will have two parts. we will start with the presentation of professor khalsa for about 40 minutes or so, which will be followed by a questions and answers segment. i would like to invite professor khalsa to take the floor. thank you! 2 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches

a diverse repertoire of competencies, the diagnostic ability to understand what new things are required or what things should be unlearned and the behavioural flexibility to be able to change. i am sure your management course would have prepared you to see things before the curve, before others do. we live in exciting times and - as you stand on the threshold of a new life and a career in the banking - i trust you will continue to cherish the ideals and dreams of youth, after all they are what make life worthwhile. i wish all of you - tomorrow ’ s leaders - every success in your entire future endeavour.
to continue to drive the economy forward but also the industry sector is expected to contribute favorably if the millennium challenge account projects are implemented. the agriculture sector is also anticipated to improve in 2006. • the balance of payment of the country outlook appears favorable. official international reserves have increased to a comfortable level of 6 months of import cover in may 2006, and are expected to continue to increase in 2006.

, with much of the growth being attributed to growth in transport and communication by 12. 1 percent and in finance and insurance by 16. 3 percent. • the agriculture sector declined in 2005 after experiencing growth for 2003 and 2004. the downturn in agriculture is driven by copra which in turn was caused by a drop in copra prices which had an effect on production. cocoa also indicated a decline in 2005, mainly due to a drop in export prices. kava also experienced a decline in 2005, following a temporary ban in fiji for vanuatu kava. this lower decline in agriculture output continues towards the first half of 2006 but is expected to improve towards the end of the year. • on the fiscal front, the government has for the past few years achieved fiscal consolidation. much of the improvement has been attributed to improving economic conditions and inflows of donor funds but also to good control measures over expenditures. reflecting the good outturn in fiscal operations the government managed to retire some of its domestic debts in 2005. also the government is no longer heavily dependent on the overdraft facility at the reserve bank of vanuatu given its improve fiscal management. • the reserve bank makes regular assessment of the economy and adjusts its monetary policy stance accordingly. last year in june 2005, the bank, following its regular assessment of the economy was satisfied that macroeconomic stability has been achieved and that the macroeconomic variables that it monitors against its policy settings have improved. based on this assessment it relaxed its monetary policy stance by reducing its rediscount rate from 6. 5 to 6. 25 percent. on 15th march 2006 the bank further relaxed its monetary policy stance by reducing its official interest rate from 6. 25 percent to 6. 00 percent. challenges for vanuatu 1. continue to maintaining macroeconomic stability in order to promote growth ; 2. promoting private sector development as an engine of growth ; 3. political stability has to be maintained for a conducive investment climate ; 4. raising investments by removing impediments 5. promoting small and medium enterprises so that economic growth is more balanced and broad based ; the private sector development is more challenged because of good governance issues, unpredictable policy environment, poor infrastructure and the need for improvement of law and order. outlook • the current favorable performance of the economy is expected to continue in 2006 and for the next two years. in 2006, the economy has been forecasted to grow by 3. 9 percent and by 4. 3 percent during 2007. the services sector is expected
focus we are placing on their transition, and especially on their plans to end issuance of new contracts 3 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches by year - end. before i turn this over to tom wipf and tushar morzaria, let me thank them for all of the work that they have done with the arrc and the working group on sterling risk - free rates. there is more work ahead for both groups, but these announcements lay out a clear framework that will help everyone understand exactly what should now to be done. 1 all of my remarks today represent my own views, which do not necessarily represent those of the federal reserve board, the federal open market committee, or the financial stability board. return to text 2 s e e assets. bbhub. io / professional / sites / 10 / ibor - fallbacks - liborcessation _ announcement _ 20210305. pdf. return to text 3 see www. federalreserve. gov / supervisionreg / srletters / sr2027. htm. return to text 4 see www. federalreserve. gov / supervisionreg / srletters / sr2107. htm. return to text 4 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches

a systemic threat from leveraged lending, since broad measures of credit outstanding do not suggest that nonfinancial borrowers, in the aggregate, are taking on excessive debt and the improved capital and liquidity positions at lending institutions should ensure resilience against potential losses due to their exposures. but we are mindful of the possibility that credit provision could accelerate, borrower losses could rise unexpectedly sharply, and that leverage and liquidity in the financial system could deteriorate. it is therefore important that we monitor the degree to which the macroprudential steps we have taken have built sufficient resilience, and that we consider the deployment of other tools, including adjustments to the stance of monetary policy, as conditions change in potentially unexpected ways. conclusion in closing, the policy approach to promoting financial stability has changed dramatically in the wake of the global financial crisis. we have made considerable progress in implementing a macroprudential approach in the united states, and these changes have also had a significant effect on our monetary policy discussions. an important contributor to the progress made in the united states has been the lessons we learned from the experience gained by central banks and regulatory authorities all around the world. the imf plays an important role in this evolving process as a forum for representatives from the world ’ s economies and as an institution charged with promoting financial and economic stability globally. i expect to both contribute to and learn from ongoing discussions on these issues. bis central bankers ’ speeches