- step implementation of the “ new capital accord ” ii / iii of the basel committee on banking supervision. the “ guideline on financial information disclosure ” was promulgated to enhance the requirement for banks to disclose information. in response to the implementation of the pataca real time gross settlement system, the “ rules for cash in hand and minimum solvency ” was amended. in the supervision of the insurance industry, inspections were carried out according to annual plan. simultaneously, amcm finalized thematic onsite inspections of aml and cft on life insurance institutions operating in macao. at the same time, amcm amended the existing supervisory legislations and guidelines, mainly related to supplements to the provisions of the “ macau insurance ordinance ” and “ insurance agents & brokers ordinance ”. moreover, drafting of amendments to the legislations relating to employees ’ compensations, and guidelines which included corporate governance were carried out. in the management of fiscal reserve of the sar and exchange reserves, following the legislation of the creation of the new sar fiscal reserve system which became effective at the beginning of 2012, amcm takes into consideration the legal provisions relating to basic and excess reserve and the tolerance of acceptable risks to secure commensurate returns. moreover, amcm has been endeavouring to perfect investment management and widen investment channel, including the execution of the “ china ( mainland ) interbank bond market investment agency agreement ” with the people ’ s bank of china in march last year. besides, amcm continues to listen to the community, particularly the fiscal reserve advisory committee, all relevant advices ; and will increase, as appropriate, the proportion of riskier assets in the portfolio in the expectation of a higher return. as at end february 2013, fiscal reserve stood at mop164. 3 billion while fx reserves amounted to mop132. 6 billion. in financial infrastructure construction, amcm continues improvement and enhancement of the systems which are in operation. it also develops new systems so as to enhance management and service. the pataca real time gross settlement system ( rtgs ) was developed and was formally in operation at the beginning of 2013. the rtgs provides highly efficient and modern payment settlement service to the market and it is expected that it will provide impetus to upgrade the macao financial industry. in the disclosure of financial statistics and data, amcm makes use of the vehicle “ monetary and financial stability review ”, which is compiled and published at regular intervals, to conduct thematic research on the supervision of monetary

cope with the ever changing economic and financial environment. the level of corporate governance of macao banks remains sound in general, as evidenced by their ability to survive the various economic downturns and financial crises in the past decades, and the results of past assessments initiated by international regulatory bodies, such as the international monetary fund ( imf ). the macao financial system act, promulgated in 1993, established the essential elements of corporate governance for credit institutions. among all these requirements, fit and proper reviews of shareholders and managers, preventive procedures for conflicts of interests and restrictions on exposures to shareholders and managers form the framework of proper standards of ethical conduct. in the internal control guideline introduced by the monetary authority of macao in 2002, a benchmark of best practices was suggested to promote corporate governance for all credit institutions, including the emphasis of high moral and integrity standards to be applied to the board of directors and senior management, appropriate measures for checks and balances as well as segregation of duties, in line with the corporate governance principles promoted by the organization for economic cooperation and development ( oecd ) as well as the basel committee on banking supervision ( bcbs ). corporate governance is not a new issue at all. the asian financial crisis exposed the longterm consequences of incompetent corporate governance. the recent fiascos of some major international financial institutions arising from subprime fallout again signify the importance of maintaining high standard of corporate governance. this seminar is both timely and relevant against contemporary global economic and financial backdrop. in the coming three days, i hope that experts and delegates could make use of this opportunity to exchange their precious experiences and views on this topic. in conclusion, i wish this seminar a tremendous success and may all of you have good health and enjoy a pleasant stay in macao. thank you!