alessandra perrazzelli : financial technology, financial inclusion and competition policy - legal and economic approaches speech by ms alessandra perrazzelli, deputy governor of the bank of italy, at the collegio carlo alberto, university of turin, turin, 2 december 2022. * * * fintech is shaping the global financial system, leading to profound changes in demand and supply for financial products and services. innovation technology, alongside important opportunities, poses considerable challenges for traditional intermediaries and for regulatory and supervisory authorities. there is no doubt that technologies, such as artificial intelligence, cloud storage and computing, robotics, platforms and distributed ledgers technologies ( dlts ), are one of the main drivers of evolution in the industry ; the operators are increasingly using them to reduce costs and offer new services. the spread of internet connections and mobile devices, the greater availability of information about users and the lower cost of automatic data processing are opening up the financial sector to innovative business models. newcomers – such as fintech companies, start – ups and big techs – have arrived in the financial sector, changing relationships with clients and offering tailoredmade products. technological innovation allows financial institutions to be part of a broader and more interconnected ecosystem, based on the interaction and sharing of projects and information with multiple innovative companies. in this respect, players may set up several forms of relationships : from direct competition – with the consequent general reduction in traditional sources of income for incumbents – to forms of more or less advanced cooperation, based on the choices of each intermediary. the ultimate aim is to reach customers through new and diversified channels, with innovative services becoming faster, easier, cheaper and more accessible. the outlook for intermediaries in this context, intermediaries need to keep up with the increased competition and with the risks, such as cyber and operational risks, associated with the digitalization of financial services. i am also thinking about governance, profitability, capital adequacy, resilience and compliance in a broader perspective. innovation is changing banking value chains. indeed, new technologies make it possible to entirely digitalize financial processes from end to end, reduce costs and increase efficiency. in particular, we observe that newcomers are usually well positioned to leverage data and advanced technologies in order to increase their footprint in the financial landscape. at the same time, we observe that many strategic plans of the main italian banks have digitalization as one of their pillars. through different technologies ( mainly based on

by the credibility of the eurosystem and the progress made in the reform of european governance. fears of euro reversibility are linked in the first place to those concerning the sustainability of public debts and the competitiveness of member countries. for this reason the activation of omts and their continuation are subject to specific undertakings regarding public finances and structural reforms as part of assistance programmes. the financing of the programmes with esm resources is an incentive to further strengthen the governance of the union, which is essential to achieve a permanent reduction in the european component of the differentials. monetary policy can guarantee stability only if the euro - area ’ s economic fundamentals and institutional architecture are consistent with it. every country must do its part. the announcement of omts produced immediate benefits : medium and long - term yields in the countries under pressure decreased and the fragmentation of markets along national borders was attenuated. albeit with fluctuations linked to the remaining, pronounced uncertainty about the determination of all the member states to proceed with the strengthening of the union, the yield spreads between euro - area government securities remained on a downward trend. that between ten - year btps and bunds is about 250 basis points today. on 19 july a group of economists of various nationalities and affiliations published a manifesto in support of outright monetary transactions ( a call for support for the european central bank ’ s omt programme ), arguing that “ the success of the omt announcement proves that the omt is primarily a monetary policy instrument … it is the responsibility of a bis central bankers ’ speeches central bank and a defining feature of a lender of last resort to assume liquidity risk, including through the purchase of financial assets when necessary ( a step that has also been used by the bundesbank itself in the past ). ” there are different standpoints ; it is understandable that some should question the compatibility of outright monetary transactions with the constitutions of some euro - area countries, but the doubts about the possibility of making effective use of esm resources must be dispelled quickly in order to preserve the progress made, safeguard the rights and not thwart the efforts of those who have helped to develop the instruments of financial support. the omt announcement prevented a financial collapse with potentially devastating consequences for the european economy : all the member countries benefited, not just those at the centre of the sovereign debt crisis. more than anything else, however, a shared determination to advance towards a full european union is essential. the ecb and the national