e - money distribution network and the availability of online cash - in facilities in the country. however, the journey remains long and challenging. if we look at the current statistics, around 33 % of the maldivian adult population still do not hold a bank account. even though the level of penetration in the formal banking sector is relatively high in the country, providing easier access to finance and acquiring payment services in most of the islands remain as main challenges in the country. looking at payment methods, cheques are still the dominant mode of making interbank transactions although the volume of transactions carried out through rtgs and ach have increased over the past two years. among electronic payments, card payment is the most 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches common payment method in the greater male ’ area and the usage of mobile payment is still not very common across the country. for example, if we look at how pension and social benefits payments are made, these payments are deposited to a bank account wherein around 96 % of the beneficiaries hold bank accounts at one particular bank. and this bank makes regular trips to islands to facilitate account holders to withdraw cash. this is mainly because of the gaps in the financial infrastructure and inefficiencies in the banking system. some of them include ; unavailability of a common platform to connect banks and mobile service providers lack of an efficient payment system infrastructure lack of a comprehensive legal framework to support the payment infrastructure the low level of automation in the banking sector ; for instance, there is no proper it setup in some of the banks and a lot of payments are still processed manually ladies and gentlemen, in spite of these hurdles, we do have a very ambitious plan to upgrade and modernize the national payment system in our country. promoting financial inclusion has, and will always be, a key priority of the mma in its function of fostering the development of the financial sector. therefore, one of the foremost priorities in the mma ’ s strategic plan for 2018 – 2022 is to develop a safe and robust payment infrastructure. because we understand that if we were to embrace the promise of fintech and foster the benefits of these innovations, we need to invest in the supporting infrastructure. well! that is just one key component. we also need to strengthen institutional capacity by investing in human resources as it is a key ingredient in catalyzing benefits from the much needed local fintech solutions for a country like the maldives since the financial landscape of the maldives is unique and differs from

in addition, financial intermediation in asia is progressively deepening to meet the new financing needs of households and businesses. in this more recent decade, greater financial integration is taking place. this financial integration will result in a more efficient recycling of asian savings into investments within asia. it has been estimated that asia needs to invest about usd 8 trillion in infrastructure development over the next ten years. the effective channelling of asia ’ s large pool of savings into such productive investment activity in the region will certainly support more rapid growth and development in asia. economic and financial linkages are also being established with other emerging economies in other parts of the world thereby mutually reinforcing the prospects for growth in the global economy. this will in turn contribute towards the rebalancing of global growth. the concentration of economic power in the global economy will become more dispersed. international regulatory reforms let me now turn to the issue of financial regulatory reform. the enormous scale, scope and costs of the global financial crisis has led governments, and regulatory and supervisory authorities from around the world to mount one of the most aggressive agendas of reform to financial regulation seen in recent times. the extent of these reforms has been almost as dramatic as the events that led to their creation. in particular, the potential impact that these reforms will have in re - defining the financial landscape in the future are significant, with broader implications for competition, innovation and ultimately, on the overall economic activity. certainly, strengthening financial regulation is an important goal. and the need to improve the design of financial regulation is not a point of contention. for many emerging economies – certainly in asia – strengthening financial regulation and supervision and the development of the financial system has been an important priority, particularly in this recent decade and well before the onset of this crisis. our resolve on this agenda has not changed since the crisis. on the contrary, it has served to sharpen our focus in contemplating measures to place our financial systems on a firmer foundation. this crisis has focused attention on some important issues that calls for wide ranging regulatory responses. the degree of consensus on the spectrum of recommended reforms by the international community has however been mixed. nevertheless, on some areas there has been a clear consensus. there is agreement that the regulatory framework needs to be more responsive to risk. equally, there is agreement on the need to materially improve risk management in financial institutions, and to strengthen the role of supervisors in the oversight of financial institutions. the need to enhance safety nets, in particular, in