financial stability, cannot be underestimated. it is with this in mind that the bank devised, in a very timely and proactive manner, key initiatives to further enhance the regulatory and supervisory frameworks with the objective of mitigating any ml / tf risk for the financial sector. since the release of the last mutual evaluation report, the banking sector has been subject to continuous enhancement with the aim of ensuring sustainability and effectiveness of our aml / cft framework. the bank of mauritius has continuously been engaging with the world bank on the aml / cft front. we developed our risk - based supervisory and regulatory framework on aml / cft, and introduced a dedicated aml / cft manual which has been a vital tool for the bank of mauritius in its monitoring of its licensees. the bank also issued its revised guidelines on aml / cft in 2020, which are aligned with the fatf's recommendations, and which provide necessary guidance to its licensees. together with the world bank, we have now embarked on a process to further improve our risk - based supervisory and regulatory framework to reflect the emerging risks which virtual assets pose to the sector. the framework will henceforth enable the collection of information on virtual assets and virtual assets service providers to monitor associated risks. in this respect, a public consultation is currently under way until the end of this month on the bank's draft guideline for virtual asset related activities. i will here like to invite all stakeholders, both locally and from abroad, to contribute by sharing their views on this topic. the current exercise will also provide the bank with a more structured approach to assess the safety and soundness of banks in mauritius. it will equally help the bank in the allocation of its supervisory resources according to the different risk levels. it will provide our supervisors with the tools to have a comprehensive and forward - looking view of risks faced by our licensees. the bank also adheres to the fatf standards, the basel core principles as well as the ongoing works at the level of the basel committee on banking supervision and the 2 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches bank for international settlements. in february last year, the bank has become a member of the bis consultative group which deepens the committee's engagement with supervisors around the world on banking and supervisory issues. ladies and gentlemen, aml / cft and fighting financial crime is the responsibility of each and every one of us. collaboration, and cooperation, between regulators, law enforcement

for a sparsely populated country, particularly mobile phone payments system. the paper from nepal showed how its banking sector encountered liquidity shortage arising from the slowdown in deposit mobilisation and contraction in forex reserves, and how large flow of credit to real estate reduced the availability of financial resources for productive activities. the paper from sri lanka highlighted the importance of principles based corporate governance norms and consolidated supervision. the paper from india presented the growing interconnected dimension of the financial system and highlighted the significance of systemic risk analysis. the stimulating panel discussion that followed was anchored by mr. t. n. ninan, president, editors ’ guild of india. financial stability in the post crisis period has thrown several unanswered questions. first, the issue of price stability vis - a - vis financial stability. second, the post crisis institutional arrangements for financial stability. third, the challenge of implementing the international regulatory and supervisory reforms by saarc countries with country - specific adaptations. this relates to the basel iii framework, regulation of sifis and otc derivatives markets. fourth, the challenges of micro - prudential supervision in ensuring stability at the systemic level and the importance of macro - prudential policies. fifth, the link between asset prices and financial stability. these are issues on which, as the panel discussion revealed, the search for consensus is on. however, lack of consensus should not be a reason for national authorities not to take country specific decisions. preserving financial stability will continue to be a national priority. during the panel discussion several important points emerged, which included : • the role of confidence in shaping macro - financial conditions ; • post crisis changes in regulatory architecture being driven largely by advanced economies ; • continued relevance of the role of the public sector in the financial sector of the region, particularly infrastructure financing ; • new arrangements on coordination between the government and regulators are yet to be tested ; mr. ninan concluded the panel discussion by emphasising how the discussions helped in improving our understanding of complex issues. let me attempt some specific takeaways from this symposium : first, irrespective of the nature of the mandate – i. e. whether explicit or implicit – central banks will have to assume greater responsibility for financial stability, which in turn may mean multiple and not single objective to conduct of monetary policy. second, crisis prevention frameworks need to be strengthened in every country, but the approach to be adopted requires debate, consultations and coordination. third, given the level of economic development in