rasheed mohammed al maraj : bahrain develops its financial centre in the gulf region address by his excellency rasheed mohammed al maraj, governor of the central bank of bahrain, at the bnp paribas – inauguration of new premises at the bahrain financial harbor, manama, 9 november 2008. * * * monsieur de courscel, monsieur durand, ladies and gentlemen : it is an honour and a pleasure for me to join you today to celebrate the formal opening of the bnp paribas premises at the bahrain financial harbor. may i welcome m. de courscel and his colleagues who have travelled from paris to be with us today. their presence is indicative of the importance that bnp paribas places on the development of its business in the gulf region and an acknowledgement of the role of bahrain as the leading financial centre of the region, can play in that development. the bank ’ s relationship with bahrain goes back nearly 35 years and this relationship has been rather special. with the granting of a full commercial banking licence in february 1975, the bank became the first european mainland banking institution to conduct business in bahrain. later in the same year, the bank was one of the first international institutions to be granted an offshore banking unit licence. therefore, from an historical perspective alone, the bank has been closely involved in, and has become an integral part of, bahrain ’ s development as an international financial centre. the professional competence of its staff, the commitment of local management to maintain and enhance its operational base in bahrain, and the support given to this concept by its regional and head office directors, have been foundations upon which a success story has been built. at the beginning of this decade, bahrain was officially appointed as the hub for the bank ’ s regional operations. the opening of these splendid premises at the bahrain financial harbor are a physical expression of the success that bnp paribas has subsequently enjoyed in the region. these are, of course, challenging times for the global financial system. there now seems little doubt that, in the short term at least, this region will not remain unaffected by the global economic downturn. however, it is important to look beyond the immediate picture and focus instead on the long - run prospects for global and regional economic growth. the fact that bnp paribas is now strengthening its commitment to this region, is testament to its view that many good business opportunities are still to be found here. i am confident that the success that bn

rasheed mohammed al maraj : impact of technological innovation in bahrain address by his excellency rasheed mohammed al maraj, governor of the central bank of bahrain, at the middle east financial technology exhibition & conference ( meftec ), manama, 11 february 2008. * * * good morning ladies and gentlemen, i am pleased to welcome you to bahrain for the 4th middle east financial technology exhibition & conference, meftec as it is popularly called. this morning, as i look around, i am happy to see that this event is arousing so much interest and is attracting more and more participants each year, a clear testament to ita€™s success. i would like to thank the organizers for their efforts in enhancing and improving each event and the delegates for their participation. i wish you a pleasant stay here. bahrain, as many of you may already know, is best known for its success in banking and finance, an industry whose global reach and, indeed, penetration into every household, would not have been possible without information technology. in short, information technology has had, and continues to have, a profound impact on the way we, as individuals, live and work, on the economies of countries and on the world. while we all welcome and embrace technological innovation, the acceleration in technology also brings with it newer challenges for financial services regulators, such as the central bank of bahrain. information technology has made possible the creation, valuation, and exchange of complex financial products on a global basis and, often, in real - time. as our banks increasingly engage in these technology - driven, i would urge them to take greater precautions in managing all the risks involved. the management of risk is an issue which the cbb takes very seriously, as demonstrated by our regulatory requirements and examination procedures, which we continue to review and upgrade, when ever necessary. as the financial sector relies more and more on technology, the issue of maintaining business continuity in the face of any kind of disruptions, we believe, is essential from a business and reputational perspective. effective from the beginning of this year, all banks in bahrain are required to maintain proactive business continuity planning that ensures delivery of critical services or products is maintained even during a disruption. ladies and gentlemen, i am sure you are all eager to see what the exhibitors have to offer. i thank you for joining us today and again extend my appreciation and thanks to the organizers and exhibitors.