member states, recent experience has made the benefits of euro adoption become less visible than its costs. thus, in the pre - crisis period, euro area membership was seen as automatically delivering lower risk premiums, thereby helping achieve faster growth rates. in retrospect, the then benefit should not be viewed otherwise than as a consequence of improper risk assessment – financing costs for several euro area member countries have been exceeding those of some non - euro area member states, romania included. obviously, not only the developments in the eurozone, but also the progress in non - euro area countries contributed thereto. as for romania, i cannot refrain from underscoring that, while in 2008 the country did not fulfil any of the maastricht criteria ( the only indicator below the reference value was that on government debt, which is part of the fiscal sustainability criterion ), today it is a frontrunner in terms of macrostability. this refers to the fulfilment of the nominal convergence criteria and the observance of the reference values in the scoreboard for the surveillance of macroeconomic imbalances ( net international investment position is the only indicator in excess of the reference value, the same as in all new member states ). bis central bankers ’ speeches this is the right time to reassess the schedule for euro adoption, especially in the context of the governance framework reform that is underway in the euro area and of the wait - and - see approach of other non - euro area member states ( i am referring to central and eastern european countries, namely bulgaria, the czech republic, croatia, poland and hungary ). we should ask ourselves whether setting a target date is a good idea. the answer would be : yes, to the extent that it helps reach political consensus, while also providing a policy anchor by rendering macroeconomic policies more coherent and acting as a catalyst for structural reforms. however, in case the target date turns unrealistic or the formal commitment is not accompanied by a roadmap with clearly defined intermediate objectives, the credibility of euro adoption is rightfully questioned and the process loses its positive features mentioned above. we cannot speak of euro adoption and sustainable nominal convergence without referring to real convergence as well. even though the latter lacks a clear - cut definition and quantitative benchmarks, attaining a sufficient degree of real convergence is an important parameter for successful euro area membership, since it minimises the risks associated with abandoning monetary policy independence. this is all the more important as euro adoption

mugur isarescu : opening speech - 16th meeting of the financial stability board regional consultative group for europe opening speech by mr mugur isarescu, governor of the national bank of romania, at the 16th meeting of the financial stability board regional consultative group for europe, bucharest, 7 may 2019. * * * distinguished guests, dear colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, good morning, i am pleased to welcome you to romania and to the national bank of romania, for the sixteenth meeting of the financial stability board regional consultative group for europe. we are delighted to be able to host such a meeting. looking over the participants ’ list, which is full of respected contributors and speakers from central banks and european financial institutions, i understood why we are going to debate such diverse, ample and very interesting topics : artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data ; assessment of global and regional financial vulnerabilities ; leveraged loans and collateralized loan obligations ; indebtedness after the global financial crisis. i will not go into detail regarding the topics to be discussed today, which i am sure will create stimulating debates. i wish you fruitful further discussions. let me say a few words about the informal seminar concerning artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data, a topic which partially surprised me, as it is not a typical central banking issue. during my career as a central banker, i have not come across this topic in debates quite often. however, in recent years, i have seen that there has been an increasing interest in this matter and in other issues, once considered exotic for central banking. let me give you two examples. first. a few years ago, at a central banks ’ governors ’ club of the central asia, black sea region and balkan countries meeting in shanghai, there was a presentation about the role the central banks could play in reducing pollution. second. early this year, in bruges, within the imf dutch - belgian constituency, the national bank of belgium gathered central bankers to discuss policy challenges related to doing business in the digital era. so, it is not a real wonder that we talk today about artificial intelligence here, in bucharest, at the national bank of romania. it is good for central banks to review from time to time what they are doing. as agustin carstens, the head of the bank for international settlements, has recently said that central banks are ‘ acutely aware of the need to adapt ’ their frameworks. that opens the way to new ideas, such as