innovations in payments and regulation. innovative financial services have given rise to an increasing number of financial players, easing cross - border transactions, as well as providing consumers greater flexibility and choice, causing the monitoring of transactions to be more complex for financial institutions and public authorities. there are also instances whereby regulatory authorities are bypassed due to a lack of capacity and resources to monitor these innovative payment channels. it is therefore vital that work is undertaken to better understand the risks and vulnerabilities of innovative financial services and ensure that while we embrace innovation for economic growth, we also pursue responsible innovation, and manage the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing. the local financial sector has not been left behind and has to some extent experienced the ‘ fintech ’ phenomenon, ranging from increased use of electronic payment methods such as mobile and internet banking, as well as growing interest in cryptocurrencies. given this growing interest in fintech in seychelles, by consumers, the business community, as well as financial institutions, the central bank is currently in the process of engaging with relevant stakeholders to draft a national strategy on the adoption of fintech in the country. the strategy will be focussing on how fintech can effectively assist in the development of the financial sector, while taking the associated risks into consideration. it is imperative that we have close collaboration between key stakeholders working to regulate the domestic financial sector, so that there is a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and challenges of such developments, as such collaboration and synergies are crucial to addressing any concerns or challenges, as soon as they arise. as we further our discussions on the issue, let us explore the opportunities that new financial and regulatory technologies may present for us to improve the effective implementation of aml / cft measures, in our respective jurisdictions and in the region. seychelles is already embracing the potential of financial technologies, and we are delighted that council of ministers has accepted our nomination to host the esaamlg workshop on digital financial services, bureau de change and money remittances, which will be held next year. ladies and gentlemen, the reason we are gathered here is to engage in serious discussions and come up with plausible solutions to the challenges we face in relation to all three topics. there are surely success stories that exist in this room which will go a long way in helping others to address their respective situations. concerns about the risks that aml / cft present to the stability of our financial systems should be addressed collectively. events like this are therefore of utmost importance

, which could undermine financial stability and cause adverse social 1 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches and economic impacts. for this reason, prudential supervision is key to ensuring active monitoring and prompt identification of weaknesses in individual banks and the banking system in general. in the event that banks do fail, it is important to have an effective bank resolution framework in place to flexibly and quickly address the failure, preserve financial stability at minimum cost to taxpayers and minimise adverse impact on the public. your participation in this workshop is not by chance ; each of you has an important role to play should a bank fail, be it in your supervisory or legal advisory role, or in your other functions encompassing consumer protection, financial stability, public policy or finance. it is important that you know your individual responsibility as well as that of your respective authority in the eventuality that a bank failure situation arises. this workshop will take a best practice approach to addressing bank failure, which will allow for an applied view in the ongoing re - examination of the bank resolution framework as relevant to the context of seychelles. it will also set the scene for cooperation amongst the relevant authorities. it should also get each of us thinking about what should be in place in relation to our respective functions in order to effectively address such eventuality. at the end of this workshop, the objective is to achieve a shared vision vis - a - vis bank resolution within the central bank and across other stakeholders. the intention is that this workshop is not a one - off exercise but the start of a series of similar exercises with the objective of continuously testing crisis preparedness, anticipating and more effectively addressing associated challenges. with these remarks, i officially declare this bank failure simulation workshop open. i encourage your active participation and wish you all a fruitful week. thank you. 2 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches