. preventing misuse of payments is a well - known requirement for members of the payment industry, and specifically the format required for anti - money laundering and countering terrorism financing. but in our view it is important to extend this idea and aim for solutions where consumers can have the means to use payment methods securely and avoid pitfalls. a good example of this is the requirement introduced in the european union ’ s revised payment services directive to identify ourselves using strong customer authentication when paying for online shopping. the fourth and final cornerstone is to ensure the transparency and usability of paymentrelated information. payment services, as the word implies, must serve their users. users must be able to conveniently understand and follow the impact of their transactions on their own financial situation. for businesses, this could mean seamlessly integrating payment - related information flows into cash management, accounting and relevant process - control systems. for consumers, this would be an easy way of monitoring their own finances. but that ’ s not all – the issue of consumer protection is also important here. different payment methods can have a different level of protection against risks, and this must be openly and sufficiently communicated to the users of payment services. these four cornerstones should in our view guide the further development of electronic payment services. they complement and align with the goals defined in the retail payment strategies of the eu and the eurosystem. in this context, we also want to make sure that the society remains inclusive. that ’ s why we look at digital transformation from the citizens ’ point of view, in order to identify what is real and what is only hype. from that angle, we can see that there are different developments going on : those that clearly increase societal welfare and should be benefitted from, such as mobile and real - time payments – as long as we also take care of enhancing financial literacy ; those that should be watched, or even prevented, such as booms and busts related to 2 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches crypto - assets ; and those that can be further developed, such as machine learning and artificial intelligence. this makes up a very challenging policy agenda for the central bankers, regulators and legislators alike, and for the financial industry. let us approach it with an open mind for innovation and technology development, but at the same time mindful of financial stability and social inclusion. during the pandemic, there have been other changes, as well. one is the review of the ecb ’ s monetary policy strategy

olli rehn : going digital – trends in payments during and after the pandemic opening by mr olli rehn, governor of the bank of finland, of the 10th economics of payments conference “ going digital – trends in payments during and after the pandemic ”, 20 october 2021. * * * accompanying presentation : www. bis. org / review / r211217f _ presentation. pdf ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, warmly welcome to the tenth economics of payments conference. these conferences have been held once every two years and have brought together academic researchers and central bankers for high - level discussions on money, payments and financial market infrastructures. the previous event was hosted by the bank for international settlements and committee on payments and market infrastructures in basel in 2018. i am glad we at the bank of finland have the honor of hosting this 10nth conference. originally, the event was planned to take place physically here in helsinki, but it became necessary revise the plan. so, here we are now, ready to open the conference, with most of you joining us virtually. in my opening remarks, let me discuss three topics : first, the development of electronic payments ; second the revised monetary policy framework of the eurosystem ; and finally, related to both of these, the digital euro. the covid - 19 pandemic has in the past 1½ years taught us many lessons about working from home and about virtual meetings – but also about conferences which can take place successfully among people scattered around the world. this exceptional time has had an impact our behavior, and it has also affected the payments and payment systems in many different ways. we will learn more about this in the second session today. based on a recent analysis by the bank of finland, the pandemic has accelerated many existing trends and developments in payments. the transition to digital methods of payment has leapfrogged forward. contactless payment methods – perceived as hygienic – are preferred, and mobile payments have many new users, while the number of cash transactions at the point of sale has decreased. several studies do suggest that many of these changes are likely to become permanent. with this in mind, it is important to discuss and clarify the central bank ’ s policy and goals on electronic payments. the overarching goal in this regard is to ensure the availability of safe and efficient tools for the necessary transfers of money in the economy. what could this mean today in more concrete terms? in