we have considered severe stress scenarios that produced losses on banks'books, including outsized credit losses. but, of course, svb's vulnerability came not from credit risk, but from excessive interest rate risk exposure and a business model that was vulnerable in ways its management did not fully appreciate, including a heavy reliance on uninsured deposits. these events suggest a need to strengthen our supervision and regulation of institutions of the size of svb. i look forward to evaluating proposals for such changes and implementing them where appropriate. 2 much will depend on getting the specifics right, and we should bear in mind that there are always tradeoffs in any financial regulation. in addition, the u. s. has benefited from its rich, multi - tiered banking ecosystem, and that diversity should be preserved. the second observation is the value of forthrightly recognizing when a crisis is building and responding decisively. when svb failed it was clear that a number of standard assumptions, even though they were informed by hard experience, were wrong. notably, bank runs were no longer a matter of days or weeks - they could now be nearly instantaneous. fortunately, in concert with other parts of the government, we were able to act decisively to meet the liquidity needs of the banking system, protect depositors, and limit contagion. the third observation is the value of having the very largest banks be highly resilient. our regulatory system is much stronger for the substantial additional safeguards we have built around the g - sibs since the great recession. they are subject to capital surcharges, required to be highly liquid, and held to the highest supervisory standards. the events of the past couple of months would have been much more difficult to manage had the largest banks been undercapitalized or illiquid. 3 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches conclusion the great recession was a watershed moment, demonstrating the terrible consequences a fragile financial system can have on people's lives. in response, regulators in the u. s. and around the globe set out to build a much more resilient financial system. and the ensuing experiences of the pandemic and the past few months did much to validate this approach. the bank runs and failures in 2023, however, were painful reminders that we cannot predict all of the stresses that will inevitably come with time and chance. we therefore must not grow complacent about the financial system's resilience.

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