the regulatory focus it facilitates, will contribute towards building a better culture within the crypto sector, a culture where consumer protection and good governance is at the heart of all decision making, which will ultimately strengthen the industry and the firms operating within. the central bank's focus on technological innovation it is difficult to overstate the profound impact that technological innovation has had on the provision of financial services over the past decade. most relevant for today is how we can see the many areas where the blockchain has significant potential to bring about positive change, even transformation, in how we do things. whether this be tokenisation of investment products or improvements in posttrade infrastructure and interoperability, there are important positive stories to tell. as such, it comes as no surprise that technological innovation is an important focus of attention for us here at the central bank. while innovative firms can provide significant benefits to consumers and the wider marketplace, and we very much welcome this, our objective is to ensure the regulatory environment enables the potential benefits of innovation for consumers, businesses and society to be realised, while the risks are effectively managed and mitigated. the growth of digital assets while mary - elizabeth mcmunn, director of banking, payments and credit union supervision, and the panel members will delve into the specifics of our authorisation and supervisory expectations in the case of micar, i do want to touch on the central bank's view around the risks and culture associated with the crypto sector. we have a mandate to protect consumers and it is at the heart of what we do. when we consider new innovations, critical to us is how these innovations deliver for consumers. as such, when regulators are asked to engage with a product or a firm, the very first thing that we will want to understand is its purpose, its use, or, in the case of a firm, its business model. this is our starting point. this is particularly important to highlight when it comes to the products and services in the crypto ecosystem, as the crypto sector will be moving into the regulatory sphere for the first time. the potential for crypto and blockchain to build financial inclusivity or democratise finance has long been a theme of discussion in the sector. crypto enthusiasts speak readily to how crypto and blockchain technologies, paired with global internet access, can provide easy and immediate access to people across the world to financial services and achieve a level of financial inclusivity that the traditional financial

##ibration to the central bank. once in place, it will complete our macroprudential framework for bank capital. we will announce the buffer rate and phase - in period in due course. * * * future plans : reviewing our framework i want to take this opportunity to mention our plans for the future, at least as far as macroprudential policy is concerned. in waterford a fortnight ago, i highlighted the importance of taking stock and learning lessons, as we think about the continued development of our macroprudential framework. very broadly, the framework has three pillars : i. measures to strengthen the resilience of banks, where the level of capital is key ; ii. measures to strengthen the resilience of borrowers and lenders, including through the mortgage rules ; and iii. continued consideration of the need for, and possible design of, measures to strengthen the resilience of market - based finance, where the macroprudential framework is still under development. first, bank capital. the framework for bank capital has developed incrementally as we have implemented policy reforms following the crisis. earlier, i announced the results of our decisions on the countercyclical capital buffer and the osii buffer. as we move to complete our macroprudential framework for bank capital it is important to take stock and consider how the overall bank capital framework works together to deliver what we judge to be an appropriate level of capital for the banking system in ireland. i want us to take a holistic view. this includes looking at how the macroprudential buffers interact with other policies aimed at increasing resilience, such as those aimed at strengthening bank resolvability or microprudential capital requirements. this will be an important part of our future work programme. second, the mortgage measures. every year we review their calibration, not least to prevent inaction bias. the decision not to change them today represents positive action rather than a sign of inaction. 5 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches it is now five years since the introduction of the measures. i want to be very clear that they are a permanent feature of the irish market. nevertheless, it is good practice to review periodically not just the calibration of policy, but also the over - arching framework. the advent of additional data, such as the central credit register for example, will allow us to think in more depth about the effectiveness and design of the measures. our future work