, together with the outline of the revision, to thereby seek the users ’ opinions, which the bank believes is invaluable for the improvement of the statistics. this paper describes the revision in some detail, including changes in sectoral classification and expansion of transaction categories, and explains the new types of information obtainable from the revised flow of funds accounts. improvement of statistics often involves a trade - off between users ’ convenience and reporting burden. improvement of the flow of funds accounts is no exception. although the intention is to make full use of existing statistics in producing the accounts, the reporting burden may be increased in some areas. this paper will also be useful in evaluating the costs and benefits involved in the revision of the flow of funds accounts. the framework for restructuring the boj - net funds transfer system introduction in december 1996, the bank of japan published a consultation paper that outlined its plans to restructure the funds transfer system of the bank of japan financial network system ( boj - net ). the bank plans to abolish designated - time settlement and make real - time gross settlement ( rtgs ) the only settlement mode by the end of the year 2000. the paper also drafted the main features of rtgs after the restructuring, and the bank requested comments and suggestions from current account holders with the bank of japan ( boj account holders ), the operators of private clearing systems, and other interested parties. overall, the bank ’ s proposal was strongly supported, and the bank received a number of constructive comments and suggestions on its proposal. on the basis of its december proposal and the comments and suggestions received, the bank released on april 1, 1997 a framework for abolishing designated - time settlement and making rtgs the only settlement mode in the boj - net funds transfer system.

benoit cœure : euro interest rate benchmark reform : achievements and remaining challenges opening remarks by mr benoit cœure, member of the executive board of the european central bank, at the annual dinner of the working group on euro risk - free rates, frankfurt am main, 26 february 2019. * * * good evening and welcome to the first annual dinner of the working group on euro risk - free rates. on this very day one year ago, the working group on euro risk - free rates held its first meeting in frankfurt, hosted by the ecb. looking back, your achievements have been impressive, almost on a par with the challenges that lie ahead. in its short existence, the working group has recorded two prominent achievements. the first is the choice in september 2018 of the ecb ’ s overnight rate as the new euro risk - free rate. this decision provided clarity to market participants and planning certainty for the transition towards more robust benchmarks in the euro area. it also brought the euro area closer in line with other currency areas in preparing for new benchmarks. the second achievement is that, at the roundtable on euro risk - free rates in november 2018, the working group took a major step in reaching out to stakeholders and raising awareness of its activities. sound communication and transparency are vital for spreading awareness about the transition to risk - free rates beyond a small circle of informed parties. by getting the message across to a more diverse audience, the working group lends more legitimacy to its recommendations and does as much as it can to promote market consensus. this first roundtable was a successful exercise in this regard. in time, i would expect such open communication to play a pivotal role in the transition to more robust interest rate benchmarks. besides these two very concrete achievements, i know that a great deal of work on building a consensus has been going on behind the scenes in the various sub - structures of the working group over the past year. reaching agreement on recommendations that reflect the views of such a wide variety of institutions is not an easy task. over the course of last year, the working group and subgroups members held no less than 80 teleconferences and seven working group meetings, which give some idea of the work that went into aligning views within such a tight time frame. i would like to thank all of you, including the team supporting the working group chair, for your contributions, as well as the secretariats of the ecb and the european securities and markets authority for