to test future - dated transactions for payment applications, such as fed ach, and other services with electronic data exchanges. we are continuing to offer testing opportunities both during the week and on weekends through early 2000 and, in the second half of 1999, opportunities will be provided to revalidate application readiness and to test contingency procedures. as of the beginning of april 1999, over 6, 200 institutions had tested with fed ach and approximately 94 percent of our larger - volume ach customers have tested. i am also encouraged by the testing efforts of private service ach operators. in february, all ach operators exchanged files future dated to the rollover weekend and a second test is scheduled for may 10. the federal reserve and nyach will test using leap year dates this weekend. we strongly support domestic and international testing efforts by major market participants, such as the new york clearing house, the securities industry association, and s. w. i. f. t. to test critical data exchanges. under the leadership of the new york clearing house and with the support of the federal reserve, cross - border testing of major payment transactions and s. w. i. f. t. is planned to take place in june 1999. for all countries participating in this test, june 12 will conform to january 3, 2000 ; and june 13 will conform to january 4, 2000, the first business day on which all major international money markets are open after the century rollover. public outreach the joint year 2000 council strongly recommends enhanced information sharing as critical to readiness efforts and to avoid unnecessary uncertainty in financial markets. in many countries, there is currently a lack of adequate information on year 2000 readiness. this is of concern because it impedes efficient preparations by market participants and may exacerbate negative perceptions in the marketplace. financial institutions should share information in order to strengthen confidence that the year 2000 challenges are being met in all financial sectors worldwide. in february 1999, the ffiec issued guidance to financial institutions on how to address customer expectations. it emphasizes that maintaining customer confidence in the financial services industry now and after the year 2000 needs to be a top priority of the institution and its senior management. in 1999, our outreach program will focus on business resumption activities, including year 2000 risk mitigation and contingency response actions. the first outreach program occurred in december 1998, when officials from the federal reserve presented, via videoconference, an interactive session with its depository institution customers on the federal

triggered liquidity stress in related derivatives markets. an increase in initial margin requirements has greatly increased firms ’ liquidity needs, making it more difficult for some firms to hedge. this recent episode raises the question of whether margining practices, including those between the clearing member and their clients, may be too procyclical. financial markets remain vulnerable to further corrections that could potentially be triggered by an escalation of the war, or a faster - than - expected pace of monetary policy normalisation. conclusion let me conclude. sound financial regulation and greater resilience have helped the european financial system navigate both the pandemic and the economic fallout stemming from the russia - ukraine war. yet sizeable challenges remain. to address financial stability risks, we need to implement targeted macroprudential policy instruments. at the same time, amid global inflationary pressures and risks to growth, we are walking on a narrow path as we strive to deliver on our price stability mandate. but rest assured, we remain fully committed to stabilising inflation at our 2 % target over the medium - term.