is the perception that supervisors are overly eager to impose business restrictions, sometimes being portrayed as " triggerhappy. " this misconception creates an impression that regulators are constantly looking for opportunities to clamp down on financial entities. we are sometimes asked by the media, " who is next? " - implying that supervisory actions are routine in nature. in reality, the decision to impose business restrictions is never taken easily. strong supervisory actions are brought in only after careful onsite examinations, offsite data analysis, and extensive engagement with the regulated entities concerned for remediation, often times stretching into several months. our primary goal is to ensure the stability and integrity of the financial system and not to hinder business operations. out of the over 150 banks, over 9, 000 non - banking financial companies as well as about 1, 500 ucbs and other entities we supervise, stringent actions have been taken only in a handful of cases. that too, the most outlier in each category has been called out for such punitive actions so that it has a demonstrative effect on the rest of the industry. these measures are not about penalising but rather about protecting the interests of depositors, customers, and the broader financial system. 4 / 5 bis - central bankers'speeches despite these efforts, it is disheartening to see innovative misinterpretation of regulations. a recent case in point is that of peer - to - peer ( p2p ) lending regulations. the regulations as originally conceived, envisaged the platforms to function like online marketplaces connecting lenders with borrowers, with no credit risk borne by the platform and no co - mingling or retention of funds. however, the supervisory findings over the last one year revealed that some of these platforms adopted practices which were violative of both the letter and spirit of the regulations. instructions issued earlier this month on p2p lending platforms are nothing new but are merely responding to the egregious violations observed in some cases. however, it is being presented in some quarters as if these'new'regulations will'kill'this industry. on the contrary, the differentiated licensing and light touch regulations that were granted to such entities are intended to help them set up a unique platform and not mimic banks or nbfcs that are more robustly capitalised and stringently regulated. conclusion in conclusion, despite occasional brickbats, regulatory frameworks have been adopting a consultative approach which has helped shape a resili

alan bollard : the new zealand housing market extract from an address by dr alan bollard, governor of the reserve bank of new zealand, to the property council of new zealand, 9 september 2003. * * * i ’ d like now to consider in more detail the new zealand housing market, it being one of the factors behind our strong domestic economy, at a time when many exporters have seen their incomes retreat in recent months. new zealand ’ s housing sector has experienced a strong cyclical upswing over the past 18 months. it ’ s not just auckland. sales growth and rising house prices are prevalent in many parts of new zealand. building consents are at cyclically high levels. that ’ s both including and excluding apartments. residential investment is expanding the nation ’ s housing stock rapidly, yet demand continues to outstrip supply. we see this in rising prices and a shortage of properties listed for sale. the median time it takes to sell a house currently sits at an unprecedented low of just 26 days. as a consequence, recently house prices have been rising rapidly. what ’ s driving this? the answer is demand exceeds supply. demographics are part of the story. new zealand has had rapid population growth in recent years, driven by net immigration. this includes not just people coming here but people here choosing not to leave. the longstanding drift of new zealanders north and into town is also a factor. in addition, social changes are seeing the average number of persons per home reduce. life - style changes are increasing demand for new kinds of accommodation, such as inner - city apartments and coastal and lakeside properties. some of these factors have been at work for a long time. even in the late 1990s, when population growth was relatively weak, there was substantial construction activity. however, more recently population growth has been marked. the natural increase in population currently is slower than a decade ago, but recent immigration has been very strong. in terms of permanent and long - term migration we had a net outflow of 10, 000 persons per year in early 2001 and a net inflow of more than 40, 000 per year in mid - 2003. that too undersells the story. in addition we have short - term stays, such as students and those on work permits, and those who apply for residency once they are here. total migration has been running at more than 60, 000 persons per annum over the past two years. this is well in excess of the mid - 1990s.