. so it ’ s all the more important that productivity grows. and that makes reforms necessary. 3 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches often productivity improves because of innovations. but for that, it ’ s vital that innovations spread. this occurs, for instance, through competition : new businesses, which can produce better and at lower cost thanks to innovative methods, squeeze out older companies. the economist joseph schumpeter called this “ creative destruction ”. for that to happen, the environment has to be right. in many countries, for instance, entrepreneurs still have to overcome major bureaucratic obstacles simply to set up a business. once they have done that, they need capital and labour in order to grow. that brings us back again to flexible markets, which can react to new and changing demand. and finally, businesses need markets on which they can sell their products. in that context, it is important to complete the common european market. that applies particularly to the digital market, which is set to become even more important in the future. growth and prosperity ladies and gentlemen, we need reforms for the economy in the euro area to grow sustainably. hardly anyone questions that. but is that the end of the debate? will people regain confidence in europe and in the euro when the economy is growing again? i think growth plays an important role, but we also have to look beyond that. theodore roosevelt said : “ the test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have little ”. translated into the language of economics, it means : we must not only pay attention to growth but also to the distribution of the wealth it generates. compared with other regions, income and assets in western europe have traditionally tended to be quite evenly distributed. but as in many other countries, inequality is rising – and has been for decades. there are many reasons for this, ranging from rising unemployment, a larger number of single parents, reduced spending on education through to steady de - industrialisation. rising inequality is a complex phenomenon. some people therefore seek to explain it in simplistic terms by referring, for instance, to globalisation or european integration. that ’ s how we then have a link between the distribution of wealth and criticism of europe, as i mentioned at the start my speech. and indeed, studies are showing that there is a relationship : increasing inequality provides fertile ground for euroscepticism. and inequality is not a

gan kim yong : keynote speech - institute of banking and finance 50th anniversary distinction evening gala keynote speech by mr gan kim yong, deputy prime minister and minister for trade and industry, and chairman of the monetary authority of singapore, at the institute of banking and finance ( ibf ) 50th anniversary distinction evening gala, singapore, 13 september 2024. * * * chairman, council members and ceo of the institute of banking and finance ( ibf ), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, good evening. i am delighted to join you today to celebrate the ibf's golden jubilee and the achievements of our award recipients. this is a significant milestone for the ibf. over the last five decades, the ibf has been an integral part of the growth story of singapore's financial sector. singapore's development as a financial centre looking back, singapore has come a long way to become the leading global financial centre in asia. a. the creation of the asian dollar market in the late 1960s was the first pivotal step that put singapore on the map of international finance. b. this was followed by the progressive removal of foreign exchange controls in the early 1970s, as singapore opened its economy to foreign investments. c. we further liberalised the financial sector in the 1990s, starting with the deregulation of interest rates, relaxation of restrictions on foreign investors in our capital markets, and allowing more foreign banks to operate here. d. more recently, we have taken moves to foster greater financial innovation, with the aim to establish singapore as a leading hub for both fintech and sustainable finance. today, singapore is the leading financial centre in asia and the third most competitive financial centre in the world1. we are home to more than 2, 500 licensed financial institutions. a. the financial sector is a key pillar of singapore's economy, accounting for about 14 % of our gdp in 2023. i. from 2021 to 2023, the financial sector recorded real value - added growth of 3. 1 % per annum. b. many good jobs with good pay have been created. 1 / 7 bis - central bankers'speeches i. in 2023 alone, total employment in the financial sector grew by 4, 800, even though economic growth was restrained due to the global tightening cycle. residents2 accounted for 85 % of this employment growth. ii. the number of singaporeans in senior roles3 has also grown more than threefold in the past few years, from less than 2, 000 in 2016 to