my thoughts on issues and challenges that we need to address. i. financial education financial education can broadly be defined as the capacity to have familiarity with and understanding of the financial market products, especially rewards and risks in order to make informed choices. viewed from this standpoint, financial education primarily relates to personal financial education to enable individuals to take effective actions to improve overall well - being and avoid distress in financial matters. the financial markets offer a variety of both simple and complex financial products. it is difficult for the common person to grasp the downside risks associated with financial products especially if he or she is confronted by a blitz of clever advertising. making wrong choices while choosing financial products becomes one of buying in haste and repenting at leisure. the focus of any discussion on financial education is thus primarily on the individual, who usually has limited resources and skills to appreciate the complexities of financial dealings with financial intermediaries on matters relating to personal finances on a day - today basis. lack of literacy in general and financial literacy in particular, are the main hurdles in expanding the coverage of financial services to the poorer segments of society. notwithstanding the initiatives taken so far, given the large magnitude of the problem, concerted efforts need to be made in this direction. banks should, therefore, come forward to set up literacy centres and guide their clients about the features, benefits and risk of various financial products. with no well established banking relationships, the un - banked poor are pushed towards expensive alternatives. these centres can educate the people about proper financial management tools, inculcate saving habits and generate demand for financial products and services which in turn will boost financial inclusion. this process of education could benefit the banks as the centres while interacting with customers would be in a much better position to understand their specific requirements, which could then be a critical input in appropriate product design. financial education is also an integral component of customer protection. despite concerted efforts, the current levels of transparency coupled with the difficulty of consumers in identifying and understanding the fine print from the large volume of information, leads to an information asymmetry between the financial intermediary and the customer. for example, customers are often penalised for minor violations in repayments, although they have limited redressal mechanisms to rectify deficiencies in service by banks. in this context, financial education can greatly help the consumers. ii. credit counselling credit counselling can be defined as “ counselling that explores the possibility of repaying debts outside bankruptcy and educates

remember, central bankers were a triumphant lot in the years before the crisis. they thought they had discovered the holy grail of stable growth, low inflation and low unemployment and declared victory. the crisis then came as a serious blow to the credibility of central banks and the reputation of central bankers. the challenge for central banks, as indeed for all policy makers, is to learn the lessons of the crisis and reflect them in their policies. there cannot be a more learned person than stan fischer to draw the lessons of the crisis for central banks and set them off on meeting their most urgent challenge of regaining lost credibility. i have great pleasure in inviting governor stanley fischer to deliver the third brahamananda memorial lecture. bis central bankers ’ speeches