reason, we need to move forward and have great confidence in ourselves and our abilities. i have personally always trusted in the power of innovation and progress. i did not begin my career in the world of finance, but in the very heart of education, where the seed of all great ideas is most often born. a passion for knowledge and learning continues to guide me to this day, and i am aware that the only way forward is through constant improvement and advancement, sometimes even despite the changes brought by the future. for this reason, as we are working to enhance our instant payment system – the nbs ips system, let us also recall the words of milos crnjanski : " to the future we should go. all happier nations look to the future and go towards it. " may our joint work not turn into a mere record in the history of payment innovation. may it be a bright example leading the generations to come, evidence that once vision, innovation and cooperation are joined together, there are no limits to what can be achieved. thank you for being here today, not only as conference participants, but also as partners in shaping this future. ready to create a better future for serbia together with you, a serbia which is a part of the world and not looking at anyone's back but at the progress of its future generations, i extend my warm greetings and thanks. 3 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches

koh yong guan : risk management development in singapore opening address by mr koh yong guan, managing director of the monetary authority of singapore, at the first mas risk conference, singapore, 31 january 2002. * * * ladies and gentlemen introduction it is my pleasure to address the first mas risk conference. i will cover two areas : • first, the changing financial landscape and the challenges they pose for risk management ; and • second, the introduction of three risk management initiatives. changing financial landscape and challenges over the last few years, there has been a fundamental change in the volatility of financial markets. the frequency and the contagion effects of crises affecting financial markets have also risen. the volatility of financial markets has increased. the lowering of regulatory barriers to capital flows has integrated global financial markets. this has increased the correlation and the transmission of volatility from one financial market to the next. as a result, the diversification benefits derived from investing in several markets have dissipated, leaving market participants exposed to greater financial risks than before. the emergence of complex derivative instruments has increased market liquidity, but also financial risk for those who are not well acquainted with the use of these instruments. while these new instruments have allowed market participants to transfer their credit risks and enhanced the efficient pricing of such risks, the use of derivatives for speculative purposes can result in large losses. the basle capital accord of 1988 was a landmark document for the banking industry. it helped increase the capital held by internationally active banks, and created a more level playing field for banks under different jurisdictions. however, there were some weaknesses in the accord. the most important of these was the practice of assigning the same risk weight to all counterparties in each class, irrespective of the differences in their credit - worthiness. these issues led regulators to propose a more risk sensitive framework. the proposed new capital accord will have a great influence on the risk management practices of banks. the new accord, however, poses challenges to asian banks and regulators alike. banks will have to develop more sophisticated risk management capability while regulators will need to build up technical knowledge as well as supervisory resources to validate banks ’ risk management systems. as financial markets progress towards greater transparency, the market disciplinary mechanism will reward banks that manage their risks effectively, and penalise those that do not. good risk management practice is thus even more essential for banks to maintain their competitiveness over the long run. the frequency of shocks has increased. in the