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Regulatory reforms will help the orderly functioning of the financial sector. They will promote systemic stability and, therefore, sustainable growth. That being said, there is no room for complacency. There is certainly need to work more, especially - but not exclusively - on policy implementation. Avoiding watering down what was achieved so far, completing Basel III and implementing the reforms in a consistent and timely manner are top priorities.
Caruana reiterates, however, that the task of maintaining financial stability goes beyond ensuring effective regulation and supervision. The vulnerabilities in the financial system often have multiple causes. It is therefore important to recognise the interactions across policy domains in order to deliver an adequate combination of policy actions - a combination that helps to meet all objectives effectively.
This can only be achieved through the work of the international regulatory community. Without the dedicated spirit of cooperation across national authorities, the substantial strengthening of regulations governing the functioning of the financial system would not have been possible. Certainly there is need to maintain this attitude and level of commitment in order to deal effectively with the challenges that lie ahead of us.
One key aspect of this cooperation is the exchanges of practices and experiences among regulators and supervisors to help ensure that sound policy approaches are adopted worldwide. He believes that the Financial Stability Institute can support the standard setters in this regard and should continue to play a key role in promoting the adoption of good policy practices across jurisdictions. This work goes well beyond the dissemination of standards. It also includes, as the FSI is now doing, facilitating information-sharing and providing analysis that helps financial sector authorities identify the appropriate policy approaches. Mr. Caruana believes that this conference organised by the FSI fits very well with the objective to promote reflection and cooperation, across countries and sectors, in the field of policy implementation.