*  *  *  Introduction It is my pleasure to address this joint conference. As you know, the Core Principles for Effective Deposit Insurance Systems were developed jointly by IADI, the International Association of Deposit Insurers, under the excellent leadership of Marty Gruenberg, and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision.
These two bodies, together with the Financial Stability Institute, organised this conference in order to promote the Core Principles and to contribute to their implementation and further development. Last July, the world commemorated the 40th anniversary of the man-on-the-moon.