Ladies and Gentlemen, we will all agree that the resilience of the financial sector is largely dependent on the soundness of financial institutions and the robustness of the financial market infrastructure. The Cyber Security Directive for Financial Institutions does not fall short of addressing these objectives.
With respect to small business lending in particular, some banks have instituted so-called “second look” programs that – as the name implies – involve a reconsideration of loan applications that would not be pursued based on a credit scoring model alone. Some banks are also increasing lending through the use of SBA guarantees.