2  4  Of course, in the actual practice of monetary policy, uncertainty about the data is extremely pervasive. We are even uncertain about the current economic situation as economic data are received with a lag, are typically subject to multiple revisions, and in any case can only roughly and partially depict the underlying economic reality.
In today’s speech, I have discussed some factors at a broader level: innovation, striking the right balance between the cooperative and the competitive space, and the positioning of European retail payments at a global level. To drive the future development in retail payments, payment service providers and public authorities/regulators will have to be able to respond proactively to these factors.