We believe this will encourage healthy competition that will benefit Filipino consumers in terms of having broader and better choices of bank products and services. It will also bring in more foreign investments into the Philippine economy. We hope that these favorable business conditions in the Philippines will prove attractive for increased investments from Guamanians to partner with us in exploiting such opportunities.
The relevant national legislation, including the statute of the national central bank, needs to be compatible with the EU Treaties and the Statute of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). More generally, a lesson we have learned the hard way is that the strength of the institutional environment is crucial for the sustainability of economic integration and convergence.