First, we must continue to focus on fundamentals. Successful economies need stable and sustainable macroeconomic frameworks and sound monetary policy that delivers predictable prices. They also need stable and well-regulated financial systems and wellfunctioning markets. The Central Bank will continue to focus on its core mandates of price stability, a stable financial system and the protection of consumers.
Payments are a network industry, and they rely on cooperation between banks and other payment service providers – cooperation that calls for resolve and stamina. Today, I would like to talk about retail payments and the ECB’s and the Eurosystem’s role in those payments, and to touch on current developments and future challenges.