In financial law, the accession countries need to satisfy a number of provisions of the Treaty which have been applicable to the EU Member States since before the establishment of the ECB and the start of the third stage of EMU. In particular, statutory provisions providing credit facilities for public entities with a national central bank have to be revoked, together with provisions providing access for public entities to funds from credit institutions on terms which are not market-oriented. Moreover, capital movements need to be liberalised and statutory obstacles to the freedom of capital movements removed. BIS Review 84/2001  3  Some of these changes may be difficult to introduce before accession, and several accession countries will only achieve full compliance at a later stage when accession is imminent. In the area of banking law, more immediate progress has been achieved. For instance, several accession countries have introduced completely new banking legislation, aiming at compliance with the standards for EU financial markets in accordance with EU Directives relating to credit institutions. A similar need for legal implementation pertains to the areas of capital markets and payment and securities settlement systems, but in these fields further changes are required. Finally, the reduction of risks related to central bank operations also requires a legally sound collateral regime, which provides legally effective arrangements not only for repurchase and pledge transactions, but also in relation to insolvency proceedings. Again, this is a technically difficult area where the accession countries still need to catch-up with EU standards.
Our physical presence gives us the opportunity to better engage with and learn from our communities. Our mission is to make the U.S. economy stronger and the financial system more stable for all segments of society, and supporting local economies is a key part of that. The New York Fed is proud to be an anchor institution of New York City, and we want the city-and all of its people-to thrive. I'd like to share a bit more about why having these discussions is so important for the future of this city and for us here at the New York Fed. And with that, I must give the standard Fed disclaimer that the views I express are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Federal Open Market Committee or anyone else in the Federal Reserve System. The City's Present and Future Native New Yorker John Jay Chapman once said, "The present in New York is so powerful that the past is lost." You can feel that powerful reality when you walk the streets today. Indeed, this city was once an epicenter of the pandemic: we were hit early, and we were hit hard. The virus spread rapidly, leading to widespread hospitalizations and a devastating death toll. During the initial months of the pandemic, one out of five jobs in the city disappeared. In the restaurant industry in particular, 70 percent of jobs were lost. Other industries, such as retail and even health care, experienced outsized losses as well.