Fintech is transforming the relation with customers, the means of payment, as well as the modes of financing and transfers. On this particular last point, the potential gains are enormous for developing countries receiving large flows of their nationals abroad. In 2018, according to the World Bank, these transfers may have totaled 689 billion dollars, more than three-quarters of which were intended to developing countries. Traditional business models of banks are now challenged by the new financing methods, thus putting more pressure on their profitability and pushing them, in some cases, to greater risk-taking, which would eventually impact financial stability. 5  In emerging and developing countries, with internet and mobile telecommunications  penetration,  Fintech  now  offers  tremendous  opportunities to strengthen financial inclusion and economic and social development. According to a statement issued last November by the United Nations Secretary General, within a period of six years, 1.2 billion people have accessed financial services through technology. In a report issued in 2016, the Mckinsey Institute estimated the potential of Fintech in emerging economies by 2025 to an additional 6 percent of GDP, i.e. 3.7 trillion Dollars, and 95 million new jobs. The same report also revealed that two billion people and 200 million of very small, small and medium enterprises in emerging countries do not have access to credit, while those who have are still facing high costs.
Using the atrium as a large communicative zone within the two tower buildings was also welcomed. The Governing Council noted that all requirements for the energy concept had basically been fulfilled and that the design complied with the relevant regulations in the fields of building and environmental law. 2  BIS Review 5/2005  Next steps So where do we go from here? The Governing Council decided that the next step would be an “optimisation” phase in which the selected architect would again review his design on the basis of further guidance from the ECB. We will reassess the ECB’s functional and spatial requirements and, on that basis, seek to further optimise the design with the aim of reducing costs. With regard to the cost, the estimates available at present, taking into account the optimisation potential, suggest that the construction costs will be about € million. The total investment costs, however, will be higher, since they include additional elements, such as the cost of purchasing the Grossmarkthalle site, planning fees and other infrastructural costs. Some of these additional cost items are related to the construction costs, while others depend on further deliberation and specification. More precise information on the cost aspects of the project will be provided at the end of the detailed planning phase. I should like to emphasise that we will continue to work closely with the City of Frankfurt authorities in the coming phases of the project, especially in view of the urban development plan that will be adopted by Frankfurt’s City Council.