Looking at our development over the last ten years, I do believe that price stability, due to monetary independence and flexible exchange rates, has been beneficial to the Swiss economy. It has maintained a low interest rate environment which has facilitated the private sector's adjustment to the rapid changes of the world economy. And what about Israel? I think that the arguments in favour of Switzerland's monetary independence apply even more to this country. While we at the SNB concentrate primarily on domestic developments and trends in the euro area, the Bank of Israel also has to take into account economic conditions in the US. Thus, there are three major sources of shocks that Israeli monetary policy has to respond to in order to achieve the goal of price stability. BIS Review 46/2006  7  Despite difficult circumstances, Israel was able to stabilise its monetary framework in the 1990s. The Bank of Israel now operates with an inflation target and will soon benefit from a new law that will modernise its decision-making process and strengthen its autonomy. All the necessary ingredients are now in place for the implementation of a successful independent policy in this country, as was once also the case in Switzerland. May I wish Stanley Fisher and his colleagues all the best in this endeavour. 8  BIS Review 46/2006
BIS central bankers’ speeches  3  MAS will therefore introduce a “regulatory sandbox” approach that aims to give FIs more confidence to experiment and launch their innovative products or services within controlled boundaries. •  The idea is not to remove all risk. Failure is an inherent part of innovation. •  Rather, we want to create an environment where if an experiment fails, it fails safely and cheaply, without larger adverse consequences. •  MAS will soon issue guidelines for public consultation on how the regulatory sandbox will work. Three, we promote greater inter-operability within the industry to harness the full potential of technology. An innovative environment proliferates a wide range of technologies and solutions. •  But if the solutions cannot interact with one another, we sub-optimise efficiency gains or customer experience. •  While we should allow a hundred flowers to bloom, we should also take care we create a garden. Greater inter-operability across data systems is therefore a key priority. Let me give two examples of what MAS is doing together with the industry. •  •  One, common standards for payments systems to realise more seamless payments across a range of platforms. –  We are working towards a unified Point of Sales (POS) terminal – a single terminal that can read all kinds of cards at retail and hospitality outlets.