Jan F Qvigstad: Efficiencies in Norway’s payment system Opening address by Mr Jan F Qvigstad, Deputy Governor of Norges Bank (Central Bank of Norway), at the Research Conference on Payment Systems, Norges Bank, Oslo, 14 November 2008. *  *  *  It is a great pleasure to welcome you all to Norges Bank’s research conference on payment systems. Welcome also to Oslo, a fantastic place to visit all year round, but perhaps not in November. November is the time of the year when Norwegians dream of being somewhere else. Personally, I dream of being in Nice on the south coast of France, where I have relatives and thus often visit. Nonetheless, we greatly appreciate you coming from all over the world to contribute and spend some time with us. And who knows, maybe the weather conditions will provide the perfect incentive to work hard at the conference. Central banks have always taken a great interest in the payment system. This is due to the vital importance to confidence in the currency and in the financial system of a safe and efficient system for the exchange of funds and the settlement of claims. These days we all know the importance of this confidence. A payment system should not be the source of a crisis and it should continue to serve the markets even in the event of market turbulence. An efficient payment system should carry out payments quickly, securely and at low cost.
"Measuring the Natural Rate of Interest," Review of Economics and Statistics 85, no.4 (November 2003): 1063-70.