Not everyone wants to be steeped in fan charts; modelling and stress testing. Yet the decisions we take impact every UK citizen. How can they rely on us – the dreaded experts? Of course, trust can be built through a track record, but it can also be grounded in familiarity. People trust vi  individuals, places and things that they know. Reflecting the diversity of the people we serve can reduce misperceptions that we are experts making esoteric decisions in an ivory tower for the benefit of others. Moreover, diverse decision-making bodies typically have greater political support and enjoy greater public trust. vii  They also tend to achieve better policy outcomes through better understanding of community needs  and more effective dialogue with the wider population. viii  Better decision making, innovation and adaptability  Homogenous groups that pay insufficient attention to minority views are vulnerable to biases, groupthink and over optimism. They are more likely to be influenced by the way information is presented (framing); and to stick with under-performing projects because of prior investments. ix  3  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/speeches  3  Diverse groups can overcome these ills as they are more inclined to consider novel ideas and challenge each other, enabling them to infer cause and effect and to solve problems better. Diverse teams are also better able to adapt to changes and are more resilient.
However, despite progress in recent years, Spain’s share in some potentially very dynamic markets is still low and faces major challenges, in a world of growing competitive pressures and the globalisation of production channels. Nor should it be forgotten that our economy’s dependence on energy and capital goods imports and the high net payment of income to the rest of the world, as a result of high external indebtedness, are a permanent constraint as regards achieving the surpluses on current and capital account that are needed to deleverage our economy. Institutions and financial policy for the internationalisation of Spanish companies Internationalisation calls for a series of financial services in which the banking industry plays a central role. These services can be grouped into two major categories: operations geared to mitigating the risk of transactions, namely guarantees and insurance; and those geared to providing liquidity or financing to companies. On the data available, regarding the importance of banks in financing international trade, banks participate directly in approximately one-third of global trade. On one hand they offer financing, usually short-term in nature, which responds to the exporter’s or importer’s liquidity or working capital needs. They also offer coverage for risks through guarantees or insurance, ensuring the successful completion of transactions for the customer. Moreover, the extension of coverage for credit risk facilitates – albeit indirectly – access to financing by reducing risk on the company’s balance sheet and, consequently, reducing the financial cost of the transaction.