That has been true of every industrial revolution. Nowhere have these costs been felt more acutely than here in Glasgow.   These disruptive side-effects do not self-heal. They need to be managed if the fruits of innovation are not to rot in the fields. That means social safety nets to protect the livelihoods of those disrupted by innovation. And it means social institutions supporting the up-skilling of people. The GSA is a social institution created precisely to meet the latter need. 2  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/speeches  2    The next 50 years may bring opportunities and challenges every bit as great as any in the past. The Fourth Industrial Revolution will offer huge potential to individuals, economies and societies. But the engine of growth may change, with artificial rather than human intelligence playing a much larger role. Some have called this Life Version 3.0.   The creative forces unleashed by the Fourth Industrial Revolution will need to be carefully managed to avoid a tear in the social fabric. This is likely to require new sets of skills, with creative and social skills at a greater premium. It may require new sets of social institutions and safety nets. And it may require a reorientation of our approach to education, training and work.   The “creative industries” are a thriving sector of the UK economy, generating £ billion of value-added each year. But, in future, we may need every industry and every worker to see themselves as creative.
As you can see, the vast majority of reserves are invested in bonds (issued by governments, public sector entities, foreign companies and supranational organisations) or placed with other central banks. This represents around 88% of investments, which further underlines the prime importance of security and liquidity in the management of our assets. The proportion of equities has varied over the years. Currently, they amount to 12%, the highest level since 2004, when investment in equities was first allowed following a change in the legal framework governing SNB investments. For bonds, the SNB uses a combination of major bond indices as benchmarks. The SNB’s portfolio can deviate from these indices for tactical reasons, but always within a clearly defined range. Using such deviations, the SNB’s portfolio managers can exploit market inefficiencies in order to improve returns. Moreover, this bond management method allows the SNB’s portfolio managers to retain a direct link with the main market players – a link which is essential for gathering first-hand market intelligence that might be of use for the SNB’s activities. At present, 96% of our bond investments are in assets rated AAA or AA, or are placed with other central banks and international organisations. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3  Since 2004, the SNB has also invested in foreign equities. This asset class allows us to increase the return on our foreign exchange reserves. Equities are managed entirely passively. Our asset managers ensure that our equities portfolio corresponds to that of the main international benchmarks.