This institution could consist of a democratically legitimate euro area “Finance Minister”. It could also – subject to certain conditions – have a European stabilisation budget to enable it to cushion any economic shocks in Member States; one possible solution, which remains to be discussed, could be a shared unemployment insurance scheme, as suggested by Finance Minister Pier Carlo Padoan. * * * Allow me to conclude with the words of Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, that great Tuscan and President of 5/6  BIS central bankers' speeches  the Italian Republic, who unfortunately passed away just recently. “What has been achieved [in Europe], in both the economic and political spheres, seems too important each time to be put at risk: it is so important to give governments and citizens the courage to make further steps forwards […]. In this sense, the creation of the euro is not only an end point but also a starting point.” The euro has never been easy but it is not a self-imposed straitjacket – rather it is a political and historical ambition. In these troubled times for Europe, we need both to buttress this vital asset and to build on it for the future. We have to do it for your generation, because you are the hope for Italy and for Europe. But more than that, we need to do it with your generation. Thank you for your attention. 6/6  BIS central bankers' speeches
7 Built upon a bedrock of strong financial cooperation ties, the Shanghai –Singapore partnership has flourished over the years. I foresee that our partnership will receive a boost under a more dynamic Asian financial landscape. II. Evolving New Asian Financial Landscape 8 Many observers have expressed their opinion that in recent years, a gradual shifting of the world’s economic centre of gravity to Asia has taken place. With the shift, many expect a new Asian Financial Landscape to emerge, presenting tremendous new opportunities ahead. Let us look at how this financial landscape is expected to evolve:  Asia’s economic size and rate of growth will pack a much stronger punch in the new era. In 1990, Asia’s share of global GDP was 23.2%. By 2014, this had increased to 38.8%, much larger than the shares of the U.S. and the E.U. If current growth trends continue, Oxford Economics forecast that Asia’s share will reach nearly 45% by 20253. OECD estimates4 that the size of the global middle class will increase to 4.9 billion by 2030. The bulk of this growth will come from Asia. By 2030, Asia will represent almost two-thirds of the global middle-class population and almost 60% of middle-class consumption. With increasing economic weight, Asia is expected to play a leading role in global financial markets. I made similar observations in a speech last week at the ASIFMA Annual Conference in Singapore: Equity markets in Asia recorded strong growth over the past ten years.