And today there are additional incentives for life insurers to offer new products that break away from the dual cash-liquidity guarantee, due to the lesser Solvency II capital requirements. And this brings me to the issue of regulation. Here too, insurers have an essential role to play, i n preparing the review of the Solvency II Directive’s new regulatory framework. The directive came into force almost two years ago now and you have implemented it with a great deal of professionalism. In many respects, Solvency II represents a very significant step forward for the insurance sector. But this does not mean that it’s perfect: we must analyse its impacts closely, particularly its effects on investment behaviour and the financing of the economy, in order to propose the adjustments that prove necessary. Progress has already been made on the financing of infrastructure projects and businesses, thanks to two amendments that came into effect in April 2016 and September 2017, respectively, which adapted the calibration of capital requirements. More generally though, the reviews of the standard formula and long-term guarantee package measures planned for 2018 and 2020, respectively, are important opportunities to make essential improvements. The work is already underway, and the more you 2/3  BIS central bankers' speeches  actively participate, alongside your European colleagues, the more our chances of success will be enhanced. III.
The role of insurers in the digitalisation of our economy It is essential for our economy to adapt to the digital revolution: it creates incredible opportunities, but with them, new risks against which the insurance sector, once again, can bring stability and protection. I would like to discuss two subjects in particular: Firstly, cyber-insurance. The cyber-insurance market is still underdeveloped. Insurers can and should take inspiration from their own experiences in tackling cyber-risk, and use it to develop a more mature French and European cyber-insurance offering. The coverage against cyber-risk is a very real concern that affects all companies – both small and large – as cyber-attacks are becoming increasingly frequent and costly: according to figures from Euler-Hermès, 57% of French companies were victims of these attacks in 2016, compared with 32% in 2015. We at the Banque de France, alongside the Eurosystem and our G7 colleagues, have made cybersecurity one of our strategic priorities. And secondly, personal data and big data. Naturally, the spread of connected objects that is triggering an exponential rise in the amount of data available on insurance policyholders represents an opportunity for the business of insurance, which consists precisely in collecting and exploiting data in order to quantify and put a price on risk. Nonetheless, I would urge insurers to take a responsible approach: we need to strike the right balance between segmentation and the sharing of risk between policyholders. The basic principles of solidarity and risk-pooling that are intrinsic to insurance are at stake.