This is Page 8 from the FIE Study dated 2002. I understand from the study that a management consulting firm had been engaged to complete a business case study for the Bankers Association of the Philippines and the Investment House Association of the Philippines.

Again this is obviously way before I ever took on the post of Treasurer.
I noted that one of the asserted weaknesses of the current environment is that the securities are transferred in RoSS before the cash settlement is effected. The reader should note that this was used as justifying the need for capital market reforms. My observations are:

a) The BTr has long been actually doing the exact opposite for many years now as per best clearing and settlement practice. Cash must move before securities do due to the legal implications in changes in ownership of the GS. The BTr's initiatives catering to the small investors even reflected this feature dating back all the way to 1998.

While BTr personnel will always acknowledge that there are many lessons that can always be learned from private sector clearing and settlement practitioners, they are not so clueless either that this essential operating risk was overlooked.

Multilateral and bilateral funding agencies continually work with the BTr and the Bureau does get a lot of education in debt issuance strategy and operations through assistance programs.

b) The BTr does not have any records of any discussions or research performed the consultants that constituted in depth analysis of RoSS policies and procedures nor do the key personnel of RoSS have any recollection of same.

c) The BTr does not have any records of discussions regarding the potential ramifications of the study on BTr operations between the consultants and BTr officers.

Again, I premise these comments on events prior to my being here. But still, it would appear that we may have a situation here where we are initiating changes to address deficiencies that were either:

1. already addressed or;
2. non-existent / superseded at the time the study was completed;


I think it is always a good idea for all of us to review our workpapers and notes to check if the assumptions, findings, and conclusions are still valid. I assure everyone that BTr will likewise revisit its own notes and operations.