stock exchange and the china financial futures exchange was opened exactly one year ago and is the first trading venue outside china for chinese investment products in renminbi. ceinex uses the deutsche borse's infrastructure and provides investors with the enticing option of gaining access to the chinese capital market during european and us trading hours. in addition to the formation and expansion of close and dynamic economic ties, activities that promote mutual understanding are another integral part of the renminbi's internationalisation strategy. mutual trust is established by regularly exchanging information in the fields of politics, business and academia, and this is an important factor for successful cooperation with chinese partners. in mid - october this year, for example, a delegation of members of the renminbi initiative group frankfurt headed by the deutsche bundesbank and the hessian ministry of economics travelled to beijing and shanghai for talks. this was in connection with a workshop in beijing organised by the sino - german center of finance and economics, which boasted high - ranking participants from the people's bank of china, academia and the financial sector. the sino - german center, which is part of the goethe university in frankfurt, is a research centre that conducts independent research and promotes interaction and improved mutual understanding by means of education and training. the sino - german center opened in september 2015 and i am proud of the fact that the bundesbank, as a member of its board of trustees, is actively contributing to its success. 4. what conclusions can be drawn? ladies and gentlemen the inclusion of the renminbi in the imf's special drawing rights basket marks a milestone in the internationalisation of the chinese currency. there can be no doubt that this is a great political and economic triumph for china as well as an endorsement of the path to openness that the country has been treading with great determination since the end of the 1970s. however, there is still some way to go if the renminbi is to become as important as the other four key currencies. foreign investors'access to the onshore capital markets in china, which is still restricted, is a case in point and underscores the necessity for chinese policymakers to continue to resolutely press ahead with the opening - up and liberalisation of the chinese markets. thank you very much for your attention. 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches

among the flexible and internationally used investment currency elite. one example of such necessary reforms would be to eliminate obstacles hindering access to the capital market, such as the quota model for investment in the bond market. the final step towards becoming a globally recognised key currency is for a currency to be used as an international reserve currency. the renminbi's inclusion in the imf's special drawing rights basket has provided the framework for this. it is now expected that a wider range of market participants will invest capital in renminbi - denominated securities. these participants will likely be joined by an increasing number of central banks that will, in the future, invest parts of their reserve assets in corresponding securities, mostly government bonds. 3. what is the role of the frankfurt financial centre in the internationalisation of the renminbi? the renminbi's internationalisation strategy does not culminate with the currency's inclusion in the imf's basket of currencies, however. on the contrary, the chinese government is currently focusing on a whole raft of measures. one of these is the cross - border interbank payment system ( cips ). it was launched in october 2015 and is the sole provider of settlement services for offshore renminbi payments. the people's bank of china designed cips to provide an infrastructural buffer for the expected growth in renminbi transactions and to stem the disadvantages with regard to settlement efficiency vis - a - vis other currencies ( particularly the us dollar ). other measures include bilateral cooperation agreements that aim to further promote use of the renminbi as a trading and investment currency. the potential for efficient renminbi clearing is significant to enterprises that operate internationally. as china's largest european trading partner, germany is of crucial importance in this context. it was not for nothing that the first renminbi clearing hub located outside asia was established in frankfurt. since 2014, it has been possible to settle renminbi - denominated payments via the frankfurt branch of the people's bank of china. this service provides attractive opportunities for small and medium - sized enterprises, for instance, to establish and expand business 2 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches relationships with chinese enterprises while at the same time settling payments with china within their own local time zone and jurisdiction. the china europe international exchange, or ceinex, is another collaborative initiative. this joint venture of the deutsche borse group, the shanghai