financial concepts : i ) inflation ; ii ) compound interest rates ; and iii ) risk diversification. the aim is to assess whether the interviewee understands : ( i ) that money loses purchasing power when prices rise ; ( ii ) that the changes in an amount saved in an account over five years depend not only on the annual interest rate applied to the amount saved the first year, but also on the interest accumulated thereafter ; and iii ) that the risk of investing in equities diminishes if a broad range of shares is acquired instead of only one type. the replies, obtained from a broad sample of randomly selected individuals representing spanish territory as a whole and each of its regions, and provided by ine, reveal, inter alia, 3 / 7 the following results : ( i ) 58 % of interviewees understand what inflation is ; ( ii ) 46 % understand the concept of compound interest ; ( iii ) 49 % understand the concept of risk diversification ; and ( iv ) the percentage of correct replies increases with educational level and household income level. given that the survey includes questions from an international project to measure financial competences, it is possible to compare these results with those obtained in other countries, in particular with oecd countries and eu countries that have information available in this connection. the comparison shows that the percentage of correct replies in spain regarding the concepts of inflation and risk diversification is below the average, particularly in the case of risk diversification, in which the averages for the oecd and eu countries stand at 62 % in both groups ( compared with 49 % in spain ). regarding the concept of compound interest, however, the percentage is very close to the average observed in the oecd countries ( 46 % ) and in the eu members ( 44 % ). nonetheless, this should serve as no consolation, since this average means that over half the interviewees do not understand a basic financial concept such as compound interest rates. the need to reinforce the general public ’ s financial literacy is also patent in some of the results on knowledge, holding, acquisition and use of financial products. firstly, as far as knowledge of financial products is concerned, the survey asks interviewees whether they have heard of the following products : ( i ) savings accounts, pension schemes, investment funds, shares and fixed income ( all savings vehicles ) ; ( ii ) life insurance and medical insurance ; ( iii ) means of payment such as credit cards ; and ( iv ) debt products such as

of those who live in a household with income of over €44, 500 acquire savings vehicles while only 8 % do so in households with income of up to €14, 500. finally, the survey also enables information to be had on the use of financial products : in particular, on one hand, on whether interviewees have saved over the past 12 months and, if so, using which savings vehicle ; and, on the other, whether the household ’ s spending has exceeded its income over this period and, if so, how they financed it the last time this happened. this information shows that, as regards saving, 61 % of interviewees have been saving in the past 12 months. the percentage increases in terms of educational level and level of income. one noteworthy feature is that the second most common method of saving, behind the current account, is cash, even in the highest educational and income segments. in particular, 38 % of interviewees who save do so in cash. only 14 % do so via a savings account and 11 % via a pension scheme. as regards expenditure, 28 % of interviewees live in households whose spending has outpaced income over the past 12 months, a percentage that is in line with the average observed in oecd and eu countries. 51 % financed this shortfall resorting to savings, and 35 % through informal credit ( friends, employer, etc. ). as in the foregoing cases, differences were observed in terms of educational level and level of income. as both levels increase, the percentage of instances in which spending has exceeded income diminishes and the percentage of cases where greater spending is financed with savings increases. undoubtedly, financial behaviour does not depend solely on financial literacy, but is also influenced by other circumstances ; but, in light of some of the above - mentioned results, i do believe there is clearly room for improvement in the field of financial education in spain, and that we should continue to strive in this direction. financial education in a context of technological innovation and developments giving priority attention to financial education is, moreover, particularly significant in the current context of financial innovation. technological developments are changing the way in which customers relate to financial institutions and how they take up financial products. and this, though it has attendant advantages, also entails risks. greater financial culture, greater awareness of the new reality and a greater development of the general public ’ s digital competences can help mitigate these risks. 5 / 7 i would like to refer