china, as is evident in the foreign claims data ( graph 3 ). although each bank has its own strategy, all recognise the opportunities that china offers, whether through servicing new chinese customers or through supporting australian businesses ’ trade with china. other areas of the australian financial services industry, including in insurance, are also active in china, although the size of their investments are, at this stage, limited by various regulations. conversely, three chinese banks have opened branches in australia in the past few years, joining bank of china which has had a longer - standing presence in australia. looking forward, increased two - way investment flows have the potential to benefit both countries. chinese investment in australia can help to fund important investment projects data for 2012 are due to be released by the abs in the next week. bis central bankers ’ speeches and support the long - term trading relationship. it can do this through direct ownership of projects and indirectly through the capital markets. conversely, australian investment in china offers the possibility of further diversification of australia ’ s large pool of superannuation savings, particularly in long - term infrastructure assets, which are a good match for the liabilities of retirement funds. there are also benefits from sharing financial expertise and technology. the reform journey together, these five elements – rmb trade invoicing, direct trading between the rmb and aud, the swap agreement between the pbc and the rba, the investment of foreign reserves in china and the increase in investment flows – are testimony to the maturing of the financial relationship between our two countries. the financial architecture to support this relationship is incrementally, but inexorably, being put in place. it is being supported by governments in both countries and by businesses, including those in the financial industry. there is still, however, a lot to be done. both countries are still learning about the business, social and political environment in the other country. a deeper financial relationship requires businesses to gain experience in local markets so that they can recognise and benefit from investment opportunities. this takes time. businesses also need to understand the regulatory environment, which continues to evolve in both countries. over recent years, the chinese authorities have taken steps to liberalise interest rates and parts of the capital account, although the financial system is still highly regulated. substantial capital controls remain in place. the chinese currency does not float freely, notwithstanding the gradual widening in the trading band over recent years. and deep and liquid financial markets in the full range of investment

##dotal evidence, scientific analysis and academic research in the field of economic education are essential. the research conducted by the mannheim institute for financial education ( mife ) contributes to finding answers to these questions. this is because scientific, evidencebased insights can be used to make educational activities more targeted. and conferences such as the one today, which promote the regular exchange of ideas between the business community, academics and practitioners, are also important to that end. it is especially important for us as the bundesbank to obtain new academic stimuli and ideas for our educational work. this is why we are pleased to sponsor the early career research prize on financial literacy, which my colleague dr patricia staab, president of the baden - wurttemberg regional office, will present a little later on. thank you for your attention and i am looking forward to the discussion. 1 see, for instance, schmidt, t. and p. tzamourani ( 2017 ), zur finanziellen bildung der privaten haushalte in deutschland : ausgewahlte ergebnisse aus der studie " private haushalte und ihre finanzen ( phf ) ". diw vierteljahrshefte zur wirtschaftsforschung, 86 ( 4 ), pp. 31 - 49. 2 https : / / www. oecd. org / finance / oecd - recommendation - on - financial - literacy. htm 3 https : / / boeb. net / eckpunkte 6 / 6 bis - central bankers'speeches