Mr Li Qiang, Deputy General Manager of the Financial Market Department, Bank of China Macau Branch was invited to speak on “Currency, Debt and Liquidity” and discussed the relationship among currency creation, clearing system and three level balance sheet.

  Manager Li Qiang first explained the standard definition of currency and then defined currency from a new perspective, describing it as a debt certification, a form of IOUs and a right of claim for items with practical uses. He pointed out that when the holder of such debt certification could transfer the debt owed by a debtor to a third party by transferring the certification to settle unrelated debt, such debt certification would have the attributes of a currency and enjoy broad based legitimacy. The perspective set the scene for the discussion on currency creation, clearing system, three level balance sheet and the relationship among them.

  Such professional financial seminar gave students a new perspective for observing the financial market and the developments of regulatory institutions. It was different from the traditional way of thinking and the theories taught in textbooks.  Students benefited from a new learning model which went beyond knowledge in a textbook and enabled them to understand the issues involved in the practical world!