A bright election week in the South Pacific might stir up relaxation of extensive foreign exchange controls in Fiji, a niche market for Australian banks.Fiji holds its first elections in eight years today, with a public holiday called for the occasion.The banking industry is largely the preserve of foreign banks but by no means uncompetitive.French cooperative Bred is a recent investor in Fiji banking, building on its dalliances with Bendigo and BOQ in Australia.In 2013 the Reserve Bank of Fiji eased restrictions on capital outflows by allowing businesses to repatriate profits up to F$500,000 without its approval. The threshold for personal payments for medical and education was increased from F$5,000 to F$10,000. "These changes were made in light of the healthy level of foreign reserves," (of close to F$2 billion) the RBF said in its last annual report.Reserves were around F$1.7 billion at the end of June, according to the RBF's quarterly review.The digital banking move is underway, to some degree, in Fiji and the Pacific and is making an impact.The National Financial Inclusion Taskforce in 2009 set a vision of "reaching at least 150,000 unbanked citizens through a coordinated national effort by the year 2014". The target was achieved at the end of February 2014.The difficulty of moving money to Fiji flared in the Australian Financial Review last week. Westpac CEO Gail Kelly told the paper that bank transfer charges from Australian banks were particularly high out of Australia at up to 15 per cent.