An Underserved Market? The SME segment is set to be hugely impacted by last week’s announcement by World First about the launch of an international payments platform designed specifically for the SME (Small Medium Enterprise) market. The platform will give companies an alternative to open multiple foreign currency accounts with one or more banks. World […]
Money Transfer Providers – The Easiest Way to Compare
A number of companies today offer consumers an easy way to compare money transfer providers and methods for sending money overseas. Often, this is the best way to compare your options and find a transfer service that meets your needs. These companies offer businesses and individuals a range of choices for the best and most […]
Libor Transition – Dealers Seek FRTB Carve-out.
Banks are planning to ask regulators for capital relief during attempts to move roughly $370 trillion in swaps notional away from Libor to new interest rate benchmarks. Under incoming market risk capital rules – the Fundamental Review of the Trading Book – banks that model their own requirements will face a capital add-on for all […]
Asia’s Wealth Management Ripe for M&A
Global Firms Eye Targets Asia’s Wealth Management Asia’s wealth management business could see a surge in M&A activity on robust regional growth, with Asia poised to overtake North America as the world’s wealthiest region in the next two years. That’s likely to draw the attention of global wealth managers eager to acquire assets in a […]
Asia’s ETF Market – Pensions and Insurers Give New Impetus
With interest rates still close to record lows, lukewarm fixed-income returns are prompting pension funds and insurers to hunt for other investment options. These cost-aware institutional investors have been increasingly embracing Asia’s ETF market to lower transaction fees and achieve higher returns. Hot in Asia Yield-chasing has been a persistent theme among Asian insurers. “As […]
Private Banks in China to Lead in Asia
China’s private banks, led by CMB and ICBC, will soon surpass rivals such as UBS and Citigroup in assets under management (AUM) in Asia, reflecting the nation’s rapid proliferation in personal wealth and its mushrooming network of high net worth individuals. AUMs at China’s private banks have surged an average 31% a year since 2012 […]
Global Payment – China and India the Next Big Opportunities
As the money transfer space becomes increasingly crowded in the US, UK, and Europe, many companies look east for more room to grow. China and India both contain enormous e-commerce and remittance markets that are rife with global payment opportunities; however, these markets also pose unique challenges to entry. Growing E-Commerce Markets With $750 billion […]
CySEC Sets Sept 30 Deadline for License Applications
Cyprus financial regulator CySEC, in apparent response to an increase in CIF license applications from FCA regulated firms, has issued a notice that any firm wishing to ensure its application has time to work its way through the system before a possible ‘Hard Brexit’ in March 2019 needs to have its paperwork completed and submitted […]
Offshore Banking Trends Around the Globe
In the near future, we will see the creation of a greatly different financial services industry to the one we have today, both in the composition of the institutions themselves and in the way they do business. The recent flurry of mergers in many European countries and the United Kingdom are indicative of a wider […]
REITS Markets as a Potential Investment Vehicle in Africa
A Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) is a collective investment scheme in real estate, structured as a trust where an investor owns rights or interests in property in form of units and earns returns from income or capital gains. The company or trust thus pools funds from individual investors, acquires and operates income-generating real estate, […]