2010

There has been a significant decline in the number of corporate treasurers all over the world who think that the financial crisis is over, according to the EuroFinance Quarterly Global Business Confidence Survey, which also discovered a sharp increase in uncertainty about what lies ahead. The treasurers’ biggest challenge now is the difficulty in forecasting their cashflows. This has even …

In recognition of its continued leadership of regional capital markets transactions, Euromoney Magazine recently named Citi the “Best Equity House in the Middle East”. The regional award was part of Euromoney’s 2010 Awards for Excellence, considered to be among the most respected global awards for banking excellence. During 2009, a difficult year for local and regional capital markets, Citi led …

Capital Bank of Jordan has chosen EastNets, a provider of global compliance and payment solutions and services, to provide watchlist filtering and anti-money laundering control solutions. Haytham Kamhiyah, general manager, Capital Bank, said, “We decided to develop our current systems by adopting a new solution that is able to keep pace with developments taking place in the area of compliance, …

Talaris, an expert in cash handling technology, has released CashInsight Bridge, the latest software development in its portfolio of teller automation solutions, and CashInsight Assure, the new multi-vendor benchmark in teller connectivity software. CashInsight Bridge provides an advanced remote device management solution for improved performance and business intelligence. It can also help maximise asset value through central control and deployment …

The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) has announced that its total volume for 2010 surpassed the one million contracts mark on July 13, 2010, the earliest it had exceeded this milestone in any year since inception. Eric Hasham, chief executive officer of DGCX, said, “Topping the one million contracts mark in just over six months is further evidence of …

More than 100 corporate treasurers and senior finance professionals gathered in Dubai recently for the Universwiftnet conference, hosted jointly by HSBC Bank Middle East Ltd and SWIFT. Entitled The Future of Payment Systems, the discussions on the day were structured around three main themes: Think, Implement & Deploy. Attendees participated in activities that included panel discussions, presentations and case studies …

Small and medium-sized companies across the globe plan to increase capital expenditure (41 per cent), expand their workforces (26 per cent) and hold positive views about local economic growth (84 per cent), according to the HSBC Small Business Confidence Monitor. Shaun Wallis, global head of business management, HSBC Commercial Banking, said: “Our research indicates confidence levels across the globe and …

World trade has slowed by 3.5 per cent over the last quarter, according to the third edition of the Global Trade Flow Index by Capgemini Consulting. The report tracks trade by quarter based on the latest available official data from national agencies within the top 23 countries in the global trade arena. The index figures revealed growth of five per …

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has now opened in Iraq to help finance shortterm and medium-term sales of US exports to Iraqi buyers in both the public and private sectors. “Iraq’s economy is growing, offering specific opportunities for US exporters in a variety of industries, and Ex-Im Bank can help by reducing the repayment risk, especially …

More than 1400 contracts for various projects in Saudi Arabia were given the go-ahead during the first half of 2010. They were valued at more than 70bn Saudi riyals, according to the kingdom’s Ministry of Finance, which added that the contracts didn’t include those deals worth less than five million riyals or those that would take less than a year …

Bank Audi has launched “Audi Cards On-line”, a new internet banking service that meets “today’s on-thego cardholder’s lifestyle”. It allows cardholders to “log in to their credit card information and check all their transactions and card movement within the comfort of their own homes”. They can also access this service anywhere, anytime, even through their mobiles. Mrs Randa Bdeir, group …

Investors have turned bearish in their outlook for the global economy and corporate earnings, according to the BofA Merrill Lynch Survey of Fund Managers published in July. The survey shows a net 12 per cent of respondents predicting the global economy will deteriorate in the coming year, the first negative forecast since February 2009. This represents a big turnaround from …

Dear Reader, How things change, as many a business has discovered since economies around the world rolled around unsteadily like listing ships and then sank into recession. Before the global financial crisis, companies took it for granted that banks would always be willing and able to provide additional funding as and when it was required, at a price. But it …

Maki Vekinis, Cash Management Matters – CMM Managing Partner, looks at the difference between vendor evaluation and selection of a cash management programme Following up from our previous article on vendor evaluation and selection of a cash management platform, we will now describe the differences between the two activities and why they should be kept apart and separate. In a …

CMM trade partner CAROLINE MAGINN explains why the company is proud to launch the Tajara Monitor (the”Tajara”) for teh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the publication’s importance in the field of trade finance This is the first publication to the market that looks in depth at the trade finance market-place in the KSA and at its underlying drivers, namely: …

A new era in credit and political risk insurance is now being ushered in thanks to the ICIEC . MUSHTAK PARKER reports One of the unintended benefits of the global financial crisis is the increasing awareness of risk and how to manage it in business, trade and investment. One risk management option is export credit and political risk insurance, and …