The Banker back issues from August 2008:
This Month (August 2008): MiFID Dreams Fading In Face Of Regulatory Chaos.(Markets in Financial Instruments Directive)(Editorial)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: BRIAN CAPLEN - EDITOR The markets are confused but it isn't all the fault of subprime. In Europe, the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) was supposed to give buyers of securities 'best execution'. The reality, it turns out, is different from the dream ...
Comment: Throwing The Baby Out With The Bath Water - Shareholders Who Oust Hitherto Successful CEOs For Problems Not Of Their Making Are Being Shortsighted.(chief executive officers)
Aug 01, 2008 ... Markets can be fickle and heartless. In June last year, Fortis' now-former CEO Jean-Paul Votron won overwhelming shareholder approval for the bank's role in the landmark three-bank bid for ABN AMRO and the plan to raise 13bn ($20.6bn) to finance its part of the deal. By May 26 ...
Comment: Why We Still Have Reasons To Be Cheerful - The Current Crisis Is Not The Worst The World Has Ever Faced As Western Economies Have Learnt Much From Past Mistakes.
Aug 01, 2008 ... The world is not going to end. It is worth stating that in the light of the hysteria and ill-informed speculation being generated around the financial and energy crises that are impacting upon the global economy. Commentators have a penchant for judging contemporary situations ...
Bracken: Russia: Neither Indulge Nor Provoke - Europe And The US Must Not Be Afraid To Take A Firm Line With Russia As It Returns To Full Strength, Writes Simon Serfaty.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: SIMON SERFATY Ten years ago Russia was a mess. What was feared most was a final collapse that might resemble that of the former Yugoslavia - but worse. Conditions have changed since then. Now, as Russia is back, the vexed question is how to reveal the limits ...
Viewpoint: Reformer With A Global Agenda - UNCTAD Secretary-general Supachai Panitchpakdi Speaks To Lara Williams About Strengthening The Organisation's Role In Making Developing Countries Part Of The World Economy.(United Nations Conference on Trade and Development)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: LARA WILLIAMS United Nations official Supachai Panitchpakdi is not your average bureaucrat. Far from succumbing to the complacency which plagues most monolithic organisations, Mr Panitchpakdi remains a reformer. In fact, one of his first moves on becoming ...
This Month: Main News - Treasury Gives Unprecedented Support To Fannie And Freddie.(Federal National Mortgage Association and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.)
Aug 01, 2008 ... The US Treasury has offered a package of unprecedented support to failing mortgage groups Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The package includes an exceptional extension of the Federal Reserve's supervisory authority over them. This follows an agreement between the Fed and the Securities ...
This Month: Obituary - Terry Baker-Self (1945-2008).(Obituary)
Aug 01, 2008 ... Terry Baker-Self was the driving force behind The Banker's bank listings for almost a decade. There was little Terry didn't understand about bank accounts and the intricacies of the Basel capital requirements. Under his leadership, the Top 1000 ranking became the foremost information ...
This Month: Letter - Letter To The Editor - First Bank Of Nigeria Is Not A "second-tier" Bank In Its Home Market.(Letter to the editor)
Aug 01, 2008 ... We would like to draw attention to a report in your publication in which First Bank of Nigeria plc was described as a "second-tier" bank in Nigeria ("A state of disrepair", The Banker supplement on Nigeria, April 2008). We wish to state that from all possible perspectives, this ...
This Month: Report - Siemens Financial Services Report Putting Capital To Work - SFS Report Identifies Frozen Capital In Private Sector Business.(Report)
Aug 01, 2008 ... Billions of euros, both working capital and liquid assets, are inefficiently tied up in private sector businesses at the very time when the credit crunch is starting to bite in the "real" economy, according to a new report, Putting Capital to Work, produced by Siemens Financial Services ...
Karina's Kolumn: Born Talker Unfazed By Politics - State Bank Of India Chairman Om Prakash Bhatt Tells Karina Robinson How The Bank's Mission Is More Than Delivering Higher Profits.
Aug 01, 2008 ... Byline: KARINA ROBINSON Om Prakash Bhatt, chairman of State Bank of India (SBI), a bank with 134 million customers and more than 10,000 branches, mumbled that he found my title of "senior" editor "intimidating". The softly-spoken SBI-lifer, who recently spearheaded a campaign to ...
Cover Story: MiFID Slips Into The Dark - The Implementation Of MiFID Has Served To Reduce Transparency Across The European Market, Causing Confusion And Uncertainty, Writes Michelle Price.(Markets in Financial Instruments Directive)(Cover story)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: MICHELLE PRICE The MiFID dream is the creation of a highly transparent single European market for trading, in which buyers will necessarily obtain competitive prices for their securities, executed at lowest cost. Every regulatory change has its teething problems and ...
Capital Markets: Agenda - Rick Leaman - Having Endured The Brunt Of The Subprime Crisis, UBS Is Consolidating Departments And Concentrating On Its Strengths. Joint Global Head Of Investment Banking Rick Leaman Talks To Kathryn Tully.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: KATHRYN TULLY The massive $37bn of write-downs that UBS has taken to date as a result of its exposure to the US residential mortgage market has forced a radical overhaul of its investment banking division since this time last year. The bank cut a total of 1513 staff from ...
Capital Markets: SPACs - Europe Eyes SPACs As Survival Aid For Credit Crisis - The US Has Shown The Way With Special Purpose Vehicles That Could Prove A Safe Bet In Today's Volatile Market. Joanne Hart Reports.(special purpose acquisition company)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: JOANNE HART Financial markets have rarely been as challenging as they are today. Conditions are volatile, confidence is evaporating and there are few signs of an upturn any time soon. Such an environment tends to inspire caution. Investors, particularly long- ...
Capital Markets: Issuer Strategy - Japanese Investors Rally Round The Rand - A Successful Issue By The International Finance Corporation Proves The Rand Can Still Attract Interest. Edward Russell-Walling Reports.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: EDWARD RUSSELL-WALLING The International Finance Corporation (IFC) kicked off its new financial year in July with a two-year South African rand issue, showing that there is still a lively investor interest in this volatile currency. The deal was one of two distinct types ...
Capital Markets: Team Of The Month - MPS Finds 5bn For Transformational Antonveneta Deal - Banca Monte Dei Paschi Di Siena's Audacious 9bn Purchase Of Banca Antonveneta Last November Required Some Serious Work To Raise The Necessary Financing. Edward Ru.(Monte dei Paschi di Siena)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: EDWARD RUSSELL-WALLING Of all this year's banking sector rights issues, only one stands out as being done for the right reasons. Italy's Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena raised nearly 5bn in equity from existing shareholders, not to repair its balance sheet, but to fund a ...
Environment & Resources: Commodities - Best Of Times, Worst Of Times - With Oil Prices Predicted To Hit $200 A Barrel, Every Bank Wants A Piece Of The Rising Energy Market, Not Least To Offset Shrinking Revenues Elsewhere. But High Prices, Capital Constra.
Aug 01, 2008 ... Byline: GERALDINE LAMBE Commodities are big news. Food prices have spiked by more than 60% in the past 18 months causing food riots in more than 30 countries, while crude oil prices have risen by 697% (at the last count) since 2001. For banks with big commodities ...
Balance Sheet: Hybrids - Hybrid Capital Under Scrutiny - A Wave Of Equity Issuance And Market Distaste For Complexity Suggest That Hybrids Might Be Falling Out Of Fashion As A Source Of Bank Capital In Europe. But Philip Alexander Finds That Any Decline I.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: PHILIP ALEXANDER As banks contemplate subprime losses and concerns over future credit quality in deteriorating economic conditions, shoring up capital ratios by any means would seem a priority. This is made all the more urgent by the fact that leverage ratios ...
Treasury: Foreign Exchange - How Banks Can Break The Foreign Exchange Bottleneck - With FX Volumes Surging To Unprecedented Levels, Frances Maguire Finds Out If Avoiding Bottlenecks Is Just A Case Of Scaling Up Operations Or If More Dramatic Industry-wide.(foreign exchange)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: FRANCES MAGUIRE The sheer size and liquidity of the global foreign exchange (FX) markets is attracting new players looking to trade FX as an asset class, as well as a growing number of hedge funds that are bringing algorithms from the equity markets to FX at an ...
Investment: Private Banking - Supporters Fight To Defend The Endangered 'one Bank' Model - Calls To Separate UBS's Private And Investment Banking Divisions Have Resulted In A Heated Debate Among Defenders And Opponents Alike. Silvia Pavoni Reports.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: SILVIA PAVONI The 'one bank' model, bringing investment and private banking under one roof, has recently been challenged by poor investment banking performance. UBS is the prime example. The Swiss bank and world's leading wealth manager, which is undergoing a ...
Western Europe: France - Co-operative Model Stands Strong - Unlisted French Financial Institutions Have Demonstrated The Merits Of Their Conservative Strategies, Which Have Made Them More Resilient Than Their Listed Competitors In The Face Of Market Press.(Industry overview)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: KARINA ROBINSON Fashion is a fickle master. During the boom decade and beyond, with banking profits in the listed sector growing at double digits, unlisted French financial institutions such as Groupe Caisse d'Epargne and Groupe Banques Populaire were criticised for ...
Central & Eastern Europe: Baltics - Nordic Banks Braced For Baltic Slowdown - As Recessions Loom In The Baltic States, Scandinavian Banks Have Reason To Be Grateful For Their Reliable Domestic Earnings, Reports Karina Robinson.(Financial report)
Aug 01, 2008 ... Byline: KARINA ROBINSON Scandinavian banks are being forced to factor in the possibility of a hard landing from their exposure to banking in the Baltics, a component in their international expansion and diversification strategy. Mostly however, they are reasonably ...
Central & Eastern Europe: Kazakhstan - Kazakhstan Searches For Pain Relief - When The Credit Crunch Struck, Kazakhstan Was First Hit And Worst Hit Among Emerging Markets. Philip Alexander Looks For Signs Of Recovery.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: PHILIP ALEXANDER Georgy Iosifyan, the newest member of the management board at BTA Bank (formerly Bank TuranAlem) after joining from Russia's Alfa-Bank in February, is hobbling after an accident in the gym. It might almost be a metaphor for Kazakhstan's banking sector. ...
Asia: Top 100 Chinese Banks - Big Four Less Dominant As Smaller Players Rise - China's Biggest Banks Have Enjoyed Another Good Year, But The Banker's Figures Show That The Steepest Growth Is Among Its Other Institutions. Stephen Timewell Reports.(Financial report)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: STEPHEN TIMEWELL While China's 'Big Four' state-owned banks are growing fast and continue to dominate The Banker's Top 100 Chinese Banks listing, the country's smaller banks are growing even faster and account for an increasingly large slice of the overall banking ...
Americas: Brazil - Derivatives Grow Up Fast In Brazil - After The Merger Of Brazil's Stock And Derivatives Exchanges, The Country's Range Of Derivatives Is Fast Expanding. John Rumsey Reports.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: JOHN RUMSEY The jumbo merger between the Brazilian stock and derivatives markets earlier this year highlighted the growing power of Brazil's capital markets: the new enterprise, BM&F Bovespa, is expected to be the world's third largest listed exchange. Innovative ...
Americas: Paraguay - Rich In Resources, Poor On Policies - Paraguay's New Finance Minister Tells Hugh O'Shaughnessy Why The Country Cannot Make The Most Of Its Natural Assets.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: HUGH O'SHAUGHNESSY Dionisio Borda is new president Fernando Lugo's choice as the finance minister in his government which takes over on August 15. He is not a newcomer to the job. He had a two-year spell under President Nicanor Duarte Frutos, Paraguay's ...
Africa: Egypt - World Slowdown Stems Egypt's Upward Trend - The Successful Transformation Of Egypt's Banking Sector Has Hit Trouble. Charlie Corbett Reports On How Global Financial Turmoil And Soaring Inflation Have Hit The Banks' Consolidation Efforts.
Aug 01, 2008 ... The government-backed transformation of the Egyptian banking sector hit a stumbling block in June. Since 2004, when the reform process started, plans to purge Egypt of its anachronistic and opaque state banks to form an efficient and profitable privatised regime have gone without a hitch. ...
Retail Banking: Card Industry Leaps For Beijing Olympics - The Olympics Is An Opportunity That All Those Involved In Card Payments Are Determined To Make The Most Of. Wendy Atkins Reports.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: WENDY ATKINS With the years of planning for the 2008 Olympics finally reaching a climax, the cards payments sector is among the clutch of industries set to profit from the Games. The event is certainly a major opportunity for banks to drive card penetration in China. But ...
Technology: Tech Vision - Ignace Combes - Ignace Combes, Deputy CEO Of Euroclear, Is Tasked With Steering The Group Through Its Mission To Cut The Costs Of Settling Cross-border Securities Transactions In Europe. He Talks To Michelle Price.(chief executive officer)
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: MICHELLE PRICE Few organisations have set themselves such a technology-driven business strategy as Euroclear, the world's largest settlement system for securities transactions. In 2002, the bank unveiled its programme to reduce the cost of settling cross-border ...
Technology: Data - Plugging The Leak - The Banking Industry Has Suffered A Number Of Huge Data Breaches. Michelle Price Finds Out Where The Weak Points Are.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: MICHELLE PRICE The UK's Data Protection Act celebrated its 10th anniversary in July. The occasion has prompted heated debate among privacy rights campaigners and government lobbyists, many of whom feel its provisions are now inadequate. This issue and the wider systemic ...
Technology: Shaping Tomorrow - There Are No Secrets Anymore - Forget About Keeping Any Aspect Of Your Business Quiet - The Internet Has Put An End To That. Now It Is Up To Banks To Make Social Networking And Blogging Sites Friends Rather Than Foes. By Chr.
Aug 01, 2008 ... Byline: CHRIS SKINNER Bankers need to realise that the world is transparent due to the new world of the internet. Nothing can be controlled or hidden anymore. You cannot keep anything secret. It will all get out there, some way, somehow. The truth of this can be seen ...
Regulation: Reg Rage - Supervisors Take Charge Of Liquidity Risk - The Basel Committee's Latest "guidance" Is In Fact Mandatory Regulation To Shore Up Banks' Resistance To Liquidity Stress, Writes Michael Imeson.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: MICHAEL IMESON What is it? Central bankers have drawn up proposals that will force banks to improve their liquidity risk management. They have also suggested how banks' enhanced liquidity risk policies and practices should be policed by supervisors. ...
Supplement: Angola - A Nation Awakes - Angola Has Suffered Death, Displacement, Conflict, Poverty And Hyper-inflation Since Gaining Independence In 1974. But Its Brutal 27-year Civil War Ended In 2002 And A Booming Oil Sector Is Helping The Country Transf.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: CHARLIE CORBETT On February 22, 2002, Jonas Savimbi, the leader of the Angolan rebel faction, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), was ambushed by government forces and shot dead. His death signalled the end of what had been almost 30 years of ...
Supplement: Angola - The End Of The Beginning - After Six Years Overseeing The Phenomenal Growth Of Angola's Economy, Minister Of Finance Jose Pedro De Morais Can Look Back On A Job Well Done. He Spoke To Charlie Corbett In Luanda About The Country's Next.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: CHARLIE CORBETT It is hard not to be impressed by the building that houses the Angolan ministry of finance in Luanda. A recent multi-million dollar refurbishment has transformed a crumbling relic of Portuguese rule into a gleaming 21st- century edifice that would not ...
Supplement: Angola - Banks Play Catch-up As Angola Blossoms - Strong Growth And An Influx Of Foreign Players Mean Angola's Fledgling Banking Sector Is Facing Many New Challenges. Charlie Corbett Canvassed The Chief Executives Of Some Of Angola's Biggest B.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: CHARLIE CORBETT Towards the end of last year, Angola's largest private bank by assets, Banco Africano de Investimento (BAI), raised $1bn for the government's reconstruction of the nation's infrastructure. It was a landmark transaction that attracted support both locally ...
Supplement: Angola - A Disciplined Fight Against Inflation - Angola's Central Bank Was Faced With Economic Chaos At The End Of The Civil War In 2002. Inflation Was Rampant And The Local Kwanza Currency Was Crippled. Charlie Corbett Spoke To The Bank's Gov.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: CHARLIE CORBETT The building that houses the central bank of Angola, the Banco Nacional de Angola (BNA), recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. Since the magnificent Portuguese colonial style building, with its marbled halls and baroque-style dome, was officially ...
Supplement: Angola - Oil Wealth Fuels Angola Resurgence - Angola's Transformation From Civil-war-torn State To Booming Oil Producer Has Both Bankers And Fuel Giants Taking Note, Write Francois Misser, Kevin Godier And Jon Marks.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: FRANCOIS MISSER, KEVIN GODIER AND JON MARKS Though Angola continues to draw huge investment into its deep offshore oil search, its newer onshore territories, plans to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other post-civil war opportunities are also exciting foreign ...
Supplement: Angola - Calls Come Through - Minister Of Post And Telecommunications Licinio Tavares Ribeiro Tells Charlie Corbett How He Is Sorting Out The Communications Mess Left By Angola's Civil War.
Aug 01, 2008; ... Byline: CHARLIE CORBETT Angola's telecommunications network was savaged by almost 30 years of civil war. Fixed-line infrastructure evaporated and no mobile network was able to emerge. But with support from investors across the world, Angola has been able to get its ...
Supplement: Angola - The Slow And Steady Road To Prosperity - The Southern African Development Community's Trade, Industry And Investment Review 2007/08 Provides A Useful Projection Of Angola's Industrial Future.
Aug 01, 2008 ... Angolan industries were hit hard by years of civil war, stretching from 1975 to 2002, that broke out upon the country gaining independence from Portugal. However, since the end of the conflict, the country has been rebuilding its infrastructure and raising its profile on the international ...
Supplement: Angola - Land Of Hope And Caution - Thoko Kaime, Head Of The Africa Division Of Strategic Intelligence Company Exclusive Analysis, Evaluates The Opportunities And Risks Of Investment In Angola.
Aug 01, 2008 ... Angola boasts a significant endowment of natural resources, including oil, diamonds and gold, leaving it well placed to benefit from the global boom in commodities during the past few years. Double digit rates of gross domestic product (GDP) growth have been as healthy as anywhere in the ...
Supplement: Angola - Spotlight On Investment Trends - During The Past Five Years, Angola Has Emerged As A Prosperous Fossil Fuel And Manufacturing Investment Arena, According To FDi Intelligence Data.(foreign direct investment)
Aug 01, 2008 ... Overseas investment projects recorded by fDi Intelligence between January 2003 and May 2008, based on a wide range of key criteria, revealed a number of key trends. Between January 2003 and May 2008, fDi Markets recorded a total of 79 investment projects from 53 companies. ...