Dominic Raab, the Brexit secretary insisted that he was “confident that a good deal is in our sights”, as he launched 24 “technical notices” in Westminister on Thursday—telling businesses and the public on how to prepare if no deal was reached.

He stated that the government’s priority was to ensure continuity but the 24 technical notices – the first batch of more than 80 due over the summer – underline the potential impact on daily living in the country, if Britain leaves without a deal in place next March.

With the UK banks more likely to lose access to EU payments systems, the financial services paper warned: “Customers (including business using these providers to process euro payments) could face increased costs and slower processing times for euro transactions. The cost of card payments between the UK and EU will likely increase.”

Customers of UK banks living in the EU “may lose the ability to access lending and deposit services, and insurance contracts”, the paper stated.

Businesses were warned that if the UK leaves without a deal, “the free circulation of goods between the UK and EU would cease.”

Firms would need to fill out customs declarations for goods entering the UK from the EU – and should think about whether they should “engage the services of a customs broker, freight forwarder or logistics provider to help, or alternatively secure the appropriate software and authorisations.”

The technical notices make it clear that Britain expects the EU to start imposing tariffs on UK goods in the event of no deal.

Businesses should “if necessary, put steps in place to renegotiate commercial terms to reflect any changes in customs and excise procedures, and any tariffs that may apply to UK-EU trade”, said the notice on trading.

In other areas, the notices striked a more reassuring note, pointing out that existing regulations covering areas ranging from workers’ rights to the export of dangerous products are due to be transposed into UK law under the EU Withdrawal Act.

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March 7, 2017: “If you build it, they will come,” goes the famous maxim from the 1989 Kevin Costner movie Field of Dreams. But when it comes to launching a new financial product, that adage doesn’t always hold up. A new savings account can pack impressive features designed to appeal to a target clientele of low-income rural women, but unless the financial institution – in partnership with the country’s central bank – can clear the regulatory and logistical obstacles that keep potential clients away, the product will never reach its intended audience.

NBS Bank’s (Malawi) Pafupi Savings is a digital account designed specifically for low-income rural women created in collaboration with Women’s World Banking. It has been a standout success story since it launched, with more than 75,000 accounts opened since 2014. Pafupi’s strong performance would not have been possible without NBS’s partnership with Malawi’s central bank.
NBS’s Head of Personal and Business Banking Mercus Chigoga and Reserve Bank of Malawi’s (RBM) Principal Examiner for Policy and Regulation Yananga Alick Phiri joined Women’s World Banking Director of Product Development Jennifer McDonald to discuss what it took to make Pafupi Savings a win for both the bank and its growing client base in our recent webinar ‘How Regulators and Financial Institutions Can Bring Digital Financial Services to Women’.
An intentional focus on low-income women’s banking needs

An intentional focus on low-income women’s banking needs

Designing a savings product that works for low-income rural women means intentionally tackling the barriers those women face in accessing formal banks. McDonald notes that Women’s World Banking “saw a sincere commitment from NBS Bank (which had a client base of only 29 percent women) to really look at how they could serve that market.”

A savings account accessible to low-income women needed an affordable pricing mechanism and the absence of a minimum deposit amount. But those features were only one part of the equation: NBS understood that low-income rural women — who have typically saved in cash at home or relied on group savings and village banks —must be able to open and access their bank accounts from anywhere, without spending time and money traveling to one of the bank’s branches.

The bank hired and trained a team of mobile agents who can open a Pafupi account in 10 minutes at a client’s home or workplace or any convenient location, and can provide the client with an ATM card instantly. To make a number of Pafupi’s features possible, however, NBS had to work closely with the RBM to help clear the regulatory obstacles standing in the way.

Importance of collaboration between bank and regulators

Financial inclusion is a win-win-win for women, financial institutions, and the economy, but effectively means the bank cannot work alone: regulators must be willing to work with banks to rethink policies that keep those potential clients away. For instance, Malawi’s rural women lack the two forms of ID (a passport or driver’s licence) required by law to open a formal bank account. NBS partnered with RBM to resolve the issue, requesting a waiver from these restrictions that was granted. The waiver allowed for the use of a more widely owned document among rural women: the voter ID card.

Literacy presented another roadblock: the literacy rate is 59 percent among women in Malawi, compared to 73 percent for men. Opening a bank account anywhere requires filling out documents in person, an insurmountable barrier for clients who lack literacy skills. Also, “a lot of people felt uncomfortable opening accounts with banks because they felt uncomfortable exposing their illiteracy,” said Chigoga.

To address this challenge, NBS worked with the RBM get a waiver for certain KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures that would allow clients to open an account digitally without going through the step of reading and signing printed documents.

As Phiri explained about RBM’s decision to grant the waiver, the regulators “looked at the product offering, how relevant it was…also looked at the staff…it turned out that indeed NBS… was developing a human-centric product,” he said. The bank was “using agents who had a real understanding of the dynamics of the clientele,” creating an environment in which the simplified KYC requirements would significantly increase financial inclusion without compromising security.

RBM’s willingness to revise certain KYC regulations also allowed NBS’s fixed agents, in addition to its mobile agents, to start opening Pafupi accounts after a waiver was granted in March 2016.

Giving banks the space to experiment and innovate

NBS is now building on Pafupi’s success to expand Pafupi’s reach and introduce further innovations. This means eliminating additional regulatory obstacles and NBS is involved in ongoing negotiations with RBM on these additional features and products. RBM, through its emphasis on “responsive regulation”, has indicated its willingness to give NBS the space to grow it offerings, and to review existing regulations if they provide proscriptive to innovation.

“The bottom line is that often regulation does not move as fast as innovation,” Phiri said, and emphasised the importance of “giving leeway for learning by doing through pilots.”

For instance, NBS aims to increase the current turnover limit on Pafupi accounts from 50,000 kwacha ($70) to 200,000 kwacha. At the moment, Pafupi clients still need to follow the more formal KYC procedures in order to earn higher account turnover limits, but NBS is negotiating with RBM to raise that ceiling.

While the limit cannot be raised yet, Chigoga noted that RBM is “quite positive about supporting us.” Phiri assented, noting that RBM “unanimously agree that the limits need to be changed.” Nevertheless, the process of modifying financial regulation is complex, as hinted by RBM’s ongoing negotiations around the issue: “the process of changing [this regulation]… involves various stakeholders because it relates to an act [of Parliament]. The other stakeholders like the financial intelligence unit of government…are in discussion with the central bank as well.”

The webinar ended with a dynamic Q&A session covering topics such as Pafupi’s profitability; best practices in creating marketing and educational materials for the low-income rural market; and the importance of disaggregating data by gender to track how well financial institutions are serving women. The session included too many insightful questions and comments to cover in the 60-minute webinar timeframe.

This article originally appeared in Women’s World Banking Organisation’s website

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China ranks second with an anticipated current account surplus of $245 billion. The USA, by contrast, is expected to show the biggest capital imports in the world, with a deficit of $478 billion for 2016.

Current account surpluses (goods, services, interest rates, wages and transfer payments) mean capital exports, while deficits represent capital imports.

Germany’s current account surplus is expected to have risen to 8.6 percent of its annual economic output in 2016, versus 8.3 percent in 2015. The EU sees a maximum figure of 6 percent as sustainable in the long term.

Germany’s current account surplus is mainly due to trade in goods, which generated a surplus of €255 billion up to November. The key driver was higher demand from the rest of the euro area, as well as from European countries outside the EU. On balance, foreign-source income was positive up to November at €53 billion, meaning that German received net wage and interest payments from abroad. Services and transfer payments represented a negative contribution of €66 billion.

The increase in Germany’s net foreign assets is primarily reflected in the rising volume of foreign securities acquired by Germany; its net purchases totalled €193 billion by November of last year. Its foreign direct investments, by contrast, amounted to a mere €18 billion.

The US current account deficit is primarily due to trade in goods, with net imports totalling $557 billion dollars by the end of the third quarter of 2016. On balance, the deficit is particularly high in goods traded with Asia. The balance with the euro area, however, is also negative; with net imports from Germany accounting for half of the US deficit. Transfers of $120 billion also had a negative impact up until the end of the third quarter of 2016. Services and foreign revenues were positive on balance at $306 billion.

A current account surplus goes hand in hand with net capital export. In a country with net capital export, domestic savings are higher than domestic investments and the country accumulates foreign assets. Conversely, a current account deficit implies that a country is absorbing more than it is producing and accumulating foreign debt.

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January 5, 2017: With Americans paying more than $11 billion in overdraft checking fees in 2016, Secretary of Banking and Securities Robin L. Wiessmann is advising consumers on ways they can save money and avoid overdraft fees, which can cost $20-$45 per transaction.

“An overdraft is when the amount of money in your bank or credit union checking account goes below zero,” said Secretary Wiessmann, who provides overall leadership to the Department of Banking and Securities in Pennsylvania, USA. “With the introduction of debit cards, automatic payment plans and other tools, personal finance has become more convenient, but also more complicated. However, following simple, common-sense rules can help keep more money in your checking account.”

Wiessmann’s top five tips to avoid overdraft fees:

1. Sign up for automatic funds transfer: Instruct your bank or credit union to automatically transfer money from your savings or other accounts to your checking account to cover any shortages. Note: you may have to pay a fee for this service.
2. Sign up for low-balance notices: Sign up for text or email notices from your bank or credit union if your checking account balance drops below a certain amount.
3. Make sure funds are available: Make sure deposits into your checking account are actually available for your use before you spend that money. Note: review your bank or credit union’s ‘funds availability’ policy.
4. Take advantage of technology: Frequently check your account balances online, by phone, or nearby ATM machine.
5. Check all transactions on your statements: Carefully review your monthly account statements, looking for fraudulent transactions as well as taking into account any checks written and deposits made that may not appear until next month’s statement.

“Frequent overdrafts can also cost consumers more than money,” Wiessmann said. “You could lose your checking account and have trouble opening checking accounts in the future.”

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Nigel Green

April 5, 2016: The allegations made in the Panama Papers case are not representative of the international financial services industry.

Regards the leak of confidential documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, like many people, I have found the details of the Panama Papers case, outlined in the BBC Panorama programme, very concerning as it suggests there might have been tax evasion on a grand scale. Clearly, tax evasion is illegal and punishable by law. It is a serious criminal global issue that needs to be tackled with more vigour.

However, I do not believe that the Panama Papers allegations are representative of today’s wider international financial services industry.

The overwhelming majority of the offshore sector only provides services that are fully compliant and legal and they are used by law-abiding clients, who are simply looking for typically better returns, more investment options and greater flexibility.

Many of the documents that have been revealed by the Panama Papers case date back decades and for the last several years, a new and totally unprecedented era of transparency and disclosure has been ushered in.

Indeed, the idea of a ‘tax haven’, in the traditional sense of the phrase, is now somewhat outdated.  In today’s world, in which financial information is being automatically exchanged with tax authorities globally, it is almost impossible to hide money. No longer can people stash assets on ‘treasure islands’ and not expect to be caught.”

The international financial services industry plays a vital and largely positive role in the global economy.  Yet, this is typically overlooked by the media.

As the press is quick to point out, there are many questionable reasons why people might want to keep money in an offshore account, which is simply an account in a jurisdiction different to the one in which the person currently lives.

However, in my experience of working with expatriates and international investors, who have generally more transient lifestyles, offshore accounts are preferable simply for convenience. They offer centralised, safe, flexible and international access to their funds no matter where they live and no matter to which country the individual moves to in the future. In addition, they offer a wide choice of multicurrency savings and investment solutions.

Offshore financial centres allow those who qualify to do so to use legal, bona fide international investment products to form part of a robust and sensible financial planning strategy.

Other major advantages of such centres include that they allow companies to avoid getting taxed twice on the same income and that they offer legitimate financial refuge for those in countries where there is economic and political turmoil, such as extremely volatile currency and confiscation of assets.

Whilst most international financial centres are now well regulated, transparent and cooperative, and provide a much needed and in-demand service for people and firms all over the world, the Panama Papers claims underscores that more can still be done.

Indeed, this should act as an opportunity to further enhance the effectiveness and credibility of these international financial centres and the sector. This is especially important as the industry is set to grow exponentially in the coming years as individuals and companies become ever more globalised.

Nigel Green is the founder and chief executive of deVere Group

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February 11, 2015: WhoTrades Ltd., a leading global brokerage, winner of the prestigious Foreign Exchange Awards in the Best Deals Execution category and an ambitious player on the brokerage services market, is once again making its presence strongly felt by way of ongoing business expansion. This time around, the broker voiced its resolve to become the No. 1 online broker in Latin America.

Needless to say, there is every reason for the company to set such a lofty goal. Licensed US broker WhoTrades Ltd. specialises in providing direct access to the stock market, is a member of stock exchanges and ECNs (NASDAQ, NYSE Arca, BATS, Knight and Direct Edge). The company currently provides service to over 500,000 people around the globe, with representative offices in 90 US, European and Asian cities. And now it has set its sights on Latin America.

As is the case in other regions, in order to win trader confidence in Latin America the company intends to leverage the reliability of its operation and advanced technologies, and the combination of these factors will help WhoTrades Ltd. withstand tough competition and rapidly gain leadership. Unlike other brokers, WhoTrades Ltd. offers its clients more than just market services as its strategy aims to deliver a diversified lineup of products and access to all major global markets.

Advanced technologies enable the company to provide clients with unrivalled services. An example of such services, with the help of which WhoTrades Ltd. intends to gain popularity in Latin America, is the Multi Market Account (???) service. The company’s flagship product (MMA) makes it possible to trade from one single account on various global exchanges, ranging from Latin America, the United States and Europe to Japan and Thailand.

A trader enjoys access to thousands of instruments listed on 15 global bourses, and the list of trading platforms is constantly being broadened, with 15 more already in the pipeline. This set of instruments is sufficient to deploy any strategy, i.e. from speculative and longer-term to arbitrage trading and hedging. Apart from opening up ample opportunities, MMA is absolutely trader-friendly, with no need to open trading accounts at several brokerages or to operate various trading platforms in order to make trades on various platforms.

Chain Trading is another one of WhoTrade’s high-tech service, which has gained popularity in all countries where the company does business. Signing up for this service guarantees, even for a neophyte trader, the same returns as those of a professional. The service is based on the idea of following the trading strategies of a professional trader, with returns automatically copied on a client’s account. The service comprises a variety of the most different strategies employed on the currency market. Providing service to traders within this package is a separate area of the company’s business.

All services, including popular trading platform MetaTrader 4 that is used for currency trading, are supported in the language of the region where the company operates. A system of service support in Spanish was worked out for Latin America, and not only helpdesk issues are involved.  Trading ideas and equity research reports are issued by the WhoTrades Ltd. team for LatAm audience in Spanish. Online training programs are also available in Spanish. At present, five free training courses tailored to meet the various needs of traders, ranging from neophyte to professional topics, are available on the company’s website whotrades.com.

In addition, whotrades.com is also a large trader social network. Making use of its global broker status, WhoTrades Ltd. brings together hundreds of thousands of users across the world, who log in to exchange their experience, learn how to trade, make trades, read news and monitor market trends.

A number of user-friendly stock market services are integrated into the social network, with content, including research reports, forecasts and equity charts, currency pairs and other instruments. The website provides users with a wide range of free trading platforms, including mobile apps.

“Among the factors that have helped WhoTrades Ltd. make its way into the global brokerage elite, I would like to highlight not only reliability and advanced technologies, but also to broad margin trading opportunities and also to its trader-friendly tariff policy. I am confident that the combination of these factors will enable the company to become a leader on this new market in the near future. For Latin Americans, the company’s rollout implies convenient trading options with low commissions and ample opportunities, i.e. benefits already enjoyed in the regions where the company has a footprint, and which our region badly needs,” says Erick Segura, the author of many books on trading, and head of WhoTrades Limited’s central representative office in Latin America.

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Suparna Goswami Bhattacharya

October 17, 2014: When someone mentions “CFO”, the first thing to hit the mind is – a guy managing finance in a company.

However, with time, the role of the CFO has evolved. Today if you mention about the ‘managing finance’ bit to any CFO worth his salt, he will probably laugh out loud.

Once focused on cost containment, accounting and compliance, the position has evolved into that of a true business partner – someone who delivers insights and provides decision-making support.

Today, companies expect CFOs to have the ability to manage volatility, navigate complexity among other things. In fact, a recent Accenture report* — The CFO as Architect of Business Value: Delivering Growth and Managing Complexity — states that the expanded role has resulted in their growing influence, especially as a result of their involvement in growth-related and business transformation activities.

“The role has evolved over time internally because of the increasing importance of financial data and insights and externally as a voice of the company to various stakeholders,” said Christian Campagna, lead managing director, Accenture Finance & Enterprise Strategy Group.

And the biggest drivers of this change in the scope of the role of the CFO are the global financial crisis of 2008, wherein the CFO emerged as a trusted partner to the CEO and other member of the C-Suite.

The role of the CFO at present has clearly expanded. The Accenture study calls it ‘Value Architect’. Here the CFO acts as the guardian of the economic value agenda for the company and provides guidance for key decisions made across the enterprise. “Now the CFO has the responsibility to drive profitability and growth while managing constant volatility, complexity, globalisation and emerging technology. The CFO is arguably one of the most powerful executives after the CEO,” says Campagna.

“This view that the CFO is the owner of cost control, and someone else in the business is the owner of revenue growth, is not the case,” says Margherita Della Valle of Vodafone. “The CFO has a role to play across the whole of the P&L and the balance sheet. It is essential that the CFO convinces the CEO that finance has a role to play on more than just costs.”

Thanks to the expanded role, the CFO now often finds himself in middle of a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, including other members of the C-suite, the rest of the management team, the board of directors, investors, regulators and analysts. Each has their own demands, and the number of stakeholders continues to expand.

Mike McClellan, CFO, North America at Sanofi, believes that bureaucracy should not mushroom in a company in order for things to run smoothly. “The CFO’s role is to really make sure that we’re not allowing processes to become too complex. We’re really trying to keep things effective and efficient, not only from a cost perspective but also from a way of doing business,” remarks McClellan.

Industries embracing change in role of CFOs

Research by various firms shows that the role of CFO is expanding. “The role is expanding but the focus may vary from industry to industry in order to address industry-specific challenges,” says Campagna. For instance, a CFO in financial services must focus more on regulations and cost control while a CFO at a consumer goods company may be more concerned with managing complexity.

In fact, in most industries CFOs are putting a special emphasis on digital. Hugh Morris, finance expert and vice-president of business development banking at GENPACT LLC in his statement earlier, had said that technology continues to change the way business gets done.

“CFOs need an understanding of emerging technology, but also where things are headed. They must remain agile enough to change course as technology changes and be committed to governance as a way of ensuring that the organisation uses the technology as efficiently as possible,” he said

David Rowland, CFO, Accenture believes that technology is central to finance strategy and agenda. “Organisations can’t have optimal efficiency and effectiveness without focusing on enabling technologies. In today’s world, where there’s an abundance of data, it’s particularly important that organisations raise their game in managing, analysing and presenting data in a way that yields the greatest value for the business.”

*The Accenture 2014 High Performance Finance Study was based primarily on an online quantitative survey conducted between January and April 2014 among 617 finance executives.

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