finance

Entrepreneurs build their business within the context of an environment which they sometimes may not be able to control. The robustness of an entrepreneurial venture is tried and tested by the vicissitudes of the environment. Within the environment are forces that may serve as great opportunities or menacing threats to the survival of the entrepreneurial venture. Entrepreneurs need to understand the environment within which they operate so as to exploit emerging opportunities and mitigate against potential threats. This article serves to create an understanding of the forces at play and their effect on banking entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe. A brief historical overview of banking in Zimbabwe is carried out. The impact of the regulatory and economic environment on the sector is assessed. An analysis of the structure of the banking sector facilitates an appreciation of the underlying forces in the industry. Historical Background At independence (1980) Zimbabwe had a soph...

Banks are institutions wherein miracles happen regularly. We rarely entrust our money to anyone but ourselves - and our banks. Despite a very chequered history of mismanagement, corruption, false promises and representations, delusions and behavioural inconsistency - banks still succeed to motivate us to give them our money. Partly it is the feeling that there is safety in numbers. The fashionable term today is "moral hazard". The implicit guarantees of the state and of other financial institutions moves us to take risks which we would, otherwise, have avoided. Partly it is the sophistication of the banks in marketing and promoting themselves and their products. Glossy brochures, professional computer and video presentations and vast, shrine-like, real estate complexes all serve to enhance the image of the banks as the temples of the new religion of money. But what is behind all this? How can we judge the soundness of our banks? In other words, how can we te...

In recent years, most new buyers wanted to buy a new home from a homebuilder. Today, nearly every buyer I pre-qualify today says the same thing. "I want to buy a bank-owned property." In some counties around the country, foreclosures are at all-time highs. As a result, in today's market, the best deal for homebuyers is quite often the bank-owned property. While many real estate professionals claim their business is off by as much as 60%, agents who concentrate on bank-owned properties are experiencing the second coming of the gold rush. In the Las Vegas, the bank-owned real estate market is somewhat of an unknown. For many years, someone who was on the verge of foreclosure simply listed their home for sale and found a willing buyer to step in and save the day. As a result, many experienced real estate professionals and homebuyers are not as familiar with the process of buying a bank-owned property. Hopefully, this newsletter will help. A bank...

"This isn't about big government or small government. It's about building a smarter government that focuses on what works." Barack Obama, November 26, 2008 As our 44th President prepares to enter the Oval Office, bank lending has seized up, some of the nation's largest banks are on life support, and the big three automakers are bankrupt. Housing continues to crash, and so does the economy. Little wonder that Obama is being compared to Franklin D. Roosevelt, who entered the White House in similar financial straits in 1932. Even before taking office, Obama has started his version of the "fireside chats" (updated from radio to online video) given by Roosevelt nearly weekly to reassure the public. He said on November 22 that he plans to create 2.5 million new jobs by 2011 and kick-start the economy by building roads and bridges, modernizing schools, and creating technology and infrastructure for renewable energy. These are excellent ideas, bu...

Background Police funding has risen by £4.8 billion and 77 per cent (39 per cent in real terms) since 1997. However the days where forces have enjoyed such levels of funding are over. Chief Constables and senior management recognize that the annual cycle of looking for efficiencies year-on-year is not sustainable, and will not address the cash shortfall in years to come. Facing slower funding growth and real cash deficits in their budgets, the Police Service must adopt innovative strategies which generate the productivity and efficiency gains needed to deliver high quality policing to the public. The step-change in performance required to meet this challenge will only be achieved if the police service fully embraces effective resource management and makes efficient and productive use of its technology, partnerships and people. The finance function has an essential role to play in addressing these challenges and supporting Forces' objectives economically and ...

The "Big Five Canadian Banks" term refers to the top five banking institutions in Canada. These banks are Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Scotiabank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and Bank of Montreal. The big five Canadian banks dominate the Canadian financial markets having a combined market share of over 90%. These banks are in reality international banks with market share in USA, the Caribbean, Latin America, and Asia. They have thousands of employees across Canada and worldwide. You might encounter the "Big Six Banks" term as well, which is the "Big Five Banks" and the National Bank of Canada, which mainly servers customers in Quebec. RBC Financial Group or simply Royal Bank of Canada is the largest Canadian bank with headquarters in Toronto, Ontario. The bank was founded in 1864, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Royal Bank has over 70,000 employees worldwide with offices in more than 30 countries and operates 21% of all C...

Here at Q Wealth we often receive emails and calls from people who are confused about how to manage their finances once they become expats or non-residents. I'm not talking so much about tax preparation or returns, but rather about the practical aspects of banking across borders. For example: Do you need an offshore bank account? What is the difference between a multi-currency account and multiple currency accounts? Should I keep my money in the country where I am living? Can I still access my online brokerage account from overseas? These are all typical questions we are asked, and I will answer these and more in this article. Let's make up two typical composite characters, Bill and Mary Expat, who are retiring early abroad and planning to travel frequently. To make things easy, let's say they are American. They have decided they like the laid-back lifestyle of Latin America, but they are still wavering between retiring in one of the more popular expat hav...

INTRODUCTION Financial Sector reforms initiated in the country as a part of the economic reforms since the year 1991, has brought about revolution in the structure of banking environment. While deregulation has opened up new opportunities for banks, liberalization has intensified competition in the banking industry by opening the market to new foreign and private sector banks. Declining interest rates and reduced lending margins have thrown up new challenges to banks, particularly public sector banks .Banks need to equip themselves sufficiently to operate in ruch a competitive environment . GLOBAL CHALLENGES IN BANKING 1. Enhancement of customer service. 2. Innovations in technology. 3. Improvement of risk management systems. 4. Diversifying products. Globalisation challenges are not restricted only to global banks. Banks in India also need to face them. Overcoming these challenges makes them more competitive and will also equip them to launch themsel...