Posts Tagged ‘bank’

Posted on June 26, 2009 - by Gavin

Home Proposals pave way for banks to reach rural poor…

Business Daily

Finance minister Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday proposed amendments
to the Banking Act to legalize branchless banking and allow the
Kenya Post office and Savings Bank to trade in the foreign
exchange market.

Should the proposals be enacted, The Post Office Bank long
saddled by laws barring it from carrying out conventional banking
business will now be able to receive deposits on behalf of
commercial banks while trading in the forex market.

In the landmark proposal, minister for finance Uhuru Kenyatta’s
move to allow commercial banks to use non-bank agents such as the
post office is expected to unlock the reach of banking services
across the country.

(more…)

Posted on June 23, 2009 - by Gavin

Govt to increase access to financial services…

Kenya Broadcasting
President Mwai Kibaki Monday underscored his
governments’ commitment to formulating and implementing policies
that will lead to the development of a stable, efficient, safe and
accessible financial sector.
“news”>The President said the government is working
towards increasing access to financial services and products to all
Kenyans, particularly the poor, low income households and micro and
small scale enterprises.
“news”>President Kibaki who was speaking Monday
during the Family Bank’s Silver Jubilee celebrations at Kenyatta
International Conference Centre noted that a vibrant financial
sector is vital to a country’s social and economic development
since it provides the financial resources needed for
growth. “news”>”In Kenya this is one
sector that has helped in the attainment of our development
aspirations, and will continue to play a pivotal role in the
realization of VISION 2030,” President Kibaki said.
In this regard, President Kibaki directed
the Central Bank of Kenya to enhance its efforts to provide
information on the cost of banking services to
Kenyans. The President said
the information should be delivered in formats that can be easily
understood and used for comparison of the pricing of different
banking products and services to enable Kenyans shop for
competitive banking services.
“news”>Besides improving access to financial
services, President Kibaki said the Government will implement
measures aimed at bringing down the cost of credit which has
remained beyond the reach of many Kenyans.
These measures will include the
implementation of credit information sharing, the President
said. The Head of State observed that following the
implementation of regulations to facilitate credit information
sharing in February this year, the Central Bank of Kenya will
license Credit Reference Bureaus.
“news”>”The Bureaus will gather credit information
from banks that will facilitate lending decisions. This information
will also be extremely helpful for borrowers who may not have
physical collateral. In
cases such as this, an individual’s credit history will serve as
the collateral for loans,” President Kibaki said.
“news”>The President also urged banks to exploit
technology to reach more Kenyans in a cost effective way, noting
that the Financial Access National Survey for 2009 indicates that
the banking sector still serves only 22 per cent of the bankable
population.

The Head of State cited mobile phone technology as an example of
channels that banks could use to reach more Kenyans, saying the
success of mobile money transfer services underscores the
potential of mobile phone financial services.

“Kenyans continue to show a strong affinity to mobile phones that
can be tapped to provide financial services. I, therefore,
encourage banks to scale up their use of mobile phone banking as
a delivery channel to offer cost effective banking services,”
President Kibaki said.

He commended Family Bank for adopting a banking business model
that focuses on millions of the un-banked Kenyans at the lower
end of the society, saying despite the significant growth in the
number of commercial banks witnessed over the years, a majority
of Kenyans are still un-banked.

President Kibaki noted that the Family Bank is one of the only
two building societies that successfully became banks, but
dealing mainly in microfinance.

The President said over the last decade microfinance has
developed significantly and has now assumed a central role as one
of the key drivers of the country’s economic growth and efforts
to fight poverty.

He saidin providing small business enterprises with appropriate
financial products and services, such banking institutions have
been contributing in the delivery of the social benefits often
associated with such businesses.

Said the President: “Experience the world over has taught us that
the micro-enterprises are key to sustainable economic development
and in particular to the elimination of poverty.”

The Head of State pointed out that micro-enterprises provide a
path to economic self-reliance for owners and entrepreneurs while
benefiting their local communities.

“Indeed, as a channel of intermediation, the financial sector has
continued to play an immensely crucial role in the development of
our economy,” the President said.

The President expressed satisfaction that a Financial Access
National Survey for 2009 indicates that various policy actions
formulated by the Government to foster access to financial
services by Kenyans have begun to bear fruit.

President Kibaki, however, said much more needs to be done in
ensuring that more Kenyans have access to the financial services.

In this regard, the President said the recent budget proposals by
the Minister for Finance on branchless banking and
principal-agent models of financial service delivery will go a
long way in facilitating strategic alliances between banks and
non-bank financial institutions such as SACCOs and Microfinance
Institutions.

He said such alliances will serve to ensure that more Kenyans can
access safe, efficient and affordable financial services.

The President also expressed satisfaction that the first
Nationwide Deposit Taking Microfinance Institution was officially
launched by the Central Bank recently after the Microfinance Act
of 2008, which provides for both National and Community Deposit
Taking Microfinance Institutions, became operational.

“The Government and, indeed, the public expect these institutions
to serve especially the rural and peri-urban areas that have
previously been inadequately served by the banking sector.

More particularly, they have a unique capacity to direct
financing to small-scale enterprises that lie at the heart of
Kenya ’s economic development,” said the President.

Saying the deposit base in Kenya ’s banking sector has increased
to 940 billion shillings, 69 per cent of which has been extended
as loans, the President said the commendable increase creates a
strong base for banks to lend to enterprises.

“This phenomenal growth in the banking sectors’ deposit base has
been backed by an exponential growth in the number of bank
accounts.

The number of bank accounts has increased from 2.6 million at the
end of 2005 to 6.4 million at the end of last year,” President
Kibaki said.

Speaking during the same occasion, Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister for Finance Uhuru Kenyatta said that with the improved
environment for doing business in the country, it is possible for
the country’s economic growth to attain the targeted 10 per cent
mark but cautioned that political climate must be conducive too.

Central of Bank of Kenya Governor Prof. Njuguna Ndungu commended
local banks for expanding their services to the East African
region, noting that the East African region’s Central Banks have
signed a memorandum of understanding for sharing information and
supervisory cooperation.

Prof Njuguna also urged local banks to reduce barriers of
acquiring banking services and account maintenance costs to reach
more of the unbanked Kenyans.

Family Bank Chairman Titus Muya announced that Family Bank had
abolished all ledger fees for savings accounts to minimize the
cost of maintaining an account with the bank for ordinary
Kenyans.

Mr. Muya thanked President Kibaki for his role in building the
country’s robust economic development rate within his first term
of leadership and termed the President as one the main
architects’ of the country’s economic foundation since
independence.

The function was attended by Internal Security Minister Prof.
George Saitoti, Head of Public Service and Secretary to the
Cabinet Amb. Francis Muthaura and other senior public and private
sector officials.

Source:
“http://www.kbc.co.ke/story.asp?ID=58153″>http://www.kbc.co.ke/story.asp?ID=58153

Posted on June 18, 2009 - by Gavin

Micro-finance companies’ bank financing ratio won’t rise…

China Daily

The 50-percent limit on micro-finance companies’ bank financing ratio won’t be eased in the short run, according to Zang Jingfan, head of the cooperative finance supervision department of the China Banking Regulatory Commission.

“It is not good timing to increase micro-finance companies’ current ratio since they may pass their risks over to banks,” Zang said in an interview with 21st Century Business Herald after the Tsinghua China rural financial development forum last week. His comments came amid recent calls for raising the ratio.

Micro-finance companies have two ways to raise funds, the first is from shareholders and donations, which are both hard to increase, the other is financing from at most two banks.

Current rules, however, impose a 50-percent limit on the companies’ balance of bank financing against their net capital, restricting their plans to expand amid constrained funding sources.

Commenting on the calls, Zang said micro-finance companies can still ease the difficulty of financing by increasing their capital funds or granting short term loans for more efficient use of the funds, rather than simply depending on borrowing money from the banks. (more…)

Posted on June 17, 2009 - by Gavin

Microfinance Bank Disburses N1.5bn for Poverty…

Thisday Online

Over 10,000 customers of  ACCION Microfinance Bank (AMfB) have benefited from the N1.5 billion loans disbursed by the bank as part of its efforts to fight poverty.

The bank’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Bunmi Lawson, who made this known at the bank’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos, disclosed that the year closed with N715 million in active loan portfolio and over 8,600 borrowers.

“The past year presented us with many opportunities which by taking action we turned into significant accomplishments in ACCION Microfinance Bank. I am pleased to report that in furtherance of our role to make the future bright for our customers”

” AMfB disbursed over N1.5 billion in loan to over 10,000 loan customers closing the year with N715 million in active loan portfolio and over 8,600 borrowers. In addition, we have over 20,000 savings customers with N143 million in saving deposits”, she said. (more…)

Posted on June 11, 2009 - by Gavin

Microcredit and microfinance the solution to Yemen’s employment problem…

Yemen Times

SANA’A, June 10 — While the percentage of unemployment in Yemen varies from one source to another, official statistics indicate that it is no less than 16 percent. Independent sources such as NGOs and research centers emphasize that such a percentage is not realistic.

“The Ministry of Planning announced in 2004 that Yemen’s unemployment rate is 37 percent, and then in 2006 Prime Minister Ba Jammal said this rate was reduced to 18 percent. But all these figures are below the realistic estimate of at least 35 percent, which means that one in three job seeking Yemenis is unemployed,” said economist Taher Mujahid Al-Salehi from the Yemeni Research and Studies Center.

Meanwhile, in a recent official report the Yemeni government admitted the failure of its employment strategy to reduce unemployment to 12 percent by 2010.

The report, issued by the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation, said that unemployment had remained at about 16 percent between 2006 and 2007.

According to the report, limited investment opportunity hampered efforts to create new jobs and meet labor market needs. The report pinned the plan’s failure on the Yemeni economy’s inability to provide new jobs for youth. (more…)

Posted on June 11, 2009 - by Gavin

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Triodos Bank Invests USD 900,000 in Microfinance Institutions in May…

Microcapital

Triodos Bank has reported to the CGAP Microfinance Dealbook investments totaling approximately USD 900,000 this month.  The bank has invested 834,000 in IMON International in Tajikistan through the Triodos-Doen Foundation, and has loaned 61,000 to BICC in Honduras through the Hivos-Triodos Fund.

Triodos Bank was established as a commercial bank by the Triodos Foundation in 1980 and provides finance for socially beneficial and environmentally sustainable enterprises. Triodos has participated in microfinance activities since 1994, when it founded the Hivos-Triodos Fund and the Triodos-Doen Foundation.  The Hivos-Triodos Fund is a joint initiative with the Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation (Hivos). As of December 2008, the fund had a portfolio of EUR 43.6 million (USD 60.9 million). The Triodos-Doen Foundation is administered in cooperation with the DOEN Foundation, which is funded by the proceeds from the National Postal Code Lottery and the Sponsor Lottery. As of December 2008, Triodos-Doen’s portfolio amounted to EUR 55 million (USD 76.8 million). (more…)

Posted on June 9, 2009 - by Gavin

The Bill on non-bank credit institutions adopted by Milli Majlis in the first reading…

ABC.AZ

Baku, Fineko/abc.az. Today Milli Majlis (Parliament of Azerbaijan) adopted the Bill on Non-Bank Credit Institutions.

The Bill comprises of 26 articles and defines the order of creating non-bank credit institutions, acquisition of license in the Central Bank, and opening of branches.

Under the bill, non-bank credit institutions can be established by local and foreign legal entities and individuals and are divided into two types – those having the right to accept pawn deposits and those not having this right. The Bill also allows non-bank credit institutions to open branches and representative offices. Non-bank credit institution’s license request is to be considered within 30 days. Besides, Central Bank may refuse the license in some cases.

Non-bank credit institutions’ financing sources can be the capital of organisations and received incomes, raised loans, gratuitous funds received from legal entities and individuals. Furthermore, the Bill also stipulates compulsory external audit of non-bank credit institutions’ by the end of a fiscal year. External audit must be conducted within five months after the fiscal year is over and a suitable response with enclosed auditor’s summary should be submitted to the Central Bank. The Central Bank is also to control activity of such institutions. (more…)

Posted on June 9, 2009 - by Gavin

New corporation to lend money to Colombia’s poor…

Colombia Reports

A new corporation intended to support poor families in Colombia has been created during the Regional Summit on Microfinancing in the city of Cartagena de Indias.

The bank will be known as Grameen Aval Colombia corporation and received a three million dollar starting capital of the Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo Foundation, whose namegiver, Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo, is Colombia’s richest man.

The idea of the fund came from Nobel Peace Prize 2006 winner, Bangladeshi Professor Muhammad Yunus, who has experimented with the micro-loans in his own country and other Asian nations and knew to achieve a positive impact in marginalized communities.

Grameen, a Bangladeshi word that stands for “village”, because the main benefesaries are farm families, has been proven already in Guatemala and Costa Rica. (more…)

Posted on June 5, 2009 - by Gavin

Co-op unveils new global development fund…

International Supermarket News

The Co-operative Bank today (5 June) unveiled an innovative new global co-operative development fund aimed at helping to alleviate poverty in some
of the world’s poorest communities. The initiative is very much in line with the ethics that form the central identity of the firm.

The Global Co-operative Development Fund (GCDF) has been created withlong-term partner Deutsche Bank and is the first specialised international development fund to specifically target credit unions and agricultural co-operatives that serve some of the world’s poorest communities.

It is being initiated at a particularly opportune time with some regions seeing cutbacks in development finance, such as funding for microfinance, following the global downturn.

Participation in this fund supports the Bank’s aim to be one of the UK’s leading providers of development finance. Since 2005, the UK only bank has been steadily increasing its commitment to international development and poverty alleviation.

Richard Wilcox Head of Structured and Asset Finance at The Co-operative Bank said: “The co-operative business model of operating for the benefit of its members looks set to emerge stronger from the wreck of the global downturn. (more…)

Posted on June 2, 2009 - by Gavin

Govt scales economic growth projection to 5 p.c…

The Citizen

The economy will grow by 5 per cent this year, two per cent down from the 7.4 per cent in 2008, the minister for Finance and Economic Affairs, Mr Mustafa Mkulo, said in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

The Government had in April projected that the economy will grow by 6 per cent in 2009, down from the 7 per cent in 2008/09.

Presenting the state of the economy summary to the members of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance and Economy in Dar es Salaam yesterday, ahead of the tabling of the national budget later this month, Mr Mkulo said the revision of the economic growth projections were taken in consideration to the global economic downturn effects to Tanzania.

“Our macro-economic policy targets show that growth on various sectors will decline in 2009, but pick up again later in 2010,” he said.

Members of the committee were, however, not impressed by the minister’s explanation on local economic downturn. (more…)

Posted on June 2, 2009 - by Gavin

Pakistan State Bank Designs Microfinance Credit G’Tee Facility…

Individual.com

State Bank of Pakistan Tuesday said it has designed a Microfinance Credit Guarantee Facility MCGF in order to incentivize channelling of funds to Microfinance Sector, to be administered by SBP, BSC.

It is expected to facilitate banks/ DFIs to play leading role in easing credit constraints of MFBs/ MFls in their efforts to maximize outreach by extending credit facilities to them.

It is expected to achieve objectives: guarantees are expected to help building links between micro borrowers and formal financial institutions. The familiarisation of bank with client should eventually lead to “graduation” of borrower.

SBP BSC shall provide Partial Guarantees (pari passu) to cover principal amount in default or First Loss Default Guarantees to cover first loss, limited to a certain percentage on principal amount only, to banks/ DFIs to minimize perceived risk premium by covering part of losses incurred on funds made available to MFBs/ MFIs with advantage of leveraging guarantee fund a number of times while keeping incentive for banks/ DFIs to collect loan. (more…)

Posted on May 22, 2009 - by Gavin

Financial sector grows by 59%…

Daily Monitor

Uganda’s financial sector is growing due to increased activities in the economy. Statistics by Bank of Uganda show that the financial sector grew by 59.3 per cent in the last two years ending March 2009.

The central bank says the Ugandan financial sector has undergone some deepening in the recent past, with several financial products being introduced, which is evidenced by the variety of institutions together with products being offered to various actors in the economy.

Mr Benedict Ssekabira, the assistant director of the non-bank financial institutions department in Bank of Uganda, said that in terms of numbers, the deposit-taking financial institutions have increased to 21 commercial banks, four credit institutions and three micro finance deposit taking institutions.

“The total assets of the deposit taking institutions grew by 59.3 per cent (Shs3.013 trillion to Shs8.093 trillion). In addition, total asset deposits grew by 51.0 per cent or Shs1.731 trillion to Shs5.128 trillion, while total loans and advances increased by 84.6 per cent or Shs1.616 trillion to Shs3.525 trillion over the same period,” he said during a training meeting for the financial institutions on the revised financial report forms in Kampala on Wednesday. (more…)

Posted on April 17, 2009 - by Gavin

Asset Management Company ConCap Connective Capital in the Starting Blocks…

Reuters

Frankfurt School of Finance & Management Spin-off Focuses on Development Finance

FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany –(Business Wire)–

In future, the “Fund Management and Fund Advisory” division of the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management (Frankfurt School), which specializes in the market for development finance, will operate as an independent entity under the name ConCap Connective Capital GmbH i.Gr. (ConCap). The company specializes in managing and advising alternative investment vehicles in the area of development finance.

It focuses on the markets for micro financing and housing financing, as well as the financing of energy efficiency measures and renewable energy in developing countries and emerging markets. Complementary to classic Asset Management, ConCap also manages projects of technical assistance with financial institutes in developing countries and emerging markets on the instructions of donor organisations and development banks.

The ConCap Team can call on its experience as fund advisor for the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), which established under the management of the KfW is the worldwide largest microfinance investment fund, with an investment portfolio of EUR 532 million at the end of March 2009. (more…)

Posted on April 9, 2009 - by Gavin

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Sri Lankan Bank of Ceylon to Open More Branches Focused on Small and Medium Enterprises and Microfinance…

Microcapital

The chairman of the Bank of Ceylon (BoC), Dr Gamini Wickramasinghe, has told the Sri Lanka Daily News that the bank would be opening several more branches in the Northern and Eastern Provinces of the country soon, saying that with the war coming to an end there will be a huge demand for banking services in these areas.  According to Dr. Wickramasinghe, the Sri Lankan government expects more foreign exchange to flow into the country to develop the devastated provinces, especially from the Sri Lankan disaspora.  The openings will include more branches in each province to provide microfinance services, as well as nine ATMs in the North, seven ATMs in the East, and 11 mobile units.  Dr. Wickramasinghe said there are currently 25 branches in the North and that by year-end there will be 31 branches in the East, focusing on small and medium enterprises.

The chairman said that the grassroots savings groups the bank has set up across its network will provide a platform to serve the microfinance sector.  Currently the BoC has 5,000 savings groups serving 30,000 members.  The bank provides small farmer credit, livestock credit linked to insurance, micro enterprise credit, Inland Marine fisheries credit, and assistance for milk production.  Plans are under way to open 10 more branches in each province to provide these microfinance services. (more…)

Posted on April 2, 2009 - by Gavin

Microlenders widen their client base…

The Australian Business

NO loan is too small for small businesses these days.

With many banks continuing to put a hold on lending, more small-business owners and would-be entrepreneurs are turning to microlenders, organisations that dole out smaller loans typically ranging from as little as $US500 to $US35,000.

Microlenders, most of whom are non-profits, have traditionally focused on helping small-business owners, particularly minorities and women, in lower-income communities as well as entrepreneurs in developing countries who need a few dollars to buy, say, a sewing machine. They tend to charge higher interest rates than banks because their borrowers are often first-time entrepreneurs or have weaker credit profiles.

They are more lenient in screening prospective clients, however, and more willing to tailor repayment periods to the specific needs of a business. And it is that flexibility that is attracting more small-business borrowers these days. (more…)

Posted on March 17, 2009 - by Gavin

The Solution Has Been Staring Us in the Face…

Khaleej Times

Microfinance ought to be high on the agenda of policymakers looking for an imaginative response to the global financial crisis. As an ethical, responsible financial system that serves productive businesses through intimate knowledge of the client, it is founded upon principles that are diametrically opposed to those practiced by the conventional bankers that sparked the crisis.


On the face of it, microfinance would seem too small an activity to be of significant importance in the on-going global financial crisis. It concerns only the world’s poorest entrepreneurs, who borrow only a few hundred dollars per year in order to secure their working capital, or to develop their small business.

Globally, microfinance is a $30 billion industry, which only represents a small percentage of the $80 trillion global banking system.  In the past, critics have been contemptuous of microcredit institutions as unglamorous and backward, far from the financial cutting edge of hedge funds or derivatives sloshing capital around the world from London to Tokyo to New York, an embarrassment to neighbourhoods and cities where access to conventional banks is regarded as a sign of economic and social progress.

(more…)

Posted on March 5, 2009 - by Gavin

Trying to quit smoking? Go to the bank…

ABS CBN News

How can somebody who’s poor but addicted to nicotine stop smoking? Nicotine substitutes and cessation therapies, at P80 to P100 a day, would definitely be prohibitive for a low-income smoker.

In Agusan del Norte province, the non-government group Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) partnered with the Rural Green Bank of Caraga to offer an alternative quit-smoking program. Adopting the slogan, “Put your money where your butt is,” they started a program where a smoker opens a savings account and, for six months, deposits there the money he would have spent on cigarettes.

If he successfully kicks the habit of smoking at the end of six months, he gets his entire savings back and is encouraged to start a small enterprise. If he fails, he has to give up to charity whatever he has deposited.

“Smoking cessation programs are rarely available in the rural areas. We designed the CARES product to support smokers who want to quit smoking, by providing financial incentives for smoking cessation,” said Gerald Owen Guillen, head of Green Bank’s microfinance department. CARES stands for Committed Action to Reduce and End Smoking.

Nicotine, a natural yet addictive substance, is found in cigarettes. Smokers who attempt to quit suffer from craving to smoke, irritability, headache, tightness of chest, and coughing, among others. (more…)

Posted on March 5, 2009 - by Gavin

Hold departure order issued vs shuttered bank group officials…

Business World Online

THE DEPARTMENT of Justice has issued a hold departure order against the directors and officials of the shuttered Legacy Group of Companies.

In an order dated Feb. 11, Justice Secretary Raul M. Gonzalez ordered the Bureau of Immigration to include in its hold departure order list: Celso G. delos Angeles, Jr., Virgilio A. Odejar, Marcos G. Ong, Zacarias A. Carticiano, Teodora E. Comple, Jose Girlo P. Caramat, Roy Hilario, William Escalante, Romarico B. Tanedo, Ernest Q. Jurado, Sr., Joey C. Corpuz and Emilio J. Aguinaldo IV.

The order was in connection to the complaint filed by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) against the bank officials. It said the Legacy Group pulled off the “grandest” banking scandal in the country’s history.

The central bank said Legacy’s rural banks diverted available funds to “ghost” borrowers, in effect diluting their liabilities to clients. It also alleged that the officials falsified documents to support the loans.

‘Most’ banks closed

Meanwhile, the regulator has pinpointed and closed “most,” banks linked to the Legacy group, officials said yesterday.

Central bank Deputy Governor Nestor A. Espenilla, Jr. told reporters, however, that he did not discount the possibility of some banks that are operating which may be related to the Legacy Group. (more…)

Posted on February 20, 2009 - by Gavin

Bahrain launches first poor people’s bank…

Gulfnews.com

Riyadh: Bahrain has become the first GCC state to launch a bank for extending micro-credit facilities for the poor.

The Ibda’a (Creativity) Bank was launched jointly by Shaikha Sabeeka Bint Ebrahim Al Khalifa, King Hamad’s wife and chairwoman of Bahrain’s Supreme Council for Women, and Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz, president of the Arab Gulf Programme for United Nations Development Organisation in Manama on Wednesday evening.

The bank, a joint venture of Agfund, will support low income Bahrainis with small loans to start their own businesses.

Speaking on the occasion, Prince Talal congratulated Bahrain on becoming the first country in the Gulf to set up such a bank.

“This step reflects the firm determination of the leadership of Bahrain in addressing hard realities existing in the society with a visionary approach. I am confident that the bank will contribute in creating a rise in employment and improve the social and economic empowerment of Bahraini women,” he said.

According to a press release issued by the office of Prince Talal in Riyadh yesterday, the bank, with a capital investment of $5 million (Dh18.35 million), aims at helping 1,000 Bahrainis in its first year and 5,000 by the end of the second year of operation. (more…)

Posted on February 16, 2009 - by Gavin

Regional bankers predict financial crisis to last up to three years – survey…

Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html

WASHINGTON, USA (CMC) – A majority of bankers in the Caribbean and Latin America expect the crisis in financial markets to last between one and three years, according to a new survey.

Two out of three bankers who participated in the Inter-American Development Bank and the Latin American Bank Federation poll, said the financial crisis would affect their domestic markets between one and three years.

Regarding the effects of the crisis, six out of 10 executives forecast a decrease in the availability of funding for their financial institutions. Other expected effects were a decline in remittances and trade financing.

The survey, which sought the opinions of more than 100 banking executives from 19 countries, also found that bankers anticipated that small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs) will face higher interest rates and stricter lending requirements.

Nevertheless, nine out of 10 bankers said their institutions were still interested in working with SMEs, providing them services such as working capital loans, credit lines, advice on export deals and payroll and payments management.

The bankers underscored the importance of positive cash flows and good credit track records among their requirements for approving loans for SMEs. Less importance was assigned to the availability of collateral or credit guarantees. (more…)