Finance

Lost productivity from its workforce is as much a cost to a financial-services firm as wages paid, but fortunately there are ergonomic strategies available to nurture health and wellbeing among staff, the implementation of which is becoming increasingly necessary simply to retain top talent. Fostering workplace wellness is no longer an option; the question has become not if but when.

Just as the United Kingdom appeared to be making some progress on determining its route out of Europe, British politics once again threw up the most unpredictable of scenarios. The nation’s general election on June 8 resulted in Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative Party failing to win a parliamentary majority.

The battle between the globalists and the populists has captivated people around the world, including investors, who are today inclined to place political news ahead of the more tried-and-true economic indicators in making decisions. Despite the turmoil in politics, though, many leading economies, especially that of the US, are doing rather well, with no major storms on the visible horizon.

UK voters chose independence, but at what cost to their own financial industry and those of other nations? EU negotiators are not liable to go easy on the breakaway nation, fearing that others may follow suit, so the UK’s hopes for a soft Brexit are unlikely to be realized; casting doubts about London’s future preeminence as a prime financial hub.

Financial managers need to know what to expect, but in the UK with the inevitability of Brexit there are as many or more unknowns as there are knowns, especially in relation to trade and trade finance. To reduce risks, policymakers who negotiate the terms of the Article 50 process should consider from the start how their decisions will affect trade and its finance.

During his election campaign, US President Donald Trump promised to be a human boon to the US construction industry, one of the nation’s most vital and influential. As the days have ticked away since his inauguration, have the new administration’s policies made a difference for the industry, or added to its uncertainty about what the future really holds?

For the last two years articles have been talking about how blockchain will transform both the banking industry and people’s lives. However, there have been few, if any, practical examples of where and how this will actually occur.

On May 24, Moody’s reported that it had downgraded China’s long-term local currency and foreign currency issuer ratings from Aa3 to A1. With the downgrade, China’s credit rating is now on a par with those of Israel, Japan and Saudi Arabia.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, particularly in the sphere of AML-compliance in the banking industry. Yes, it is costly to establish an effective AML-control structure, but non-compliance costs can be much more taxing—so how do financial firms institute cultures of compliance throughout their operations that ultimately minimize risks to all parties involved and increase enterprise value?

During his campaign, US President Donald Trump was short on praise for Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen. But since taking office in January, he has softened his public remarks about her low interest-rate policies, and there is even the possibility that he might re-nominate her in 2018. Would the reappointment of an avowed monetary-policy dove work for or against his economic plans in the future?