Finance

It may seem to bankers that they have been unfairly targeted by increasing compliance requirements recently. One directive after another has flowed down the pipe from regulators. But as firms have discovered, building and maintaining a culture of compliance and integrity brings with it many business rewards. What are the five best ways that financial institutions can weave compliance, business integrity and corporate social responsibility into all aspects of their operations?

Money-laundering activities should have received a fatal blow from the scandals revealed in such documents as the Panama Papers, but recent events paint a different picture: the offshore finance industry and money laundering continue to be alive and well! Financial institutions that find AML compliance an escalating struggle are not alone, but the costs of non-compliance are even more taxing. It’s past time for banks to take a closer look at their client portfolios.

With the introduction of the Financial Services Act (FinSA) in Switzerland, the regulatory noose is tightening for international providers of financial services to Swiss clients. Although FinSA will not be fully implemented until January 1, 2020, preparations are well underway, and affected providers will need to study up on the new rules to ensure they are in full compliance—or face punishing penalties.

A bank won’t survive without customer trust; if customers don’t feel safe entrusting their finances with their bank, they will move on. Gaining that trust in the Digital Age is more complicated than in the past, with new banking channels available to a new generation of customers with new cultural priorities. Astute bank leaders are working diligently to maintain the crucial human (H) factor, prioritizing culture alongside more traditional top objectives.

Trade finance fuels trade; if firms are unable to access it, this can have significant consequences for business development and global commerce. The current US$1.5 trillion gap between the demand for and supply of trade finance is undeniably a substantial barrier to economic growth. A recent BNY Mellon survey canvassed industry participants to discover what steps they think should be taken to close the gap, and the results point to two potential sources of relief: technology and regulatory revision.

Although rich in mineral resources, Sierra Leone is one of the world’s poorest countries. Nearly 90 percent of the population is isolated and excluded from financial services. Reaching them has become a top priority for one of the country’s most progressive banks, Guaranty Trust Bank (SL), which is demonstrating how effectively cutting-edge financial technology can transform the financial-services landscape for a disadvantaged population.

It’s now been nearly a year since the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect across the European Union, bringing with it panic, misinformation and scores of emails asking us to consent to stay on mailing lists we’d forgotten we’d signed up to.

Misgivings about the ultimate outcome of Brexit have delivered a blow to the UK’s once-hot housing market. Buyers are reluctant to buy, and sellers are hesitant to sell—until there is more clarity on Brexit. House prices are trending lower, with few exceptions. As October 31, the new Brexit deadline, draws nearer, house buyers and sellers will watch developments closely and hope for a final resolution.

“Trade Based Money Laundering (TBML) is an important component of the underlying system that supports all transnational crime. It’s far more complex than any other type of financial investigation and requires a lot more co-operation across agencies and across national jurisdictions,” says Mark Giuffre, former special agent for the American Drug Enforcement Administration. 

The construction industry in the United States does a lot more than build buildings. It undergirds the prosperity of the country’s economy as a whole in multiple ways. How are contractors, the industry’s key players, feeling these days? Overall, they are optimistic, as survey results show—and economic data supports their buoyancy—but not without reservations about future uncertainties, especially in three main areas: trade, labor and interest rates.