Global Finance

MICROFINANCESome of the world's biggest banks are taking an interest in lending to some of the world's smallest potential customers.After her husband died, Adija Msw was left destitute with an extended family of 12 to support. She borrowed £5 ($30) from...

CREDIT DERIVATIVESCorporates have largely ignored the rapidly growing credit derivatives market for years. But will it help or hinder them if global growth begins to slow?The credit derivatives market has been one of the greatest financial success stories...

The Great White North Heats UpThe Canadian dollar rallied over 7% against the US dollar and 1 1% against the Japanese yen earlier this year on a favorable shift in market positioning, a rebound in crude oil prices and renewed interest in the yen carry...

INVESTMENT BANK AWARDSGlobal Finance talks with Khaled M. Al-Fayez, CEO, Gulf International Bank, winner of the Best Equity Bank award for the Middle East and Africa region.GLOBAL FINANCE: Gulf International Bank was the exclusive financial adviser for...

SPAINSpanish companies, which have been on a huge buying and expansion kick fueled by a strong domestic economy, face growing funding concerns as European Central Bank rate hikes look set to continue. As the economy is slowing, companies in Spain - now...

TURKEYTurmoil sparked by the nomination of a suspected Islamist candidate for president in Turkey might have been expected to derail the lonq-anticipated 12.5 billion Turkish Lira ($1.86 billion) privatisation of the country's fifth largest bank, Halkbank....

CASH MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONSA new generation of mobile technology promises to bring comprehensive remote access to corporate finance systems for executives on the road.For many companies, mobile phones, PDAs and other mobile devices such as Blackjacks or...

Venezuela's state-owned oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA, sold $7.9 billion of dollar-denominated bonds in Latin America's biggest corporate bond sale ever. The sale, which was boosted from an originally announced $5 billion, was designed...

TREASURY MANAGEMENTOn-demand software services are making increasingly sophisticated treasury management systems available to a much wider range of companies.A typical day in the life of a corporate treasurer entails managing the company's cash, ensuring...

INDIAThe Indian rupee ga'mec nearly 7% over a nine-week period culminating in the second week of May in a nine-year high against the US collar on increasing capita: flows. The rupee reached its high against the dollar at 3s40.545/dollar, a :evel last...

FOREIGN EXCHANGEGlobal Finance talks to Guy Kirby at State Street Global Markets.GLOBAL FINANCE: Research is often regarded as an area where it is difficult to differentiate. Why has State Street chosen to emphasize this aspect of its business?GUY KIRBY:...

RISK MANAGEMENTAs corporate risk systems become more sophisticated, businesses are moving beyond simple compliance and proving that better management of risk can drive greater efficiency.Over the past few years there has been a tidal wave of new regulations...

The impact of technology is everywhere. Indeed, there are few areas of a modern company where technology is not enabling rapid and profound change. Treasury and cash management, for example, is becoming so reliant on advanced software solutions that...

The recent inflow of 'petrodollars' has changed the face of the Saudi Arabian economy. Over the past three years, oil export revenues have exceeded $450 billion, greater than the total for the whole of the 1990s, and current account surpluses of around...