The options of social collateral and venture capital financing should be fully studied and deployed. [Read More]

Could mobile money and mobile telephony, thus, be Kenya’s elusive competitive industry or it is just a hype? [Read More]

Regulations that are sensible in the developed country context may not be applicable in the developing world. [Read More]

Nigerian bank debts are shunned by foreign investors because there is hardly worthy collateral on which the debts are secured [Read More]

All financial sector players including SMEs must play their role in augmenting savings mobilization which will in-turn provide the necessary financing to the productive sectors in the economy. [Read More]

Digital-based financial services not only facilitates access. It also fosters greater transparency through real-time transactions and knowledge. [Read More]

As everyone talks about Europe and how we need to diversify our economy towards emerging market economies such as China and India, we are unaware that China itself is struggling with a weak banking system and a real estate bubble. [Read More]

Today when you join an NGO, the first question likely to be asked is whether you have skills in writing proposals-not just proposals but fundable proposals, to get money, quick cash! [Read More]

The Euro crisis is serious and Africans should keep their guards up. [Read More]

The recent change of guard at the World Bank has brought to the fore the need for Africans to strive to have a voice in international multilateral institutions. [Read More]

While the rest of sub-Saharan African countries have in recent times recorded between 5 – 11% growth rates, the CFA franc zone has lagged behind at 2 – 3% and even less. [Read More]

It's time Africans called off the baffle and seek organic development agenda. [Read More]

It is now time to bring the operations of the World Bank closer to the needs and priorities of the global poor through deep, institutional reforms. [Read More]

Psychonomics: Understanding the Psychology behind Financial Behaviour is indeed a very topical subject and especially when the world is realizing the significance of the import of human psychology in the economic behaviour of the markets. [Read More]

There are heavy, dark clouds on the horizon – the lagged effects of slowdown in Europe, the uncertainty about how the BRICs will fare in 2012 and what that means for investment flows and demand for our exports. [Read More]

Nothing is being done to address the issue of competitiveness which, together with large fiscal deficits and high debt to GDP levels for Greece, Portugal, Spain and Italy, is the root cause of the current crisis. [Read More]

Risk management has a direct impact on performance. A bank needs to be both profitable and well risk-managed. Its level of profitability matters as much to the public as its profile of risk management. [Read More]

The finalisation of the securitised lease for A2 farmers will make it easier for farmers to secure lines of credit. [Read More]

What matters more is not the commitments in New York or in letters to international institutions, but the practice on the ground [Read More]

Economic prosperity talk in Kenya is all fiction because the poverty levels in the country remain a paradox. [Read More]

By standing up to the US over this trade war, China is checking the unbridled misuse of America’s power where it matters most – the economic front. [Read More]

Africa can become part of the global solution to the economic challenges that the world faces today [Read More]

While hard cash may be a requirement for traditional savings and investments, there are alternative ways to save and invest with no cash in hand. [Read More]

Proponents of fast food taxes argue that fast foods are bad for consumers (pun intended) and thus should be taxed in order to deter people from eating them [Read More]

The title of Managing Director of/at World Bank, does not really mean anything in the scheme of things. [Read More]

Have Kenyan political elites become currency traders? Have Kenyan elites colluded with international elites (exporters) to sustain the country on food imports at the detriment of domestic agricultural productivity? [Read More]

The Renaissance Capital survey was conducted with 1,004 middle-class Nigerians, residing in the cities of Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt, 70% of whom were aged 40 or younger. [Read More]

For those that celebrate Mr. Dangote, his village is as desolate as the Sahara except of course, traces of some mansions in the mix of mud houses and huts. [Read More]

The language of development has been the language of old hierarchy. Old World. Old Order. And not without a whiff of hypocrisy. [Read More]

Better coordination of our budgetary and monetary policies is a matter of concern to all of us as these will help us strive towards better managed economies for the benefit of the African people. [Read More]

I do not understand why some economists simply base their assumptions on what the IMF says. Any meaningful reading of what the IMF has forecasted over the last decade at least would have been enough to make wise men check other sources as well. [Read More]

Kenyan banks have joined the mobile phone sector to lead the way on how to connect the economically excluded regions to the center through efficient cheque transaction initiative. [Read More]

Politically, it is being speculated that the high cost of the dollar is politically instigated by certain politicians as a strategy for 2012 general elections. This is a very immoral attitude if true. [Read More]

As the US debates its recovery strategies, China debates its next investment frontier; the rest of the world may just have to sit and wait as another global calamity begins to take shape. [Read More]

For each US Dollar that comes to the developing countries in terms of aid, more than seven US Dollars return to developed countries through illicit proceeds. [Read More]

Stringent regulation is a barrier and a restriction to the expansion of cross border remittance services using mobile phones. [Read More]

We have people called managers without something to put on the table. They have reached their end in terms of creativity [Read More]

The wisdom for a budget that favours the majority of Ugandans, shall continue to elude us. [Read More]

New initiatives must be developed and tried out in order to find the products and approaches that meet the needs of the African consumer [Read More]

Uganda is seated firmly on huge opportunities for private sector growth, job creation and transformation. [Read More]

Credit Reference Bureau already active in Kenya and Uganda and soon in Tanzania could see a marked decline in number of default rates and further reduction in lending rates. [Read More]

Economists disagree over the level of taxes that individuals should pay, who should pay the taxes, what effects taxes have on their lives, and what form taxes should take. [Read More]

Economic development is about enhancing the productive capacity of an economy by using available resources to reduce risks, remove impediments which otherwise could lower costs and hinder investment. [Read More]

Because the international development assistance environment will continue to change, I advocate a vision of a Fiscal-Self-Reliant Continent [Read More]

One struggle remains unfinished in South Africa: attaining financial freedom. [Read More]

Government takeover of the Bank would effectively result in the 8.35 million borrower owners (and their families) of the Grameen Bank to be disowned. [Read More]

Laudatory statements of outside organisations will drop you down like a sack of stone just like they elevate you when the going is good [Read More]

Mauritius has never experienced an annual price decline, but has lived under chronic, not intermittent, inflation [Read More]

The regulators, the regulated and market participants should think outside the box. [Read More]

The Zimbabwean economy is exhibiting strong growth in a single-digit inflation environment, following several years of negative growth. [Read More]

A stronger oil price will translate into higher transport and distribution costs. Moreover, the surge in global food prices will feed into local food inflation. [Read More]

Economic contraction and rising unemployment in Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Italy are already bringing back memories of the 1930’s depression. [Read More]

Changes in the exchange rate can have a powerful effect on the economy. [Read More]

Ethiopia joined the exclusive ranks of winners for the first time since the inception of the Awards [Read More]

Nigeria’s debt increased by 625% in 6 months! [Read More]

Money Coaching provides profound insights into the clients’ money patterns and behaviours [Read More]

The use of ‘foreign’ currency as legal tender in one’s country has very little impact on a country’s failed state or HIPC status. [Read More]

Sooner or later, some members of the eurozone will dump the Euro [Read More]

Beneficiation will be the next battle in the continuing struggle for economic independence. [Read More]

Should loans be an option in the face of dwindling revenue, they will achieve one thing: saddling the coming generation with repayment burden. [Read More]

Freeing up the monetary system is a far better option to that of manipulating the currency for the purpose of satisfying the short-term demands [Read More]

When Africa gets her business/politics of economic development in order, the World Bank will be out of business. [Read More]

How can an allegedly cash strapped Government adopt such a stance? [Read More]

Government should focus on widening the tax base using modernist and rational strategies that don’t hurt aggregate demand and productivity. [Read More]

The spread between German bonds and those of troubled Greece, Spain and Portugal have widened dramatically, putting the future of the Euro and the European Union into question. [Read More]

Odinga’s announcement was not only impulsive but also a clear contradiction to proper government procurement and program funding procedures [Read More]

Will budgetary allocation in East Africa member states promote a culture of innovation and enterprise among its citizens? [Read More]

There is not enough interaction, communication and exchange of ideas between the financial services providers (supply) and the consumers (demand). [Read More]

Goodluck Jonathan is obviously making it clear that he will not tolerate any 'sacred cows' [Read More]

when your finances are well organized you will be happier. [Read More]

The only problem is that we did not have our own capital and we were not allowed to develop our own ideas. [Read More]

Thanks to those who have denied us markets abroad, we have focused on our regional markets [Read More]

Crises oftentimes present opportunities for sweeping reforms. It is the right time for West Africa to take advantage of those opportunities. [Read More]

Presumption by government that people don’t know what’s best for them is the highest insult. [Read More]

The crises of tomorrow are unlikely to be a repeat of the crises of yesterday. We must remain ever vigilant to the emergence of new vulnerabilities [Read More]

It pinches when the citizenry religiously bid farewell to their hard earned penny only to get substandard services (or none at all) [Read More]

South Africa, at 40%, has one of the highest marginal tax rates of all middle-income countries [Read More]

Economics is a dismal science because of the difficulty in getting the timing of monetary and fiscal policy adjustments right [Read More]

Economic growth is key to reducing poverty: not the redistribution of wealth. [Read More]

It is private investment, not consumption that makes for the competitiveness of an economy. [Read More]

As long as microfinance organizations limit their own missions to be solely financial in nature, we can expect microfinance to remain a peripheral player in advancing female activity in Egyptian civil society. [Read More]

Technology has been the single largest enabler of banking innovation in recent years. On the flip side, legacy systems and outmoded processes can pose the biggest hurdle. [Read More]

Innovation is a powerful weapon of differentiation for financial institutions. [Read More]

One of the lessons to be drawn from the financial crisis is that we must henceforth refrain from overspending but instead consume, produce and invest in moderation. [Read More]

No system in the world is sustainable if it is not underpinned by a sense of morals, ethics and values. No system can succeed if it is not people-centred. [Read More]

Attempts by donors to impose their organizational structures on Africa create confusion - and force people on the continent to focus on short term goals. [Read More]

The roles of the IMF should be reviewed to adapt to a new international financial environment which is being increasingly affected by effects of recurring financial crises. [Read More]

During the past decades, many academics, professionals and policy makers (including the government) have put forward a number of proposals to reform the international financial architecture. [Read More]

Debt forgiveness grants aid to those recipients that have best proven their ability to misuse that aid [Read More]

Rating is a not pure science and will never be when most of what happens in the world is seen along the line of race and geography. [Read More]

If African countries were to adopt only one policy to boost economic growth and improve macroeconomic stability, they should reduce the number of currencies in circulation across the continent as quickly as possible. [Read More]

The world economy may soon stop shrinking, but recovery will not return us to the boom years that investors and people became used to. A long, hard slog lies ahead. [Read More]

Every woman, whether single, married, divorced or widowed ought to take immediate control of her own financial future [Read More]

Countries which are not willing to let the exchange rate fluctuate need a large cushion of reserves to achieve this in extreme or persistent shock situations [Read More]

Mr Biti's efforts are meant to reverse the impact of economic meltdown and to promote more economic activity that will see more currencies circulating. [Read More]

Instead of fearing, blaming, hoping, maybe the best thing to do is to accept the fact that it has happened and now make plans to cope with it or to capitalize on it. [Read More]

Stores and supermarkets are overflowing with products, a rare phenomenon for many years under the ever-mutating Zimbabwe dollar. [Read More]

If Nigeria pays attention to educational diplomas-which only contribute about 20% of what is needed to be successful- the country will always fall short. [Read More]

This crisis has widened the already huge gap between investment and savings. [Read More]

There are differences between the expectations of home countries and host countries (and their regulators) from multinational banks. [Read More]

When governments protect public enterprises by keeping out potential competitors or making taxpayers pay for their mistakes, that discipline is removed and the result is poor management and poor service to customers [Read More]

The most important factor in selecting a bank today is the ability to create a deep relationship; that decision will be relationship led [Read More]

Throwing big monies to inefficient (if not corrupt well connected) firms in the name of a stimulus plan is not the way to go for our countries. [Read More]

The source of this strong growth in Uganda has continued to come from the industrial and services sectors, while the agricultural sector has shown significant signs of activation. [Read More]

Nigerian banks have become major players in the global financial market [Read More]

While seeking to obtain as much external financial support as it can get, Africa must also look inward to the policy options available to it to increase domestic resources for development. [Read More]

We are doing away with sending our money through banks in UK, USA, China, that was taking about five days for a transaction to be concluded [Read More]

There is growing recognition that the dispersion of credit risk by banks to a broader and more diverse group of investors, rather than warehousing such risk on their balance sheets, has helped to make the banking and overall financial system more resilient. [Read More]

Although the lack of sophistication of the African financial systems and markets may have helped blur the direct impact of the global financial crisis on the continent, recent developments have shown that the continent has not escaped the indirect impact of this crisis. [Read More]

These missions, as the IMF calls them, draw upon and test every bit of knowledge and skills we have accumulated over our lifetimes. To appreciate the enormity and difficulty of our task, you need to understand a bit of Zimbabwe’s recent history. [Read More]

The current global and economic crisis has demonstrated the need for Africa to promote intra-African trade and regional integration in general to bolster economic growth and development by enlarging markets and reducing vulnerability to shocks. [Read More]

Donor agencies are conniving with African governments to fleece the citizenry [Read More]

This unprecedented one-stop shop seminar will cover a comprehensive scope of valued added topics tailored to the local cultural dynamics, practical requirements, developmental needs and future trends of the fast and lucrative emerging African banking and financial industry. [Read More]

The discount rate of 97% is impressive, and the deal is an important step towards the completion of Liberia’s HIPC debt relief process. However, the deal has some peculiarities [Read More]

We are being judged on past omissions and commissions. We have to show our own clean slate and our own track record of credibility [Read More]

What is happening in Africa, today, is the biggest crime and robbery since slavery and colonialism. We are meant to fail, by design. [Read More]

Why should we have to take on economic systems that bring us more problems than solutions, and which have ultimately succeeded in wrecking havoc in the very countries that suggest that we adopt their policies and strategies? [Read More]

I cannot possibly be the only one to have noticed that interest rates tend to go down after Mauritius Exports Association meets with the BoM! [Read More]

Should Africa remain complacent, the effects of the financial crunch will be very considerable for the continent. [Read More]

As far back as 1936, John Maynard Keynes argued that monetary policy is ineffective under conditions of economic depression but that fiscal policy is the remedy in such circumstances. [Read More]

The current crisis is a monetary crisis. Money worldwide is monopolised by governments and all responsibility for monetary crises can therefore be laid squarely at the door of governments. [Read More]

If history is any guide to our monetary authorities, inflation fighting should remain their central focus. [Read More]

Having the Presiden't son-in-law at the CBN will leave little confidence that the coffers will not be emptied the way they have routinely been emptied in the past. [Read More]

The current global financial crisis demands that Africa works together in a co-ordinated fashion and put in place sound and prudent macroeconomic policies. The creation of a single African currency, therefore, is one way to this. [Read More]

A single currency would help reduce the cost of doing business on the continent and also promote cross border trade and investment [Read More]

CMA on its own cannot push the powerful individuals at the NSE [Read More]

Good credit comes from the pool of real savings, and it allows someone to consume in order to produce (productive consumption). Bad credit is money unbacked by production [Read More]

Women are the mainstay of African economies therefore benefits of promoting women’s economic empowerment spread beyond the individual woman [Read More]

Africa is poor today because Swiss and other western banks collude with African kleptocrats to loot the continent. Corruption is rife on the continent because those who steal the money never lack a place to hide it. [Read More]

The global financial crisis will not spare Africa. The continent will be hard hit by the effects of the ensuing slowdown in global economic growth [Read More]

The guarantee by IFC will contribute towards the volume of Trade Finance instruments issued by DTB to finance imports to Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi. [Read More]

Not only does sub-Saharan Africa depend utterly on the rest of the world for development capital, but its integration into the global economy is limited to its export of raw materials. [Read More]

Saving is perhaps the world’s hardest art to master. We have a high propensity and temptation to spend whenever we have money. The ability to save calls for financial planning and restraint on our spending behaviour. [Read More]

Are you caught in an endless cycle of want? Do you complain that your finances are not working for you? Sit down and examine your financial goals. [Read More]

It pains to realize that Africa does not want to create its own economic paradigm. Instead, its greedy and egoistic honchos and academicians every single day beg from the West as if they have neither brain nor hands! [Read More]

While it is true that credit is the key to economic growth, it is doubtful that spending is what drives an economy. One must make a distinction between good and bad credit, as well as between productive and non-productive consumption. [Read More]

Mauritian policy makers face pressure from politicians and powerful lobby groups and MPC members themselves are politically nominated. Hence what needs to be done is not always done. [Read More]

While the IMF has been praising the government of Sudan for its impressive economic growth, the average Sudanese is still to feel the impact of such economic growth [Read More]

Economies always recover, helped by fiscal stimulus but mainly because lower interest rates eventually lead to more private consumption and investment. [Read More]

African leaders have stood aloof and behaved as if the continent is immune to the crisis. According to World Bank, the GDP growth projection in developing economies for 2009 is now likely to be 4.5% instead of the earlier projection of 6.4% . [Read More]

“Bailouts” are nothing other than governments shifting wealth from A to B and siphoning off lots in the process. They transfer assets from wealth-producers to wealth-consumers, the net effect being to make countries poorer. [Read More]

Despite the fact that the situation in Kenya is calm, fuel prices in Uganda have remained stubbornly above the price at which they traded before the violence erupted. [Read More]

Access to credit and financial assistance remains the principal constraint that small-scale producers face [Read More]

President Kibaki’s decision to cancel the traditional New Year’s Eve state festivities at State House Mombasa is a laudable and encouraging move towards people sensitive leadership. [Read More]

Whatever happened to market solutions to market problems? [Read More]

It is still difficult to see how banks will lower their interest rates. Many bank managers price their interest rates based on the cost of doing business and foreign exchange. [Read More]

With Uganda's Finance ministry about to execute its Shs1.1 trillion budget funds for roads, a record amount a single sector has ever received, officials in the construction industry say that the amount of bribes is likely to go up. [Read More]

For now, the world needs to forget about self regulation for countries and build stronger international systems that work. [Read More]

When governments try to do too much, that is precisely when they make things worse. [Read More]

The numbers involved in meeting the needs of the unbanked may seem daunting, but in reality they represent a billion-strong opportunity for banks. [Read More]

If you perform various multi factor regressions on hedge fund returns, you begin to realize that the alpha you were seeking is mostly made up of repackaged Beta being sold to you at alpha prices [Read More]

The call by the IDA for more homework came at a time when Uganda was facing a tight race against time to issue the bond. Kenya and Zambia are in the final stages of pulling off a similar move. [Read More]

Human Rights Watch condemned the government's decision to take the loan facility without conducting referendum to find out from Nigerians whether they are prepared for another enslavement by the World Bank [Read More]

African Banking Corporation (ABC) is negotiating to take over Capital Finance Corporation, in what will be the second acquisition of a financial institution in Uganda by a Kenyan bank in less than a year. [Read More]

Investors need to think in terms of risk premium. Rental yields are unattractive compared with risk-free after-tax 7-year government bond yields. No one would invest in commercial real estate at an internal rate of return (IRR) of 10%. [Read More]

The CBE cannot stand by and watch passively as Ethiopia’s small-holder farmers and owners of cottage industries and small-scale businesses grope in the dark for want of financial support [Read More]

It is interesting to note that more efforts were made during the colonial period to create currency unions than in the period of political independence. [Read More]

The beneficiaries of the payments are led by Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos himself, who allegedly received five million dollars [Read More]

Is the global governance we are dealing with today still relevant? Clearly it is not. We economic and financial relations that don't only serve a few large economies. [Read More]

What is more worrying is that further depreciation of the shilling is expected to strain efforts of controlling the country’s rate of inflation. Uganda’s rate of inflation is estimated at 15% - three times more than the central bank’s target of 5%. [Read More]

It took decades to build a modern financial system but it took two days to bring it down to its knees. Historians will look at the implementation of the now banned (at least temporarily) naked shorting rule as one of the dumbest rules in world financial history [Read More]

The subprime debacle is a symptom of a greater and more fundamental problem; government monopolisation of money and the reckless abuse of that monopoly. [Read More]

The turn of events reminds the world of the necessity of relegating to neo-socialism based on transparency and accountability. Indeed, what’s being done currently to save the world economy is typically socialistic [Read More]

The Bill is still unclear on the guidelines in which pension funds will be invested- a crucial area which will most likely determine whether the public will be willing to place some of their money in pension schemes or not. [Read More]

As some customers are finding out the hard way, only a username and password stands between criminals and their hard-earned money. [Read More]

Responsibility for executing low risk strategies for growth lies squarely on the shoulders of management, boards and investors/shareholders; not on regulators. [Read More]

An environment starving its citizens of liberty, property rights and the Rule of Law, even with a mixed economy, would rank poorly on the scale of prosperity. [Read More]

Investors have withdrawn millions of dollars from Uganda’s financial system [Read More]

Those unquestionably intelligent and competent Wall Street brokers, many of them graduates of Harvard and the other elite American universities, have so destroyed the U.S. financial system [Read More]

A giant rift in monetary policy has left the U.S. and the rest of the West deeply divided. Is the European Union setting itself up to replace the U.S.? [Read More]

China has accumulated billions in foreign reserves while America has effectively bankrupted itself.Soon, the American green card shall become worthless as Uncle Sam steps down from world power and Aunt Xiang replaces him. [Read More]

The success of micro-finance in Africa will require joint efforts by the governments, the private sector, civil society and other stakeholders. [Read More]

Nothing that Senators John McCain and Barack Obama promise or actually do if elected US President, will stop the reverse of America’s fall. This is a terminal decline. [Read More]

Governments seldom learn from their mistakes. [Read More]

Analysts have attributed the sudden surge in acquisition interest by the international banks to the growth opportunities in the East African market. [Read More]

Leaders in the world are harping on the monetary and financial abuses of the international banking system in the wake of the sub-prime mortgage crisis. [Read More]

The mobile phone, a key economic driver, is used to make several things possible [Read More]

To the hoi polloi and wretched of the world, please do not fear to raise your voices to stop this gang rip-off by our rulers and their families. [Read More]

The capacity to elicit enthusiasm in others using emotions, while maintaining control over yours creates a wave of empathy which you ride on as you close the sales [Read More]

Unit Trusts are a structured and formal way for various investors to pool their money together and have it collectively invested by skilled professional money managers in various securities. [Read More]

Every problem presents an opportunity. The African population presents a very wide market that banks should tap into. They should not just go mobile and appear on strategic places but they should ensure they are able to knock at every door, educate the masses about money, how they can invest in SME’ [Read More]

Why would anyone with their senses travel to a country they never did contract, had no connection but responding to most badly written letters promising millions awaiting them, and all they need do, is pay some token and bam; one is a millionaire? [Read More]

No company with long term investments in Zimbabwe is going to be in a hurry to walk away. Doing so would certainly mean forfeiting investment to state or the favored elite for nothing, or selling them off for a fraction of their value. [Read More]

A BBC World programme claimed that one of China’s biggest problems is that its high rate of economic growth was causing the income gap to increase. [Read More]

The recent meltdown of the developed securities market due to high oil prices and bleak inflation outlooks has made investors in developed countries to rethink the frontier markets. [Read More]

Frontier markets present an economically viable untapped potential with long term benefits. [Read More]

A phalanx of gangsters who use the instruments of state to enrich themselves and their tribesmen have hijacked Africa. [Read More]

As we are fed daily reports of the collapse of Zimbabwe’s economy, few of us hear of the impressive performance of the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange [Read More]

Banking is about differentiating banking products, increased choices, security and accessibility in the most efficient and effective manner [Read More]

Majority of investors today make this same mistake; invest long term when they are 64 years of age and go short term at 23. [Read More]

Displaced Kenyans are to receive 500 million shillings in favor of resettling them. The fund dedicated to resettlement implies that more of the displaced people will possibly return to the source of their livelihood which is mainly agriculture. [Read More]

For some banks, reserving customer dignity is not a priority. This is because many bank employees are not polite but rude. You come out with an impression that you are not there to bring them business but to ask them for a favour. [Read More]

In Africa REITs are also gaining popularity in some key African nations where financial markets are well developed. Key in Africa is South Africa which, according to Ernst and Young was the top performer in the world [Read More]

Is poverty due to lack of access to finance or good, practicable ideas? The economically active poor women and the marginalised are literally turning down loans [Read More]

Ultimately, all monetary policy must concern itself with the rate of domestic price inflation. This is true even when a central bank does not have a formal policy called “inflation targeting.” [Read More]

The next fontier in the battle for financial services is the insurance industry. [Read More]

In the 21st century; wealth will not come from land, but from human capital, networks, ability to organize teams, participation in value chains, access to information and adoption of technology and innovation. [Read More]

Most microfinance business models are expensive, labour intensive and characterised by high transactions costs. Aiming for breadth and depth of outreach, the institutions price their loans a little more than the mainstream banks. [Read More]

Learning how to budget your earnings whatever the size and form they come in, will go a long way to improve your spending, keep you on track by helping you spend primarily on what you need [Read More]

Elsewhere, venture capitalists consider Universities the best place to find start-up companies that would be the 'Next big thing.' [Read More]

Money is not enough. How many Tanzanian teams are crippled in spite of having money? Money minus proper planning and strategic thinking will not make us any better. [Read More]

The fear for lenders is genuine – the sector is faced with high transaction costs, vagaries of weather, uncoordinated market and poor contractual adherence [Read More]

While the antelope spends the whole day running from the lion, the lion spends the whole day looking for the antelope. This analogy could explain the business wars on market share in the financial services sector in Kenya. [Read More]

While Saccos have had everything work for them for the five decades, the exigencies of the day are different. Unless the institutions bring forth a lot of innovation in the way they do business; review their operational business models and product range and critically review their position in respec [Read More]

Pension sector challenges are not restricted to Uganda alone. Germany for instance, passed a law in the year 2007 to increase retirement age from 65 to 67. This was a bid to keep the aging population employed longer. [Read More]

It is known that insurers go to great lengths to deny liability even when the prima facie situation looks obvious. [Read More]

Whereas financial services entail dealing with people's hard earned money, a majority of stock broking firms operate as family businesses. [Read More]

We must manage fraud not as a necessary expense, but as a competitor for our personal, governmental and corporate assets. This change in viewpoint is imperative if we are to win the fraud war. [Read More]

Microfinance institutions should not be “loan pushers” but rather form part of a core community empowerment resource that helps groups make informed rational decisions [Read More]

Each high-level management change usually brings a different dynamic, which may either be positive or negative. Each manager has his own style and therefore high staff turnover usually works against the insurer. [Read More]

The uniqueness of the Islamic banking principles makes it a perfect alternative for traditional banking system that leaves a larger part of Africans unsatisfied. [Read More]

African government should support the growth of the microfinance industry so as to improve the lives of the poor especially in the rural areas. [Read More]

In business things are not left to chance. Since the customer is complicated, delicate and has several options, the one who gives the best offer wins customer loyalty [Read More]

While banking has been demystified and incorporated in the common man’s mindset, thanks to microfinance, the next battle on breaking barriers of access is expected through innovation and creativity in the insurance industry. [Read More]

Kenya’s Nairobi Stocks Exchange (NSE) has witnessed a surge of rogue stockbrokers. The most recent example is the Nyaga Stockbroker, which was marred in allegations of unauthorized trading in client’s shares and Francis Thuo Stocks Brokerage firm that went down in similar circumstances [Read More]

It is important that our formal education systems take a dynamic approach to include current issues that are driving the global village. [Read More]

The post-election violence in Kenya brings with it operational and financial risks and challenges hitherto unknown in the Kenya microfinance landscape. [Read More]

We can stabilize the Kenyan market by cutting taxes, addressing justice and insecurity, toning down extravagant political free-gifts and opening up Kenya for Kenyans. [Read More]

Different countries in Africa have different currencies; varied banking systems but have common financial needs. Internet has been a great unifying factor, with credit and debit cards being the channels for transactions online. [Read More]

Events in Kenya are perhaps a timely reminder that while attractive returns can be generated across the African continent, political risk always needs to be taken into account when investing in Africa. [Read More]

Although a multiplicity of challenges face group lending, it is important to develop services that are both responsive to the clients’ needs and are financially sustainable. [Read More]

The objective of rural microfinance is to realize an inclusive financial system so that the economically active rural poor have access to a full package for financial services that will enable them to escape poverty. [Read More]

SAPs-induced impoverishment among the lower social classes can last beyond the life span of the programme. Social costs can be avoidable if SAPs were to reflect a balanced mix of social - economic variables of African economic crisis. [Read More]

Apart from basic goods trickling back, businesses are no longer subjected to NIPC vigilantes crusading on behalf of misplaced policy frameworks! [Read More]

Regardless of who benefits more from the strength of the shilling, the market forces should determine its final value. [Read More]

Some behaviors are thought to be random but not to the very experienced hawk eye. This is where the debate about the chaotic nature of the stock exchange comes along. [Read More]

Why would one invest in commodities and not the conventional stocks or bonds as always done in the past? What difference does it make in return [Read More]

The ability to solve social and economic problems is limited primarily by one's lack of imagination in seizing opportunities. [Read More]

In the midst of this market downturn, we all have the same gut check. Will you be comfortable with another significant deterioration of your wealth on the stock market? Will you leave the market for peace of mind? [Read More]

In a contest between political survival and business survival, business should prevail. The rational behind this adventurous argument is simple - not everyone is a voter, but everyone is a consumer. [Read More]

The concept of dummy companies is still new in not only Kenya but also other African countries. In developed countries, dummy companies have always been legally doubtful to say the least. [Read More]

Africa needs a commission to inquire into the role of the wealthy nations in her underdevelopment. They urgently need freedom from the patronizing ways of the rich nations. [Read More]

With the limited infusion of capital through the stock market, the private investor market is a new and attractive alternative for investors and small businesses. [Read More]

As many of us prepare our hard earned cash to own part of the upcoming Kenyan crown jewel, Safaricom, some are quickly rushing to sell off the 25 percent whilst others want the courts to halt the sale until the ownership has been resolved. [Read More]

One thing that corporate bonds offer is the guarantee of a steady and predictable return. In the long run, stocks out perform bonds but at certain times of the economic cycle, bond out perform stocks. [Read More]

African investors are highly disadvantaged in making informed investment decisions especially in the stock exchange due to lack of information and problems in interpretation of the little information coming their way. [Read More]

Hedge funds, which are similar to mutual funds, have turned a couple of millionaires around the world into billionaires. [Read More]

Carefully crafted and monitored mechanisms that constantly check the measures against sound economic policies enable a currency to emerge as an indicator and legal tender for exchange of goods and services. [Read More]

Many investors easily get tempted by the prospect of buying discounted shares with a rights issue. But it is not always a certainty that one is getting a bargain. [Read More]

The condition of South Korea after its war was worse than Nigeria after the civil war that ended in 1970. Today, South Korea and China, have more that a trillion dollars in foreign reserve [Read More]

The government ought to insist that investment in the oil sector should be done in Naira. By embarking on this avenue, the Naira will appreciate because of the benefit of 'return of' and 'return on' of invested capital. Since the multinationals bring their capital and demand repay in their curre [Read More]

Unfavorable tax burdens only worsen the economic power of any country. As already indicated, economic boom and recession are not dependent on chance or luck. What really makes the difference is a viable economic policy. [Read More]

Investors out to invest in the Uganda Stocks exchange (USE) or the Dar-es-salam Stocks Exchange (DSE) should know that it will involve more than a mere call or email to the stocks broker or agent. [Read More]

Currency debasement and high taxes destroyed productive enterprise and was a major cause of the disintegration of the Roman Empire. [Read More]

Banking systems in most African countries have clearly left large proportions of the population unbanked. The rural majority have been left with few options on how to save their money. [Read More]

Conditionalities in mainstream banks such as charging of high interest rates, dishing small interest on savings and ignoring people in the low income cadre have led to the creation of pyramid schemes [Read More]

A lot of questions have been asked on how one can be able to take advantage of the highs and lows of the stock prices to their advantage. [Read More]

Insider trading gives an undue edge to big individual and institutional investors over small individual investors who lack access to confidential company information from the insiders. [Read More]

If tax is reduced, another source of tax has to be found or a cut down on a Ministry’s expenditure has to be done. But which expenditure are you going to cut down? [Read More]

Some financial experts state that numerous local firms have the qualities required for listing, but are not willing to do so – mainly due to ignorance of the benefits associated with listing and lack of confidence in the bourse. [Read More]

The performance of the offshore markets over the past five years has been astounding. Indeed, this has been to the extent that our market has not reached except for 2005 when the equity market is said to have had an annual return of over 60 percent. [Read More]

Unlike merry-go-rounds, where members collect money monthly and give it to one member on a rotational basis, an investment group saves money every month but instead of the collected money being given to a member, the club invests the money jointly. [Read More]

Currently, Kenya is facing a major house shortage. It is estimated that the country’s annual urban demand is at 150,000 units that cannot be met by the supply averaging only 30,000. [Read More]

East Africans are ready to venture outside the confinement of their individual countries' securities markets. [Read More]

Why is the World Bank Group Staff Association so intent on getting rid of Wolfowitz? It's all about jobs. Wolfowitz's actions threaten to lead to a dramatically scaled back workforce. [Read More]

Previously, having a solid stocks portfolio or mutual fund line-up was enough, but this has changed with the changing market conditions thus increasing demand to diversify into non stock options. [Read More]

Why is it that whenever a major deal is being negotiated, it’s only a special click of brokerage firms that seem to emerge winners? [Read More]

As long as banks fail in improving the lending process and decide not to ease up the ‘greedy’ rates, the public will always run to the unregulated schemes. [Read More]

The NSE has had a spate of new listings in the market- thanks to the ongoing privatization and banking reforms. But the problem still remains: how effectively can resources from the Diaspora be tapped? [Read More]

Every market has its bad days. Well-monitored, deep troughs should always be accumulation phases. [Read More]

To KenGen’s corporate history, 2006 may still go down as the year when wrong irreversible decisions were made. [Read More]

Why does the ZSE perform so well when everything is apparently in turmoil? [Read More]

Most speculators will try less risky investments; companies adopt new shareholding structures and new entrants take advantage on the low prices. [Read More]

The down trend can be so scary to many investors who have not experienced a bear market since they are used to the value of their shares going up every time. [Read More]

Prior to a company splitting its shares, two typical market conditions are witnessed: A high demand for the company’s shares and positioning of more retail investors. [Read More]

The past cannot be recouped but investors can take caution and avoid being victims of such losses in future. And just like in a staff placement, one must always be willing to spare a minute and give the broker some time to prove his worth. [Read More]

Decisions over the kind of investment to opt for future gains are tough. Most times, they vary from short to medium and long term. [Read More]

African banks wield a potent means to move the poor from obsessive struggle for sheer daily survival to larger humanity objectives: liberty, equal opportunity, social justice, peace and spiritual fulfilment. [Read More]

The NSE has proven potential for growth. Its growth is however uneven, leaving many investors disappointed by the service rendered. The NSE has a long way to go to achieve full efficiency. [Read More]

Announcements and rumors have become major influences to the short-term price rally that has been experienced in the recent past. Each sector seems to have its share of this with the Finance and Investment Segment being the most affected. [Read More]

Investors looking for a place to diversify their investments and differentiate on returns, Africa offers a greater potential than any other emerging markets in the world. [Read More]

Why then should we fall victim to the shylock business? As big as the money is, big rewards can also translate to absolute loss. [Read More]

What explains the sudden rise in market activity? Some analysts warn that it is a profit taking ploy by high net worth investors who have manipulated prices on every counter to reap short term gains. [Read More]

The reality however is that the country doesn’t just have land clashes to offer. The market, like few other African ones, is open with so many opportunities. [Read More]

If a company starts booking a lump-sum payment as current sales even when services will be provided over a period of years, the there is need to worry. [Read More]

Politics or who's in charge is not a big deal in investment decisions. Governments are more victims of their economies than they are drivers of it. That's why there's no real relationship between which party is in control and stock markets market returns. The most important factors are interest r [Read More]

The pace at which investment clubs have sprang up shows the reversing trend in the equity market. We have had consortiums of all ages; lifestyles and career backgrounds emerge and jointly amass so much wealth. [Read More]

Brokers’ malpractices are an ugly fact of investment in stocks, but they are part of the risks involved in investing. Investors should be on the look-out for such defrauders and make sure they avoid them or opt for litigation. [Read More]

Although the west has shunned African markets for a long time, Africa’s stock markets appear set for faster growth now that privatization of state owned firms has taken full gear. [Read More]

As the Presidential Cycle nears, investors are worried about the possibility of a crash, price adjustment or usual market breathe. [Read More]

Nobody has ever predicted the ‘when’ and ‘how’ of bursts. Just before the burst, the market will always look so promising and attract some late comers. Unfortunately, they are hit the most. [Read More]

Why do fund managers put so much credit on the offshore markets but leave out emerging markets in Africa? Africa’s emerging markets amount to so much more compared to Asian markets. [Read More]

By watching for changes in the market you can be ready for any potential market changes that may affect your earnings. It’s always a good practice to step back and get a better view of what the market trends have been [Read More]

It may be hard to tell what efforts are in place for now, but the private efforts may be the only way. If all the small investors joined hands and pushed for action, we could probably start noticing some change. [Read More]

Whether one is a long term investor or a chartist, it is of great essence to understand the market cycles. No one wants to hold funds in a company whose shares are not appreciating. [Read More]

Previously, we barely had a single IPO getting into the market. That has changed.Our market capitalization recently hit the billion mark but that shouldn’t cause any excitement because with more and more IPOs, there will be a mixture of reactions- and not all will be smooth sailing. [Read More]

The higher interest rates charged for micro-loans are, in effect, insurance against default, a premium for the added risk. Despite these high interest rates, micro-loans still provide positive marginal benefits for borrowers. [Read More]

For those patriots out to see their country grow and reduce external borrowing, Treasury securities are a sure way to finance the government’s public spending budget. Investing in these securities is the best thing one can do to save money for the future and get an interest on it concurrently. [Read More]

Although activists do not come out strongly at the occurrence of such misfortunes in companies, there are expectations that such groupings will emerge as our markets get larger. [Read More]

Shareholders’ rights in insolvent companies are very minimal. They are hardly in a position to bargain with the creditors, especially when one considers that the management of the company is in the hands of the directors. [Read More]

As East Africa embraces electronic trading, we should understand that the tradition-bound world of securities trading is unlikely to be the same again. For one thing we are venturing into an unknown field and the pros and cons of this scheme of trading needs to be well thought-out. [Read More]

With automation and efficient market development, room for market manipulation is sealed and chances for quick gains will fade. This pushes the market into other investment options that could be more promising unlike shares. [Read More]

Through integration, the bargains in the African Stock return potential are even more eminent. Investors can take advantage of more listings and the underlying benefits from economies of scale. In addition, integration will make it possible to access a diversified source of external finance. [Read More]

An appropriate legal framework is absolute necessity for East African capital markets to be attractive to investors. Tenable rules and regulations are at the very root of efficient, orderly operation of our capital markets as they foster investors’ confidence and help mobilise unproductive savings. [Read More]

When part of a listed entity’s stake is owned by the government, the rest of the investors spend sleepless nights worrying over what decision the government is likely to take and how this will affect the company. [Read More]

Every company needs to know that it has access to capital markets beyond the geographical boundaries of their country and it can list in all the three East Africa capital markets. [Read More]

It’s important that an integrated capital market is pursued carefully and a diverse and competitive financial service industry that fosters innovation and growth of national economies is considered in each country. [Read More]

If you are an investor who values the worth of a business practice, you should only engage in activities that you wouldn’t be afraid to engage in on your own, given the power. [Read More]

The market is not a gamble but a good investment destination. Unlike the conventional business where we plan to make profit, losses, increase income or cut down expenses, you watch for the decisions that a company’s management makes to see how that works for the stock. [Read More]

Other than shy away from investing after the suspension of Uchumi, investors emerged stronger and ready to invest in a systemic way that would limit related losses. Investors are now interested in knowing the core businesses of the 47 listed companies. [Read More]

It is important to look at past trends of a company’s performance and how they translate to future projections. The need to incorporate the two has given rise to the combination of the price earnings and earnings growth. [Read More]

It is evident from all key players in the industry be it shareholders, dealers fund managers, the Nairobi stock exchange or the regulating body that there is a missing link between investors and the security options. This weakness has contributed to increased market inefficiencies which have been characterized by lack of or little research on the listed firms [Read More]

Very soon, listed firms will be too many to the extent that unlike currently where some firms will not record trades for an entire week, we will witness firms that do not record trades for even a whole month, but with lesser price fluctuations. [Read More]

Identifying your investment objectives will enable you determine what you want your money to do for you ranging from short term to mid term and long term. As the old adage goes, do not put all your eggs in one basket. It would be important to diversify one’s portfolio. [Read More]

For decades, Egypt has continued to act as a model stock market for Africa and has severally ranked among the top five global markets in terms of returns. Its model on regulation, trading, market dissemination and investor protection is a perfect model that other African markets could learn from- if they are to get even with the emerging markets. [Read More]

CMA has had its doors closed for too long. It is time they opened up because entrepreneurs, scholars, investors and the foreign investors are out there knocking. CMA should realize that before one goes to the market, he must be sure that he will not be welcomed by rioting vendors and idlers. [Read More]

The CMA takes the blame for our underdeveloped equity market. Whether they adopt an electronic trading system or not, nothing is likely to improve. It goes without saying that real growth should start from the root- the brokerage firms. [Read More]

As the market slowly readjusts from the Uchumi shutdown, we are bound to see more and more people turning from low cap stocks to high caps. In such a case, company’s management structures will stand a big test as investors take a cautious stand on what a good pick is and what to completely stay away from. [Read More]

Our markets are excluded from the major global trends mainly because of their size and poor corporate governance. This has not only weakened the organizations but hindered the management from getting proper personnel. [Read More]

An index must be accurate and effective. The NSE 20 Share index is by all means biased to stocks whose performance do not reflect high growth and emerging stocks. In addition, an index movement must correspond to all underlying price movements at the market for it to be accurate. Where there is no correspondence, cause may be as a result of the bias. This therefore misleads the parties who rely on the index for decision making. [Read More]

Most people put their money in a bank without knowing how the bank is performing and operating. They borrow money from a bank without knowing how the bank is performing. Many bank employees do not know how their own bank is performing. [Read More]

The issue in our markets today, just like in any of the global markets is; should we cash in on the market inefficiency or encourage professionalism and thorough market research that will move investors from trends to a solid and more grounded investing that has an inclination to long term positive gains? [Read More]

We must urgently figure out how we can use a reformed stock market to finance projects that can turn poverty into history. We can turn the traditional ‘Harambee’ (fundraising) into a stock investment system for low income earners. [Read More]

Whether the performance of KenGen in the stock market will prove its critics right or wrong, the publicity it has received does not warrant its success. Using fundamental analysis to make an investment buy or nay decision will leave many investors turning the deal down. [Read More]

As you put your fortune in this Initial Public Offering, it may pay out to check what the secondary market has to offer. As many investors divest with the hope of cashing in on Kengen, the low prices of other stocks may pay out if bought at their lows during this period. [Read More]

Although over diversifying can be dangerous, failure to diversify can lead to sleepless nights; especially if the share price tumbles. It is therefore advisable that one invests in different sectors of the economy while still being careful not to overdo. [Read More]

As African countries continue to transform, a key element of their reform agenda should be to legitimize property rights and entrench ownership across the broad spectrum of society. So far the reverse is the case. Unbalanced income distribution has bred severe inequality and abject poverty in Africa. [Read More]

One should not just look at dividends (income investing) as the sole reason to invest. They should keep in mind that dividends will not generally indicate a good company because they are paid out of a company’s net income that could otherwise have been channeled to retained earnings thus re-invested. [Read More]

Having a well defined macro-economic policy and a strong regulation system is most vital, whereas the policy shall enhance growth, the proper regulation mechanism will work to ensure crime rates are zeroed in and interest rates are kept at affordable lows [Read More]

To most Kenyans, the concern is not so much in the safety of funds; after all, the central bank has taken every measure to ensure that deposits are well taken care of. Most depositors are concerned about how much of deposits is going to the over the counter deposits. [Read More]

“Investors eyeing Africa should not look at the forest as a whole, but the trees that bear good fruit.” [Read More]

The global Information Technology (IT) trends are completely changing the way we execute business deals. With each new system, the weaknesses are always worse than the previous. The question is not whether we can stop it but whether we are able to adapt to changes. [Read More]

To the global economies, change entails embracing concepts that work, then nurturing them through the years. It entails picking the right strategies that help it achieve its goals. [Read More]

The fact is, the banking sector, despite the major reforms aimed at reaching out to the poor, and the MFIs, despite their niche approach, all seem to be leaving out a very productive sector of the economy- the less than dollar economy. [Read More]

The fact is, the banking sector, despite the major reforms aimed at reaching out to the poor, and the MFIs, despite their niche approach, all seem to be leaving out a very productive sector of the economy- the less than dollar economy. [Read More]

Availability of credit. Is that enough for a clueless mind, a mind that only knows debit and credit in the family setting and not in the business context? [Read More]

There is greater success in embracing financial education and worthwhile credit. Is your banker serving you right? If yes, you are truly a rich man, because the poor have no bankers. [Read More]

As people walk in the investment maze with the analysts yapping their buy and sell slogans on the trading floor, the market is really looking good, and more than ever before, this is the best time to turn to the stock market for financial indepedence. [Read More]

The development of the financial sector is crucial for growth, improved productivity, increased rate of investment and better savings rates. Is your bank big enough to survive the iceberg or is it headed for a downfall? [Read More]

A well-developed banking industry will subsequently contribute to economic development. The problem however is that the statistics over how capitalized the industry is, do not seem to get better. [Read More]

In the common investment game, a lot of us long for risk free return on investment, however, this is not possible. Such opportunities only existed in government securities that are limited to a certain income bracket. [Read More]

Managers undoubtedly need to expand their thinking in today’s environment and one way of achieving this is by assigning employees to work in different parts of the organizations throughout their careers. [Read More]

Like motorists who can afford new cars yet continue to drive jalopies, many African banks operate systems powered by obsolete technology, which have dwarfed their growth due to attendant high operating costs. [Read More]

There huge potential in the financial market, but it’s up to the banks to stretch out. If local banks alert the regulator, multinationals will grab both big and small fish, and we will only realize when the rivers have run dry. [Read More]

People have moved from huge saving to a fraction of their earnings. It’s worsened new loan products that force people to spend three-quarters of a lifetime servicing them. Long live the traditional African way of saving in property. [Read More]

There was a time in the 1990s when unemployment was the major problem facing Kenya, East Africa?s biggest economy. With confidence in the new government after the December 2002 elections, investor confidence rose with the regulation of interest rates. Sma [Read More]