The Middle East has seen a massive surge in aviation industry growth. At the start of the 1990s, the region operated 218 aircraft with 100-plus seats and, by the beginning of this year, 875 had taken to the skies. MELANIE LOVATT looks at what made it all take-off and how it’s funded Record orders for new aircraft have been placed …

In looking at the wholesale transaction-banking imperative, STEFAN DAB, senior partner and managing director, The Boston Consulting Group, looks at getting business models and execution right Current market dynamics are pointing increasingly to wholesale transaction banking as a key lever for improving return on equity in the global banking industry. In 2012, wholesale transaction-banking revenues were about $220bn, or roughly …

  As it becomes a strategic hub for rising intra-emerging market trade flows, the Middle East is at an inflection point in its development. BNY Mellon’s Bana Akkad Azhari assesses the effect of evolving trade patterns on the region’s transaction banking provision and the role local-global bank collaboration can play in navigating the changes Trade is synonymous with the Middle …

Overall, corporate banking and trade finance in Saudi Arabia had a record quarter in Q1 2013, against all key measures following a bumper year in 2012 for the fifth consecutive year. CAROLINE MAGINN, trade partner at CMM, presents some KSA Tajara Monitor extracts Further to a bumper year in 2012 when, whilst banks were prudent against a backdrop of evolving …

The Arab Spring countries are said to need billions of dollars to see them through “transition”. MUSHTAK PARKER looks at international efforts to help them No-one really knows how much financing is required to fund recovery and reconstruction in the so-called Arab Spring countries, euphemistically known by governments and multilateral development agencies as “countries in transition”. The countries in question …

A two day Summit focused on trade financing to be hosted in Riyadh on December 10th -11th 2013  October 29, 2013: The demand for trade finance is rising in Saudi Arabia as the Kingdom’s non oil exports hit 51,536 million Riyals for the second quarter in 2013, an increase of 6.3 percent in comparison to the same period last year. The Kingdom’s imports for the second quarter of 2013 also saw an increase …

Republic of Mozambique Joins ICIEC The Republic of Mozambique has recently acceded to the membership of Aa3 rated Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), member of Islamic Development Bank Group. This brings the number of member countries to 41, and several other members countries from Organization Islamic Cooperation (OIC) are in the process of completing …

October 22, 2013 EastNets, a leading global provider of compliance and payments solutions for the Financial Services industry, is pleased to announce it has been named a finalist for the 2013 Global Custodian Awards for Excellence in the Compliance award category. EastNets’ suite of top ranking compliance solutions helps financial institutions meet regulatory requirements, mitigate money laundering and terrorist financing …

New Growth Opportunities for Islamic Finance in Africa to be Explored at the 2nd Annual Islamic Banking Summit Africa (IBSA 2013) More than 25 high-profile international speakers including H. E. Ismail Omar Guelleh, President of the Republic of Djibouti, to share critical insights on overcoming the challenges and capturing the growth potential for Islamic finance in Africa Djibouti, 22nd October …

OCTOBER 2013 Significant liquidity potential to be exploited in manufacturing, wholesale and logistics sectors in Central Europe, reveals Demica’s new research Significant liquidity could be released for supplier companies based in Central Europe through Supply Chain Finance (SCF), according to the latest research from Demica, a technological specialist for working capital solutions. Its new study reveals that SCF programmes could …

London, October 9th, 2013 Societe Generale announces the appointment of Benoit Desserre as head of Payments & Cash Management with the Global Transaction Banking division. He replaces Alain Grugé who has been appointed as a regional head of Societe Generale retail bank in France. Benoit Desserre reports to Christian Behaghel, head of the Global Transaction Banking division. In his new …

Statistics reveal a 23 percent increase over same period last year  UAE, October 9, 2013 – Recent statistics revealed by Dubai Smart Government show more than AED 4 billion was generated through ePay in the first nine months of 2013, which is a 23% increase, compared to the same period last year. ePay enables customers to electronically pay their bills and …

Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain: 1st October 2013: More than 250 leading players, key regulators and thought leaders in the regional Islamic insurance industry will be gathering on the 7th and 8th of October 2013 at the Gulf Hotel in Kingdom of Bahrain, for the 2nd Annual Middle East Takaful Forum (METF 2013). Held under the theme “Adapting to Change: Fresh …

Brussels –  30 September 2013 – SWIFT, the financial messaging provider for more than 10,000 financial institutions and corporations in 212 countries, today announced that it has donated €35,300 (AED 176,500) to local charity the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children (DFWAC),as part of its activities during the company’s 35th annual Sibos Conference. A conference, exhibition and networking event organised by SWIFT …

Monday 30th September 2013 Invesco launches Global Sovereign Investor Model – a framework for understanding sovereign investor investment objectives and preferences Perceived quality of shareholder protection is a key driver of sovereign home market asset allocations in the West Latin American governments fear of ‘Dutch disease’ and have a preference for international investing Economies of UK and Continental Europe are …