Cash forecasting is essentially the process of collecting information on balances and future cashflows from business units and being able to consolidate them instantly. Why is it so difficult and is there a simple, pragmatic approach to make it easier? SANNA OUTA, chief operating officer at Exidio, looks at common mistakes and how to avoid them . I graduated from …

As part of its aim to create transparency in the trade finance marketplace, CMM publishes this report, prepared by CAROLINE MAGINN, Cash Management Matters, CMM trade partner. This research will be updated quarterly throughout the year and anticipates the full-year report for 2010, which will be released after annual reports are published by the banks in Saudi Arabia. In the …

This article, by DILRUKSHAN ABEYSINGHE, senior sales manager, payments and cash management HSBC Middle East, United Arab Emirates, provides an overview of current approaches and issues relating to cash management, specifically the management of working capital. Among the points it makes are the following: • Using supplier credit as a source of capital may seem cost-efficient but carries potential risks …

If a company has mismatched intercompany transactions, how can it trust its financial statements? This article, by KEITH HARRIS, explores some discussion points for the treasurer, finance director and, ultimately, the chief financial officer Consider a company whose “goods” are physical products or services that are bought and sold. One party is the producer and the other – the counterparty …

Philippe Arbadji, BNY Mellon’s vice president for treasury services, Levant region, and Dominic Broom , managing director, treasury services EMEA, recently hosted a roundtable featuring a number of senior trade and transaction banking professionals from across Lebanon and Jordan. In light of the views expressed, they discuss the future of the sector. While many banks in the West are seemingly …

Backed by structural advantages and robust fundamentals, the Middle East and Africa region is expected to record sustained GDP growth rates over the medium to longer term, Credit Suisse analysts said in July. Addressing participants at a Credit Suisse Research Roundtable, Kamran Butt, head of Middle East Equities Research at Credit Suisse, Private Banking, said, “In our view, stable oil …

There has been a significant decline in the number of corporate treasurers all over the world who think that the financial crisis is over, according to the EuroFinance Quarterly Global Business Confidence Survey, which also discovered a sharp increase in uncertainty about what lies ahead. The treasurers’ biggest challenge now is the difficulty in forecasting their cashflows. This has even …

In recognition of its continued leadership of regional capital markets transactions, Euromoney Magazine recently named Citi the “Best Equity House in the Middle East”. The regional award was part of Euromoney’s 2010 Awards for Excellence, considered to be among the most respected global awards for banking excellence. During 2009, a difficult year for local and regional capital markets, Citi led …

Capital Bank of Jordan has chosen EastNets, a provider of global compliance and payment solutions and services, to provide watchlist filtering and anti-money laundering control solutions. Haytham Kamhiyah, general manager, Capital Bank, said, “We decided to develop our current systems by adopting a new solution that is able to keep pace with developments taking place in the area of compliance, …

Talaris, an expert in cash handling technology, has released CashInsight Bridge, the latest software development in its portfolio of teller automation solutions, and CashInsight Assure, the new multi-vendor benchmark in teller connectivity software. CashInsight Bridge provides an advanced remote device management solution for improved performance and business intelligence. It can also help maximise asset value through central control and deployment …

The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) has announced that its total volume for 2010 surpassed the one million contracts mark on July 13, 2010, the earliest it had exceeded this milestone in any year since inception. Eric Hasham, chief executive officer of DGCX, said, “Topping the one million contracts mark in just over six months is further evidence of …

More than 100 corporate treasurers and senior finance professionals gathered in Dubai recently for the Universwiftnet conference, hosted jointly by HSBC Bank Middle East Ltd and SWIFT. Entitled The Future of Payment Systems, the discussions on the day were structured around three main themes: Think, Implement & Deploy. Attendees participated in activities that included panel discussions, presentations and case studies …

Small and medium-sized companies across the globe plan to increase capital expenditure (41 per cent), expand their workforces (26 per cent) and hold positive views about local economic growth (84 per cent), according to the HSBC Small Business Confidence Monitor. Shaun Wallis, global head of business management, HSBC Commercial Banking, said: “Our research indicates confidence levels across the globe and …

World trade has slowed by 3.5 per cent over the last quarter, according to the third edition of the Global Trade Flow Index by Capgemini Consulting. The report tracks trade by quarter based on the latest available official data from national agencies within the top 23 countries in the global trade arena. The index figures revealed growth of five per …

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has now opened in Iraq to help finance shortterm and medium-term sales of US exports to Iraqi buyers in both the public and private sectors. “Iraq’s economy is growing, offering specific opportunities for US exporters in a variety of industries, and Ex-Im Bank can help by reducing the repayment risk, especially …

More than 1400 contracts for various projects in Saudi Arabia were given the go-ahead during the first half of 2010. They were valued at more than 70bn Saudi riyals, according to the kingdom’s Ministry of Finance, which added that the contracts didn’t include those deals worth less than five million riyals or those that would take less than a year …