Mobile Money: A Tale of Two Countries

Mobile Money is a developing platform that started as a payment service from your mobile and is now evolving into a platform to include other financial services. You can access your money anytime, anywhere without having to go to a traditional bank. This is widely used in the UK but for low-income people in other countries, it can be the lifeline they need. The low-income population in some countries are also known as the ‘un-banked’. The ‘un-banked’ do not have access to a bank account and, therefore, no access to the services offered through a bank. With mobile money opening the door for those in need of banking services, it is becoming more and more of a necessity. It can empower the unbanked population by providing basic financial services and financial inclusion. This can help businesses grow and make trade easier.

We will look at two countries in Africa to investigate the best mobile solutions. Kenya is the largest economy in East Africa. Nigeria is the largest economy in West Africa, and in Africa as a whole. You would think that, due to the economic standings in Africa, these countries would have similar experiences with using mobile technology but these 2 countries have experienced very different outcomes when it comes to the Mobile Money industry.

Kenya’s mobile money is being led by the telecom industry and has had great success. Safaricom entered the market in 2007 and invested in a strong infrastructure, including an awareness campaign. The ownership of mobile phones by the ‘un-banked’ led Safaricom to be the leader of the industry. Safaricom can even facilitate a limited range of loans, savings, insurance products as well as financial transactions. The platform is used by many in Kenya, not just the poor, ‘un-banked’ population.

While Nigeria also has a large ‘un-banked’ population and heavy use of mobile devices, the experience is quite different from Kenya. This is basically due to it being based on a ‘bank-led’ model rather than a telecommunications model like Kenya’s mobile money model. In fact, the telecommunication companies in Nigeria have been restricted to providing the infrastructure for Mobile Money, through which bank services can be offered. The Nigerian Central Bank (NCB) has heavily legislated the mobile money industry, making it less attractive. They claim that they have done this to avoid money laundering and also due to concerns about a loss of control. All of this control and restrictions on the telecommunications industry has left little incentive for them to be proactive in offering services. Even MTN, a South African telecommunication company with successful Mobile Money platforms in a number of other countries has fallen into difficulties with the Nigerian Government.

This model in Nigeria is doing the population a disservice and the numbers show this as fact. In 2014 a survey indicated that only 0.8 million adults use mobile money. This is in a population of approximately 178 million. Nigeria now needs to catch up, otherwise the unbanked population will be suffering the consequences of not having basic financial services for years to come.

What is Big Data and How Does It Impact Currency Movement

Transferring money globally might seem to have simple and basic reasons behind them, but on further inspection each transfer tells a story. It is the story behind the transfer that can help build innovative technology to improve the system. We, in the UK, are becoming more aware of the unbanked people around the globe. Living in the UK you becomes accustomed to all of the services at our fingertips, whether it be on a mobile or in a traditional bank but we need to understand that not all countries have such luxuries. There are many people around the world who do not have access to banks or financial services – we refer to them as the unbanked.

By using big data, money transfer companies can gain valuable insights as to why, when, and how these transfers are initiated. Big data encompasses the whole story. Identifying patterns is the job for the big data industry, from timestamps, device information, or even the location the transfer took place at. One may think that, as long as there is not a problem, the customer will keep using their current supplier and if there is a problem, they will let the company know. That is not always the case and customers can be lost without the company ever knowing why they stopped.

Big data collects all of the information it can. Some is relevant and some may not be. That is when smart data comes into play. The data collected can be turned into smaller points of interest or focus. It helps to connect the company to their consumers. Feeling like a person, and not just another number, to the company they deal with is empowering for the consumer and helps to build brand loyalty. A company with a vast number of customers can add a personal touch to their outreach to customers, making the customer feel important and have a better user experience. Companies who truly value their customer’s loyalty will engage in big data and smart data to ensure they retain their customer base as well as grow it.

The possibilities are endless and using a big data company with experience in understanding the application of this data for your company is a smart way of doing business.

Five EU Nations Are Starting to Work Together

The Panama Papers have proven to be a significant source of controversy in the European union. Given the relatively worrisome state of the EU economy, it should come as no surprise that members of the general public are outraged when information regarding tax havens, currency exchange, and secret accounts amongst members of the political class is leaked. In response to this anger, representatives from the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain have recently announced that they will be launching a collaborative effort to crack down on the growth of secretive financial dealings amongst affluent business leaders and politicians. This five-nation coalition has initiated a new data sharing initiative which, it is hoped, will ensure that business owners are held accountable for the appropriate amount of taxes they should be required to pay by law.

The implications of this collaboration are quite significant. Most importantly, it sets a new precedent by which these five nations are hoping to encourage the remaining members of the G20 to adopt similar disclosure methods. As a point of reference, it is important to note that G20 members such as the United States, Saudi Arabia and China do not currently allow for the disclosure of citizens’s tax information. This has made accountability a particularly elusive measure, and has helped to stoke tensions between nations seeking to increase their tax revenue by cracking down on corruption and illicit dealings.

In a statement regarding the induction of these new policies, British Chancellor George Osborne proclaimed, “Today we deal another hammer blow against those who hide their illegal tax evasion in the dark corners of the financial system…Britain will work with our major European partners to find out who really owns the secretive shell companies and trusts that have been used as conduits for evading tax, laundering money and benefitting from corruption.”

Although the UK and its four partner nations are, obviously, taking these measures quite seriously, many experts remain skeptical that these measures will produce long-lasting, substantial reform in either tax or currency exchange issues. International coalitions operate at peak efficiency when a large number of partner nations agree to collaborate. At the moment, the reach of these new policies remains quite narrow. With that in mind, tax evasion will likely continue to remain a serious problems for the foreseeable future. It is the hope of Osborne and others, however, that these new policies will provide a symbolic and tangible victory for government regulators.

What Software as a Service Is and How It Can Help You

Software as a Service, also known as SaaS, is an application delivery system over the internet. E-mail was one of the first application offered in this manner. For business, the early innovations were things like recruitment, customer relations management, and expenses. SaaS has become a widely-used business model with more and more different kinds of applications available via the cloud.

The ability to get applications up and running very quickly is one of the attractions of SaaS. In-house IT projects can be quite complex and can take a lot of time to set up and implement. A major credit card company’s head of marketing was “like a kid in a candy store when told it would take only five weeks to get a cloud application running. IT had originally quoted 18 months”, according to the Harvard Business Review.

Using packaged or in-house software means that you have to shop around and evaluate, purchase, install, keep secure, maintain, and regularly upgrade. This places an added burden on your IT team, with the possibility of projects getting back-logged and not done on time. Integration of the various applications could be tricky and time consuming. SaaS comes as a relief.

SaaS keeps growing and more businesses are turning to this model for their applications. The growing use of mobiles in business has taken great advantage of Software as a Service. You no longer have to be in the office to be able to access your work. The increase in the standard internet connectivity speeds makes working remotely a lot easier these days. Files can be synced, as well, so when you return to the office you can continue on your computer as if you had never left.

The standardisation of digital technologies makes it easier to integrate and share cloud-based programs and services. These common protocols allow users to work on multiple devices, all the while having a better experience. More and more users are happy to work in this way thanks to the familiarity, usability and simplicity of web-like environments.

Having no software or hardware to purchase, install, maintain or update makes SaaS very attractive to many businesses. As a user, there’s little to do until you actually start using the software. Familiar web-based interfaces is a major draw to SaaS, building on the consumer web that users already know. Updates are often made regularly so there is no need to put IT resources into maintenance. The ability to work, in real time, either remotely or with others who are located elsewhere is a big draw for businesses towards SaaS.

As computing systems increase in sophistication and power, SaaS has kept pace, moving up from simple single applications and becoming a practical approach for large or enterprise-scale solutions. The benefits of SaaS are many. The service costs are scaled, depending on the size of your business and the number of applications you need and the number of people who will be working on them. If you have offices across the country or the globe, everyone in your company can access the same applications and the same data, at the same time.

The future of SaaS will see even more growth in the industry. The cloud approach can help companies develop end-to-end integrated solutions and allow them to concentrate on what they do best, leaving a wide range of hardware and software IT issues to service providers. Long-term relationships with SaaS will grow and the input from you, their customers, will help to make Software as a Service even better. Understanding customer’s needs and being able to deliver solutions is placing SaaS as the go-to service for many businesses.

Keeping an Eye on the Pound

The pound is still floating around, not performing well, ever since the triggering of Article 50. It may be a long time before stability is seen and investors feel comfortable investing more. Brexit is still playing heavily on the pound, as is politics around the world, and the uncertainty that these bring has kept the already low pound under pressure.

It seems the pressure on the pound comes from many directions and numerous other countries. Even North Korea, with its missile testing, is affecting how investors interact with the pound. Since the euro is in a stronger, more stable position than the pound, investments seem to be centred more on it than the riskier Sterling. The euro, though, is rallying through all of the uncertainty.

Britain’s construction sector is a good example of how investment slumps can do harm to a sector and the pound. Growth in the construction sector hit a one-year low this month. It was hurt by an investment slump in the commercial sector as Brexit uncertainty weighed in. Data from other dominant service sectors will be very important for attempting to predict where the pound will fall.

Prime Minister Theresa May failed to win a clear mandate at a snap election in June and only has a slim majority in parliament that rests on an agreement with a smaller party. She remains vulnerable if pro-European lawmakers in her Conservative party team up with other parties to vote down legislation or support amendments. Prime Minister Theresa May warned lawmakers over the weekend that Britain could be faced with a Brexit “cliff edge” if they failed to back her EU repeal bill, which is to be debated in parliament on Thursday.

It is being speculated that there is a likelihood of a general election as Brexit talks wrap up late next year. The possibility of another general election and the uncertainty of Brexit, along with other political happenings are all combining to pressure the pound and we’ll have to watch closely as it navigates the political turmoil.

Developing E-Commerce for Your Business

It appears that Britons love their online shopping. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the UK out-shops the US, Germany and France when it comes to online shopping. This is encouraging for businesses starting out in the virtual world on commerce. Whether your business is already established as a bricks and mortar presence or you’re just starting a new business that will be strictly online, knowing that there is a strong customer-base online is one less thing to worry about.

So the e-commerce sector is thriving and you know it’s a good time to set-up your online store but now you have to decide how you’re going to go about choosing the right platform for your needs, The good news is that you don’t have to have any knowledge of HTML, graphics applications or know your Flash from your PNG files, as today e-commerce can be as easy as filling in a few online forms. The hard part is deciding among the many options you have.

There are numerous questions you must ask yourself before jumping into the e-commerce world. Do you want to have your site on your own server or use a hosted application? Many stand by the saying of ‘why reinvent the wheel’. A good point, considering all of the options out there that have been tried and tested. Do you want complete control over every aspect of your online store? If so, you’ll have to be confident in your abilities, or those of someone you hire, to ensure you stay up-to-date while allowing a great shopping experience for your customers.

Security for your customers is very important. Always ensure that your site uses SSL (Secure Socket Layer), which is the industry standard for online payments. You will also want a shopping cart software that is fast and efficient. Security and ease of use is one of the top experiences that online shoppers desire. In this virtual shopping world, your customer can visit another online store with a few clicks of their mouse.

There has been a steady expansion of the packaged e-commerce application over the last few years. Most of the well-know applications now offer a full set of e-commerce tools you can use to construct and manage a professional e-commerce site. Before deciding which route to take, make sure to shop around and ask the right questions of every business you speak with. At the end of the day you want an e-commerce site that is professional, secure, easily updated, and is customer-friendly. Your business is counting on it and so are your customers.

Due Diligence Required to Avoid Money Laundering Companies

Money laundering is the term used when someone transforms the profits of crime or corruption into legitimate funds. It got its name from turning ‘dirty money’ into ‘clean money’ through various channels, including money exchange. There are certain day-to-day responsibilities a business must abide by in order to avoid being an unwilling participant in money laundering. There are customer due diligence measures, along with internal controls and monitoring systems that you must have in place.

The regulations surrounding the responsibilities of businesses in regards to money laundering are based on the size and scope of the business. The UK government website has all of the details laid out and it would be wise to read the material they have so that your business is in line and acting accordingly. This article gives a rough view of these regulations, but it is not exhaustive nor is it to be construed as a guideline.

One of the main areas that needs to be controlled is customer due diligence. You’ll need to apply this due diligence when: you establish a business relationship, you suspect money laundering or terrorist financing, you have doubts about identification information you obtained previously, or when an existing customer’s circumstances change. There are monetary markers or thresholds that you must be aware of, as well. Even if you only carry out the occasional transaction in your business, customer due diligence is still necessary.

Customer due diligence means taking steps to identify your customers and checking they are who they say they are. In practice this means obtaining a customer’s name, a photograph on an official document which confirms their identity, their residential address and their date of birth. Asking for a government issued document like a passport is a good start. You will also have to ask for documents that confirm they reside at the address they give you. This can be in the form of a utility bill or bank statement that has been sent to their address, in their name. If you have doubts about a customer’s identity, you shouldn’t deal with them until those doubts have been assuaged.

Enhance due diligence is necessary in cases where, for instance, the customer isn’t physically present or where the customer is another Money Service Business. When the customer is trying to do business with you online, they are not physically present. In our global world, this is not uncommon but enhanced due diligence is necessary to ensure you are not getting yourself involved in a money laundering scheme. To safeguard yourself and your business you must obtain further information to establish the customer’s identity. You should also apply extra measures to check documents supplied by a credit or financial institution. Finding out where funds have come from and what the purpose of the transaction is, is common sense and good practice.

If you find yourself dealing with another money service business, you need to seriously consider applying enhanced due diligence. This situation presents a higher risk of money laundering or terrorist financing because the money you receive will be a ‘bulk transfer’ representing a collection of underlying transactions placed with your customer. The extent of enhanced due diligence measures you apply should be based on the risk and circumstances of each case.

Internal controls and monitoring systems are a must for your business. Creating an anti-money laundering policy, including what controls and procedures are in place to prevent money laundering, provides a good framework. Keeping this document updated, and your employees trained on what they should be looking for, will help to secure your business from the risks of money laundering. Ensure that your business is compliant by visiting the UK government website and carrying out a risk assessment. You can keep your business safe by following these rules and regulations.

Great British Pound currency rate forecast for 2016

For those who follow currency news, it is, perhaps, restating the obvious that the British pound has been through its fair share of highs and lows in recent months as the Brexit vote draws ever closer. It doesn’t taken advanced currency exchange software to realise that the currency markets are in a period of turmoil. As polls continue to demonstrate a constantly shifting balance of influence between the ‘remain’ and ‘leave’ camps, the pound has sent for-eign exchange traders down a rabbit hole of frantic phone calls and urgent conversations with clients.

As we saw in the opening days of June, the pound was unable to achieve the bullish start that analysts had hoped for. As the ‘leave’ camp gained greater traction amongst voters, ex-change traders were hesitant to buy into the currency due to the potential for massive de-clines in the short term. That being said, a variety of metrics have been issued recently, such as the May Construction and Services PMIs, which may help to offset the negative effects of Brexit-inspired political and economic insecurity.

Perhaps yet another reason that the pound has been unable to shake off the shadow of Brex-it is due to the fact that typical campaigning methods used by politicians and political estab-lishments – such as the Bank of England – have failed to impress voters who have long ago grown cynical regarding their own representatives. Although outright fear-mongering on be-half of both parties has helped to serve as a ‘brute force’ influencer on some undecided vot-ers, the fact remains that deeply held convictions regarding immigration, economic produc-tivity, and a general sense of British identity will determine how this vote ends, not the base-less pandering of lobbyists and other promoters.

Of course, the pound will also be affected by various news being reported out of the US, in-cluding the monthly non-farm payroll data. Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen has indicated that any move to raise interest rates in the short-term will likely be influenced and moulded by the outcome of Brexit, which is reasonable given the extent to which either outcome will in-fluence the economy. Those hoping to stay abreast of current rates can do so using any one of several industry standard currency exchange software packages.

The differences between an online forex software to broker forex

Trying to introduce a newly minted investor to the forex marketplace can be quite challenging. Unlike standardised stock exchanges, the world of foreign exchange is a dynamic, round-the-’clock affair, filled with a sophisticated array of strategies and tactics which contain their fair share of risk and reward. In today’s investing environment, there are two predominant forms of forex trading, those being online forex software and broker-managed forex accounts. Depending upon your previous experience with forex and your level of interest in the day-to-day workings of your forex holdings, each of these two forms of trading may be a perfect match for your needs. With that in mind, we’ve taken the time to outline the key differences between these two platforms in order to help you determine what your next steps should be.

On a very basic level, the primary difference between a broker-managed forex account and online forex software is the level of oversight by investment professionals. As could be expected, broker-managed accounts are managed exclusively by a seasoned foreign exchange broker. In exchange for expert-level advice, casual investors will be required to pay their broker through either a commission basis or recurring fee. Although this will likely reduce profits over time, it’s important to note that the overall gains secured through this form of collaboration may exceed those obtained by a casual investor with little to no knowledge of the forex marketplaces who chooses to manage their own account.

For those who feel very comfortable with the fine details of the forex marketplace, forex online software will likely prove to be an excellent alternative to a broker managed account. Using forex online software, investors can access virtually all of the data that brokers rely upon to make their strategic decisions for clients. Although investors who choose to rely on software instead of a broker will likely be unable to solicit advice from investment professionals, they will also be the exclusive recipient of their profits. This is a significant advantage which will most appeal to those with extensive experience in this marketplace.

Regardless of where you may find yourself in the process of determining whether to hire a broker or become your own day trader, it’s worth taking the time to download all available trials of forex online software so that you can better assess the current state of the industry. We wish you the best of luck in your investment endeavours!

Exchange Rate Forecast for GBP Post-Brexit

It should come as no surprise that recent developments in British politics have proven to be a catalyst for significant fluctuations across a wide array of financial markets. The GBP has proven itself to be particularly sensitive to a post-Brexit reality, with a dramatic free fall in currency value occurring as the vote began to swing towards a Brexit victory. Now that the vote has passed and lawmakers have vowed to heed the will of the people on this issue, the next step for the British government is to trigger the much-discussed Article 50, which will kick off a two-year process of formal negotiation before the UK is no longer an EU member. Precise-ly when Article 50 will be executed however, is unknown, and this is uncertainty is keeping the GBP in rather tepid water as investors remain hesitant as to whether or not a re-investing is in their best interest. Although currency exchange software is not, in itself, a source of knowledge or advice, the charts for recent GBP activity found in these programs will provide no short supply of drama and suspense.

This is not to say, however, that the GBP has not regained some its value since hitting a mul-ti-decade low the day after the vote was completed. In fact, it could be viewed as some form of optimism that the GBP was able to weather as well as it did not only the Brexit results, but also the sudden resignation of David Cameron, a credit downgrade, and bitter infighting amongst members of Parliament. With this in mind, it seems reasonable to assume that, alt-hough progress may be slow, the GBP will continue to regain value as the world comes to grips with the new face of the EU and a starkly independent Britain.

In the more immediate future, many fx investors are waiting to see if the Bank of England opts to pursue a rate cut as a means to encourage business growth and investment in this critical time. Monetary policy easing is definitely one method by which supports can be erected to prop up the GBP and ensure that future declines will be limited in scope. At the moment, the GBP is hovering comfortably at 1.32 GBP / USD. Although many professionals are somewhat bearish regarding future price movements, it is widely acknowledged that the Bank of England pending announcements will significantly influence both short and long-term pricing. Those with currency exchange software are advised to watch the GBP closely in the upcoming weeks.

Category: Money Transfer Software