New Breed of investors

The report, Anticipating a New Age in Wealth Management, includes findings from PwC’s 2011 Global Private Banking and Wealth Management Survey and shows that new competitors are challenging the dominance of established firms.

It also reveals that the impact of new regulations and more demanding client expectations are forcing private banks and wealth managers to change their client service infrastructures and the way they operate. Those who can master change will be in a position to win increased market share and lead the industry, says PwC.
 

Regulation has become the not so invisible hand, increasing the cost of operations while greater operational efficiency and effectiveness are required, not just to compete but to survive in the changing market place.

The report says that standing still is no longer an option and institutions must now quickly adapt or face being left behind.

New IT Solution for Banks

Smart phones and tablet devices now outnumber personal computers 

At the start of 2011, the number of smart phones and tablet devices sold outstripped the number of desktop and portable personal computers. Sales of smart phones and tablets are expected to more than double by 2013. This trend places entirely new demands on how to deliver internet-based services for Norwegian consumers, and many of the solutions currently in use will have to be redesigned. This also affects traditional internet banking. A group of technology specialists at the Norwegian IT company EDB ErgoGroup has been working for some time on developing the next generation of internet banking for mobile phones. The new solution, known as Mobilbank 2, has been developed to anticipate the way that that EDB ErgoGroup expects customers to use their handheld devices looking 2-3 years ahead. The company's work anticipates the rapid spread of handheld devices. "Development work in this area is no longer driven by traditional internet banking. We now think of mobile banking first rather than the other way round", explains Ann Merethe Lysø Sommerseth.

The new solution uses graphic elements and visualisation to give banking customers an entirely new experience of mobile banking. EDB ErgoGroup has chosen to turn its back on the most widespread approach to development in this area over recent years, which has involved adapting "native apps" for handheld devices. It has instead developed Mobilbank 2 as a web application based on web technology using HTML5. This makes it possible to develop a single solution for all types of mobile phone. It has also made it possible to develop an entirely new user interface.

"We think that future trends will increasingly favour web applications. Using web applications means that the entire value chain, from customer and supplier through to developer, no longer needs to deal with a range of different applications and adaptations depending on which type of telephone and operating system is used. With web applications, the lead time from the start of development to delivery of a new product is much shorter, and the entire development process is more cost effective", explains Ann Merethe Lysø Sommerseth.

"When touch phones such as the iPhone and Android came onto the market, they changed the way we use our mobile phones. This means that banks also need to respond to the new ways these devices are used. We have paid a lot of attention to the user experience in our development work", says Ann Merethe Lysø Sommerseth. She goes on to explain that EDB ErgoGroup has now developed a solution that is at the leading edge in terms of interactive design. This technology has so far typically been used for entertainment applications, but it is also perfect for banking services.

Singapore set to become top private banking center

Hi guys, I have recently been rejected from the double degree programme, despite obtaining straight As for my first year in the University.


However, I will use all my strength and concentrate into banking from now onwards.


Hence, I will be reading a lot of articles to keep track of where banking is heading both in Singapore and globally so that I will be able to perform in future interviews as well as in my work next time.


So I will kick start with this short article below.


Enjoy

SINGAPORE will become the world's top wealth management centre by 2013, thanks to growth in emerging markets, and the decline of Switzerland and London in the wake of tougher regulations.

The findings came from a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report out yesterday that pointed to the changing balance of power in financial markets.

It said Singapore will leapfrog both European centres in the next two years, with Hong Kong in third spot behind Switzerland and ahead of London.

The findings in PwC's Global Private Banking and Wealth Management report were based on a survey of wealth managers and private bankers between December last year and April. The questionnaires were completed by 275 institutions in 67 countries - 62 per cent from Europe, 24 per cent from the Americas and 14 per cent from Asia-Pacific.

'For many years, we have asked respondents to indicate which financial centres they viewed as the main wealth management and private banking hubs,' PwC said. 'The historical answer was Switzerland, London and New York. This is now changing. This year, we asked our ranking question again, but we also explored the impact of increased regulation.

'In response to increased regulatory pressures, our respondents see Switzerland, London and, to a lesser extent, New York all being challenged by the rise of Singapore and Hong Kong in the coming two years.'

Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) is advising clients to avoid delaying investment decisions for Russia until it becomes clear who will be the next president in elections in March.

“There’s not a lot of wisdom to wait,” said Christopher Barter, co-chief executive officer for Goldman’s Russia unit, at a conference in St. Petersburg today. “Our advice to clients who think there could be a dramatic change is not to wait. The opportunities are enormous and valuations are very attractive.”

I think this is a really good point by Goldman Sachs, don't ever let any opportunities slip due to delays.

While there is good reason to wait to see who is going to be elected as President (mainly because every Presidents have their own perspectives on where they think the economy is heading and which industry to invest in). Say for example, if the President is interested in oil, then the oil investors will definitely be investing massively into Russia and conversely, if the President is interested in banking, then of course, all the banks will head towards Russia.

However, Goldman's advice on how people should not delay their investments is an ideal solution. Particularly when the Russian market is so lucrative and attractive now, one should not wait because it might just turn around in a split second if you miss the opportunity. 

The market is so dynamic that it is almost impossible to follow closely to it and to be able to predict all the trends is even more of an arduous tasks.

Nevertheless, Goldman too recommend investors to not just look at Russia but also to look at the market of China because it is pretty stable now and it is going stronger since it is continuously storing up reserves and currencies of other countries.

Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan are definitely 2 top employers in the field of investment banking and I'm definitely very interested to join them in the near future. Of course, the remunerations are extremely attractive but they will only take the best of the best so this definitely presents a massive challenge to me. Nonetheless, I will continue to work hard in my studies and hopefully one day, make a name for myself.