Global news and insight for corporate financial professionals
Activist Investing | Trends
Vanguard CEO William McNabb is making it plain that he wants the many public companies in which the world’s second-largest fund management firm owns significant minority stakes to take Vanguard as seriously as they take activist investors.
Proxy Voting | Management
Proxy advisory firm ISS updated its proxy voting guidelines last fall to introduce a more detailed approach to the recommendations it makes on companies’ equity plans and shareholder proposals for an independent chairman. The changes could create uncertainty for companies during this year’s proxy season.
Regulatory uncertainty, technological change and traders behaving badly have collided in a perfect storm for banks’ foreign exchange operations
UK Corporate Tax | Trends
Britain likely will succeed in taxing multinational companies at a 25% rate on their UK operations beginning in April, without violating international tax treaties, analysts say, but tensions are rising between countries on suspicions that MNCs are engaging in global tax evasion.
George Osborne, Chancellor of the exchequer in the United Kingdom unveils the outline of a “Google tax”.
Last year ended with a data breach of the US retailer Target, this year "The Sony Hack". What will 2015 hold for cyberattacks and cybersecurity?
US & China | Milestones
“This is a major milestone in the US-China relationship, and it shows what’s possible when we work together on an urgent global challenge.”
European Banking | Trends
The degree to which the recent stress tests of big European banks by EU regulators lack credibility is becoming clear.
Website design is becoming more important than ever, particularly in areas such as ease of use, security features, integrated functions and aesthetics.
At a roundtable in Istanbul in September, leading figures from Turkish banks, including the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Turkey, came together to discuss developments in the economy and financial sector.
China | Milestones
China will allow foreign firms to increase their ownership stakes in encouraged sectors and enter into previously protected industries, according to investment guidelines drafted by the National Development and Reform Commission.
Global Finance held its 18th Annual Best Banks Awards ceremony in Washington in October—during the Annual IMF/World Bank conference. Honorees from around the world were present to accept their awards.
Hungary | Milestones
Hungary has witnessed the biggest street protests since the current right-wing government came to power in 2010, against the government’s plans to tax Internet traffic, the world’s first such levy.
Vatican | Newsmakers
René Brülhart, known as the “James Bond of the financial world” for his high-profile role in cases such as the return of assets from Saddam Hussein to post-war Iraq and the uncovering of the Siemens bribery scandal, has become chairman of the Vatican’s anti-money-laundering unit.
Seeking A New Paradigm | Emerging Markets Growth
To ascertain whether emerging markets is an obsolete term, we must first understand what it means.
Middle East | Emerging Markets Regional Review
The drop in oil prices is likely to affect public spending in the rentier states of the Persian Gulf, and pressure is mounting on governments to reduce economic dependency on hydrocarbons.
Pakistan | Frontier Markets Focus
Pakistan’s ability to attract both foreign direct and domestic investment fell dramatically during the past decade. Some of the reasons why still apply.
Shareholder Activism | Management
Shareholder activism—when investors in a company use their equity as a lever to pressure management—is booming and will grow dramatically on both sides of the Atlantic through mid-2016
Annual Awards
In the final installment of a two-part series, Global Finance recognizes the best corporate/institutional and consumer Internet banks globally and in six regions, as well as an overall winner. We spotlight the financial institutions around the world that are leading the way in digital banking services that generate strong business results.
Corporate Tax | Management
Approximately 500 American companies operate in Argentina—but on November 3 that number abruptly decreased by one as the country’s tax authority, the Administración Federal de Ingresos Públicos (AFIP) revoked the company’s registration, accusing P&G of tax and accounting fraud.