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PORSCHE TAYCAN

The sports car re-imagined with sustainability in mind

Editor’s Note

2022 begins as a year of change, restrictions begin to ease while the pandemic is almost controlled. Changes are also taking place in the socio-political scenario with the current crisis of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which is keeping the world on edge. What will this conflict bring to investors? It is soon to say but consequences seem to be devastating.

In this edition the focus lies on crypto and the way it is changing the world, we discuss the biggest problem it has and how it affects investors (p.32). We also navigate the world of cryptocurrencies with Nigel Green awarded with financial CEO of the year (p.14). He shares how deVere becomes a pioneer crypto app that permits users to store, transfer and exchange all major cryptocurrencies.

The UAE is the second largest economy in the Middle East and one of the best places in the world to do business. Mohamed Al Dhaheri, Acting Executive Director of the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) shares the benefits of doing business in Abu Dhabi (p.71). Sustainability is another matter in this year’s agenda, Porsche Taycan shows how to reimagine a car with sustainability in mind (p.74)

We receive this new year with many winners, whom we congratulate and thank. International Investor would not be possible without you (p.84)

Balancing tradition with innovation produces excellence

Cornèr Bank a consummate developer of new, groundbreaking financial products

22 CAPITAL 3PM’s fixed income investment opportunities

Capital 3PM has created opportunities that are distributed across 45 different countries

14 Interview with Nigel Green, financial CEO of the year

CEO of deVere Group, one of the world’s largest fintech organisations

18 Access Bank leading for sustainability

Sustainability is at the heart of our business

UNIFIN leading Mexico’s operational leasing sector

UNIFIN offers operational leasing, factoring, structured loans and insurance solutions

Interview with Kamyar Naficy, Founder of KNECTCOMMS

Financial services firms need to manage their brand in a fast-changing world 32 The Biggest Problem With Cryptocurrency

How This Affects You The world of cryptocurrency presents a plethora of opportunities

Arca Fondi a pioneer Asset Manager in Italy

Arca

Financial Inclusion In Africa - Is It Possible?

Finance in Africa improving for individuals and small businesses looking

Luxembourg – The Global Fund Centre

Luxembourg investment funds started the year on the back of a new record high

Fope Oluleye building organisations with innovation, ambition and dynamism

Fope has had experience in building ground-breaking companies from the age of 21

Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) shares the benefits of doing business in Abu Dhabi

The UAE is the second largest economy and one of the best places in the world to do business.

Bybit Celebrates RecordBreaking Growth

Bybit has achieved 99.9% uptime and with one of the highest open interests and lowest slippages

Porsche Taycan: the sports car re-imagined with sustainability in mind

Porsche is producing an all-electric vehicle that would be entire carbon neutral

Balancing Tradition with Innovation Produces Excellence

Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Ltd. Receives International Recognition

Change has been the one constant over the last two years as the entire world was forced into transformation. Amidst those changes were clarion calls for innovation; and while change is inevitable and a constant as day leads to day, innovation takes a willful and purposeful movement. Innovators do not wait for winds of change to blow, they find new ways to fill their sails.

It is no wonder then that Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Ltd., a consummate developer of new, groundbreaking financial products, finds itself atop the podium once again, having been awarded Best Private Banking Services in The Bahamas, 2022 and Excellence in Banking Innovation in The Bahamas, 2022 by The International Investor.

Values are most often passed on from generation to generation, and Cornèr Bank as a family-owned company of three generations has kept true to its values of adherence to sound business traditions, a penchant for simplicity and transparency, and a sensitivity to the society and environment at large.

These values steered the launch of ‘AcrossGen’ (Across Generations), Cornèr Bank’s new approach to managing clients’ portfolios. Pioneering, it has garnered the organization much deserved recognition by financial services pundits, and also by the bank’s clients who are already enraptured by the services.

AcrossGen was birthed in 2021 and the investment approach aligns with the business’ culture; offers new asset classes; specializes in shares in family-owned businesses; uses structured products and provides an all-inclusive fee structure. Underscoring the AcrossGen approach, “Family businesses are built on decades of experience, collective decision making and mutual trust. We believe in the power of values and convictions that have been passed on from generation to generation,” said CEO of the Bahamas-based operation, Christine Russell.

“Cornèr Bank’s legacy and culture spans three generations of being a family-owned bank, which is reflected in the concept of the AcrossGen investment strategy,” explained Russell. “We strongly believe this strategy aligns itself with Cornèr Bank’s philosophy of innovation and the provision of a one of a kind client experience. In addition, we have many entrepreneurs among our clients who also identify with this concept.”

Russell continued, “Moreover, we believe, investments in family-owned companies, which is an integral part of our professional asset management offered by the bank, provides a high degree of investment optimization given that family-owned companies are usually more stable (long term perspective) and more resilient to successfully withstand economic downturns, which is reflected, as a result, in a higher performances and reduced risk levels.”

Birgit Ludig-Dridi, Head of Wealth Management for Cornèr Bank, added, “Under the AcrossGen mandates, 50% of the equities are invested in family-owned companies listed on international markets. AcrossGen was designed to preserve a classic investment tradition that gives security and continuity to clients and melds with innovative information technology systems, analysis methods and investments. The approach is straightforward, transparent and respectful of our society and environment.”

The innovation that preceded AcrossGen changed the way Bahamians and residents in The Bahamas interact with international markets. When the Central Bank of The Bahamas relaxed exchange controls, Cornèr Bank launched its Cornèrtrader platform, allowing Bahamians and residents within The Bahamas to invest in foreign currencies on the international markets. Local access to financial markets remains an important milestone for the Bahamian financial services industry.

When Cornèrtrader launched in 2018, there was nothing like it on the market in The Bahamas, and true to its ethos, since its launch day, the company has held new users by the hand and guided them through the use of the system, giving less savvy investors a gateway to new trading and investment opportunities.

“We are continuously innovating and updating our product offerings; funds with special themes are analyzed and introduced to our investment offerings, structured products are adapted to new requirements and new trends, and also our digital platform is in continuous development. We balance innovation with a focus on the human factor, building long-term relationships based on trust, we work alongside our clients to find the ideal solution for enhancing their portfolio,”

Mrs. Russell explained.

An independent private Swiss bank founded in 1952, the Cornèr Bank Group offers a full range of products and services to meet the requirements of private, business and institutional clients. The group comprises the Luganobased parent bank Cornèr Bank Ltd., the four branches in Chiasso, Geneva, Locarno and Zurich, and affiliates including Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Limited in Nassau, the capital city of The Bahamas. From its parent company’s deeply-rooted foundation, Cornèr Bank (Overseas) has been successfully offering an extensive suite of private banking and investment solutions to the islands since 1996.

Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Ltd. is regulated by both The Central Bank of The Bahamas and The Securities Commission of The Bahamas. Its parent company has been ranked number one in Switzerland for four years in succession due to its financial soundness.

“In Cornèr Bank’s culture, compliance remains paramount to ensure clients’ needs are met and to maximize investment goals. Compliance ensures that our investment strategy closely aligns with the clients’ risk profile and that only investment products

in line with the clients’ knowledge, timelines, and risk appetite are offered to our clients,”

Mrs. Ludig-Dridi added.

“Our investment strategy is geared towards managing your assets proactively, as if they were our own. We have measures and controls in place to ensure that client assets are safeguarded at all times. Consequently, innovation and compliance enhance our level of client service and are therefore critical components for maximizing client investment goals. At its core, Cornèr Bank retains its well-preserved values of excellent client service and world-class compliance.”

Some say that the world of private banking has largely remained on the sidelines of the banking sector’s technological transformation of recent years. Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Ltd. remains a standout in this area, continuously innovating as a bank that has moved quickly to meet changing demands and those created by the pandemic of the last two years, without losing sight of their clients’ needs.

Cornèr Bank continues to set the standard in the global financial services market. They prioritize innovation, not because change is inevitable, but because this is what their clients expect and that positions them to continually

create the financial solutions of the future.

THE FUTURE:

The area of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) is of growing importance to the financial services sector. How is Cornèr Bank embracing this shift?

Aspects of ESG have long been embedded in the way we do business and Cornèr Bank ensures the best of humanity aligns with the best of its offerings.

In today’s environment, we apply ESG filters to our ‘Family-Owned Companies Universe’, where we choose our investments. We exclude companies in direct violation of international standards including the United Nations Global Compacts and those involved in controversial weapons (absolute exclusions) and companies with revenues from weapons and defense, firearms, tobacco, gambling, adult entertainment, coal mining, power generation from coal and GMO (relative exclusions). Within our ‘Family-Owned Companies Universe’ the bank overweights “climate leaders” and underweights “climate laggards” and our financial analysis is based on a carbon risk rating, which looks at a company’s CO2 efficiency.

Note: Cornèr Bank is member of Swiss Sustainable Finance (SSF) to reinforce its efforts on current and future challenges related to Sustainable Finance and to ensure full alignment with industry priorities in this area. The mission of SSF is to strengthen Switzerland’s position as a leading voice and actor in sustainable finance.

Interview with Nigel Green awarded with financial CEO of the year

FIRST, CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF?

I followed my father into the financial industry as an Independent Financial Adviser in the Uk. After becoming a successful manager and director with several leading firms, I had the chance to travel to Bermuda on a business trip where I discovered huge potential for a new kind of financial service for offshore clients.

I soon realised that international clients away from home needed a specialist and more holistic financial service offering, one that was multifaceted and that took in the particular regional and country variations in tax law, legislation and regulations.

As such, our first office was established in Hong kong in 2002, and the company has grown and developed exponentially ever since to become one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory, asset management and fintech organisations.

NOW, PLEASE GIVE US AN OVERVIEW OF YOUR COMPANY.

deVere Group is one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory, asset management and fintech organisations, made up of more than 100 legal entities around the world. We currently have more than $12 billion under advice from some 100,000 clients in more than 100 countries across the globe.

The company provides clients around the globe with the powerful combination of personal financial advice and innovative digital solutions. With central hubs in primary financial and expat destinations, deVere Group has earned a global reputation for providing its clients with an enviable, results-driven service.

WHAT WAS THE ORIGINAL IDEA BEHIND DEVERE CRYPTO?

deVere Crypto was launched in 2018. This pioneering cryptocurrency app, available for Apple and Android, permits users to store, transfer and exchange all major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple xRP and Dash, amongst others.

As the world’s largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin has become an increasingly mainstream part of the global financial system, continuing to outperform stocks and gold, it’s popularity amongst institutional and retail investors is increasing all the time, and it has recently become legal tender in El Salvador. I predict that up to three other sovereign nations will follow this example in 2022.

Yet, it’s also a force for social good as it can provide a way out of both financial and political repression. It’s thought that over one billion people reside in countries suffering from uncontrollable inflation, meaning their hard-earned money depreciates rapidly against the goods and services they wish to purchase. This could force many into poverty, which may be incredibly difficult for them to get out of.

Yet Bitcoin can offer a way out for those people living in countries where the national currency is sinking in value. Indeed, Bitcoin is a deflationary asset, which is why people in the aforementioned countries with depreciating currencies are increasingly using it as a store of value to shield against hyperinflation and surging living costs. Also, crucially, Bitcoin’s supply can never exceed 21 million which makes it a very attractive, inflation-resistant store of value. It’s almost devaluation-proof.

Furthermore, our clients are increasingly demanding a truly diversified crypto portfolio as the sector grows and moves ever more into mainstream finance. As an asset class, cryptocurrencies are not going anywhere, and it’s becoming increasingly clear that they are the future of money. Digital, borderless money in our increasingly digitalised world just makes sense.

In addition, with technology being at the core of everything right now, deVere has recently partnered with Oryzon, a new venture capital fund that invests in the next big opportunities in pioneering technologies. With the ground-breaking concept of tokenisation of investments, tens of trillions of dollars in private assets are to be unlocked in the next decade as in-the-know investors turn to a radical technology revolution being driven by blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things (IoT). It’s an incredibly exciting time as the fundamental tech shake-up that’s on the verge of dominating nearly all sectors, will alter how business is done. Permanently. And savvy investors will be aware that the coming together of blockchain and artificial intelligence is a turning point in history.

WHAT IS, ESSENTIALLY, YOUR UNIQUE SELLING POINT?

One of deVere’s main qualities is our global presence, strength and resources which feed into having the industry’s top advisers, offering the widest range of services - including our suite of fintech apps, marketleading low-cost financial solutions, innovative investments with specialist fund managers, insurance, property, tax consultancy, mortgages and fx, amongst others – not to mention world-class governance and compliance procedures.

HOW HAS THE PANDEMIC AFFECTED BUSINESS?

When the coronavirus pandemic first hit the world, deVere adapted quickly and decisively. We implemented a work from home policy which worked extremely well as we all pulled together as one.

We worked via Zoom meetings – and still today a lot of our work is still done by video conferencing. We also found that our clients were more willing than ever to have meetings via Zoom. In fact, they seem to prefer it to in-person meetings. The result of this is that we can speak to more clients each day, helping them reach their financial objectives, and our productivity has increased significantly.

WHAT ARE YOUR PROJECTIONS FOR THE UPCOMING YEARS?

The global expat community is growing at an unprecedented pace as globalisation shrinks our world and more and more people become internationally mobile. As such, our objective is to be there for them, wherever they are and whenever and however they need us.

Moreover, client expectations are continually evolving. International investors are driving ever more sophisticated means of managing cross-border wealth and, as we provide/develop and bring them to market, our client base naturally becomes ever more expansive.

In addition, the financial services industry has seen major changes in recent years that have been fuelled by technology. Fintech is reshaping and redefining the way in which all financial services across the board are delivered. Not only was deVere the very first international advisory firm to actively develop and promote fintech – it remains the biggest and most successful fintech provider in our space. We continually strive to develop next

generation financial technology propositions that will meet the needs and wants of our clients. We have created our own fintech ecosystem, with a series of different apps that all work together, including deVere Vault, deVere Crypto, deVere Core, deVere Investment and deVere Catalyst, our own digital city that is growing all the time.

As such, not content to rest on our already impressive track record in fintech, we will continue to grow our suite of innovative wealth tech products and services that are frequently first-of-their-kind. Basically, there is no other firm that can come close to deVere in fintech development, innovation and implementation – and we’re only just getting started. The advances in fintech are happening at record speed and it has already profoundly reshaped the whole financial sector, and this is only the tip of the iceberg.

Leading The Charge For Sustainability

It is an undeniable fact that 2021 was a challenging year for all of us. As a Bank, we faced and managed a host of unprecedented challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, which required a total reset of our ways of working, interaction and our way of doing business. COVID-19 has certainly taught us that sustainability, transparency, and health should be global priorities.

Since 2008, Access Bank has applied the triple bottom line focus to our operations and activities, which means that beyond profit, we are very keen on measuring our environmental, social, and economic impact. Quite often, this sustainable approach to business ultimately boosts business performance.

Sustainability is at the heart of our business, and we will continue to focus on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals because we recognise our role in preserving the environment in which we operate.

Our overall ESG strategy aims to impact society and our business conduct positively through responsible investment. To enable the success of the strategy, we developed an ESRM (Environment, Social, and Risk Management) credit review process and a governance structure.

Based on our understanding of impact investment and the role it plays in addressing social and environmental issues, expanding our market share, and building goodwill, we have prioritized our CSR focus areas to include Health, Education, Sport, Arts, Environment, and Social Welfare. Over the past five years, we have invested about N22 billion in various CSR efforts reaching 1,316 communities, impacting 30,075,356 lives and 793 NGOs. Employees of the Bank have committed over 2.7 million hours of their time and resources through our Employee Volunteering Scheme, with more than 500 communities impacted across the six geo-political zones in Nigeria.

As a result of our commitment to ESG, we have emerged a key player in the Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles (NSBP) Steering Committee, the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI), the Equator Principles (EP), amongst others. In addition to driving real change through social investments over the years, we have been able to consistently identify and create roadmaps that have increasingly delivered long-term sustainable development in investment and financial transactions.

Through our lending and investment activities, coupled with our procurement practices, we have made significant indirect sustainability impacts whilst aiding the development of economies. With the understanding that climate change will have a social and economic impact on our customers, Access Bank ensures that we properly manage risk while capturing new markets. We imagine the endless possibilities that the future holds. Hence, with creativity, innovation, and speed, we are making vital contributions to creating a truly sustainable future while delivering value to all stakeholders.

Furthermore, we recognise the importance of maintaining and increasing the diversity of our workforce. Our people and culture are crucial to the success of our business, and it is our ambition to be the most accessible, inclusive, and sought-after employer.

We want Access Bank to be a workplace where everyone is valued as an individual and has equal access to opportunities. We work to ensure that colleagues are welcomed, respected, supported, and able to be their authentic selves. To this end, we have set up various initiatives which include mentoring, training, and networking events under the umbrella of the Access Women Network (AWN) – formed to support, develop, promote, and retain female employees in the Bank. We understand that gender equality can only be achieved with a focus on both genders. AWN provides a support network especially to all female employees, ensuring gender equality through policies such as the human rights policy, paternity leave, 6 months’ maternity leave as well as leadership programmes.

Access Bank through the “W” Initiative, our banking proposition for women, has provided over 1 million women with opportunities to benefit from our financial and nonfinancial offerings like market access, capacity building programmes, access to discounted health and business financing. We are using our “W” Power Loan to bridge the financing gap in women’s businesses, giving over 1,200 women access to $30 million in financing so far.

Over the last 14 years, the initiative has developed a strong presence in Nigeria, Ghana, Rwanda, and Zambia with an array of offers tailored to meet the diverse career,

business, and lifestyle needs of over 16 million diverse female customers. In the wake of the pandemic, a virtual desk (W Cares) was introduced to manage genderfocused complaints and enquiries. To help facilitate women’s access to discounted finance, we stimulated economic expansion by partnering with ESG (Enterprise Sustainability Group) to simplify loan application processing and tracking for women-in-business. This resulted in over N8 billion ($20 million) debt financing investment in more than 1,700 women-owned enterprises and N18.8 billion ($47 million) growth in lending to 750,000 female customers.

Leveraging initiatives like the Womenpreneur Pitcha-ton Africa – which in its second year recorded 39,982 applications spanning 8 African countries. The Bank provides business capacity building for female entrepreneurs by giving them access to internationally recognised education and funding for economically viable ideas.

Over the next 5 years, Access Bank will be the clearcut digital leader in Africa even as we move closer to becoming Africa’s Payment Gateway to the World.

As we continue to expand our retail banking across major trading corridors in Africa, we will consolidate our earnings across all income lines, driven by a strong focus on consumer lending, payments and remittances, digitisation of customer journeys, and customer acquisition at scale. Furthermore, the Access Bank Group looks forward to another decade of growth as we begin the process of evolving into a holding company (HoldCo). The non-operating HoldCo, to be known as Access Holding Company Plc, would serve as the parent company for the Group – Access Bank and our many subsidiaries. The new structure would facilitate the Bank’s growth and expansion across Africa, ease consolidated financial strength, expedite capital and liquidity growth, provide flexibility to accommodate leverage with minimal risk to regulatory rations, and help to unburden the Bank from oversight functions and responsibilities of managing the subsidiaries, thus focusing on our core operations.

Capital 3PM’s fixed income investment opportunities

Capital 3PM has created a suite of non-market correlated fixed income opportunities that are exclusively distributed across 45 different countries. We have designed our investment opportunities to give high net worth and sophisticated clients an option to diversify their portfolios thus providing a hedge for those who are exposed to the equity markets and other more volatile sectors.

Capital 3PM prides itself on its due diligence and its longstanding relationships with our fixed-income partners. They have been carefully screened against our rigorous criteria and have delivered in line with our investor expectations.

We provide proven and secured fixed-income investments that are either 100% asset-backed or A-Rated, Lloyds of London insured. A large part of our business’s success is based on our two decades of establishing a global network of retail and institutional clients. We have longstanding relationships with our private clients, private banks, family offices, wealth managers and sovereign wealth funds.

Capital 3PM prides itself in working tirelessly in sourcing, selecting and providing fixed income investment opportunities to investors in over 45 countries worldwide. All our fixed income partners are Uk-based with decades of expertise in their respective sectors. Even during the global pandemic, they have proven that their operating model and corporate structures have remained robust during the ongoing global uncertainties. We look forward to continuing and expanding our fixed-income investment opportunities in 2022. We will be opening new offices in Europe and the US, complementing our existing ones in London and Dubai.

CAPITAL 3PM FIXED INCOME BECAUSE...

- We offer short-dated instruments, typically 12 or 24 months

- Return profiles ranging from 8-12% in GBP, USD & EUR Income paid either quarterly, semi-annual or deferred

- GBP base currency with USD hedged and EUR hedged options

- Security in the form of first legal charges, debentures and/or A-rated, Lloyds of London insurance backed

WHAT MAKES A TYPICAL CAPITAL 3PM CLIENT?

We only work with high net worth or sophisticated investors that have been referred to us by private banks, family offices, wealth managers and sovereign wealth funds.

Our clients are typically looking to diversify from the mainstream markets and are looking to avoid the volatility of the more adventurous asset classes that have risen to prominence more recently. Our clients like to sleep well at night knowing that a proportion of their wealth is not correlated to the stock market.

Individuals and corporations have allocated to our fixed income suite, especially during these unprecedented times where clients are looking to preserve their wealth whilst still achieving a predictable and passive income.

Website: www.capital3.pm

Interview

with Kamyar Naficy, Founder of KNECTCOMMS

Financial services firms need to manage their brand, reputation and growth in a fast-changing world. International Investor Magazine caught up with kamyar Naficy, founder of kNECTCOMMS, to learn more about his company and discuss financial marketing and communications trends.

FIRST, PLEASE COULD YOU GIVE US AN OVERVIEW OF YOUR COMPANY AND WHAT IT DOES?

I am the founder of kNECTCOMMS, a strategic communications consultancy dedicated to the finance and fintech sector. We’re based in London but operate globally, working with investment banking, capital markets and asset management businesses, as well as fintech entrants disrupting various aspects of these markets with new and exciting ways of doing business. We also help professional services firms, technology and data providers, and other suppliers and vendors who serve the market. In addition, we’re increasingly involved with family offices that are playing an ever-greater role in capital markets.

We provide marketing and public relations counsel to drive business development and growth, manage reputation and crises, and help support fundraising. Most of our clients are communicating with specialised B2B buyers of their services, or with institutional investors or financial counterparties, and are looking to influence a buying or investment decision.

Linked to this is our financial communications work, which is sector agonistic. We help companies from various different industries with their communications needs in support of financial transactions such as IPOs and M&As.

HOW DID THE IDEA FOR YOUR COMPANY COME ABOUT?

I previously worked in marketing and communications roles at global financial institutions, including JP Morgan, London Stock Exchange Group and UniCredit. As well as managing their communications, I often worked on joint marketing and communications campaigns with their partners, counterparties, vendors and suppliers. This was often a constellation of smaller firms, some of which were very agile and innovative. Increasingly, I was seeing the large and small players cooperate and work together. But I noticed there was limited agency support that understood and operated in both worlds and could help both groups with their marketing and communications efforts, especially when they collaborated.

I also noticed that in-house teams often look for agencies that provide not just expertise, experience and network but also an approach that fits seamlessly into their own way of operating. For example, companies look for agencies that can hit the ground running and quickly figure out the true communications requirements for particular products or markets, or how and when to work with the in-house communications team versus the executives in the business, or when to act as an idea generator and when to focus on tactical execution. It all depends on the brief of course but often agency staff who have worked in-house have a more intuitive grasp of these issues.

Seeing this gap, I established kNECTCOMMS to help firms and the industry innovate and progress, and to commercialise new ways of doing business, find new markets and better serve customers. I wanted to deliver fresh thinking, excellent execution and deep experience of what actually works on the ground, especially in our core B2B finance market where we know the stakeholders, markets and media well.

WHAT ARE YOU FOCUSSED ON NOW?

Our focus is always on understanding the unique needs of the client and providing smart, thoughtful and integrated communications support to help them achieve their longterm goals. As a senior-led consultancy, we have extensive experience working in-house at leading financial institutions. We have walked in our clients’ shoes and understand the pressures they’re under and the need for highly effective communications that drive true business value.

A major focus of our approach is thought leadership and content marketing. This is one of the main ways for a financial business to signal its competence and character. And it’s particularly important in B2B where trust and credibility are crucial to success. Content needs to be technically and intellectually sound and convincing. But it also needs to be engaging and inspiring. It can make all the difference when influencing stakeholders to take action, especially when deployed at the right times in the buyer or investor journey.

So we’re often called upon to develop and manage programmes for clients that demonstrate their thought leadership or specialist insight and deliver it through the right channels. This involves establishing the strategic approach, writing white papers, creating content for client marketing or fundraising campaigns, and managing conference, speaker and panel opportunities. Third party endorsement is particularly important to build trust and credibility, so we often emphasise public relations and work with the media to showcase our clients’ content and achieve media coverage. It’s crucial this is all done in a strategic and holistic way to maximise the benefits of the different channels and tactics.

WHAT TRENDS ARE YOU SEEING IN FINANCIAL MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS?

Content remains king. Developing high-quality content that inspires customers and other stakeholders to take action is crucial. And the use of digital channels to distribute that content continues to grow in importance. Given the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated digital transformation, creating content that works in a digital and remote-first environment is important. This requires marketers and communicators to become increasingly multi-disciplinary in their skills and approach.

Sustainability topics, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations, are increasingly important to all stakeholders. We’re seeing businesses engage us on developing ESG communications and integrating these into their wider communications to key stakeholders. The narrative has moved on from why ESG is important to how it’s being delivered. So businesses need to communicate their ESG progress and results, not just their plans and commitments. It’s important to develop an overarching ESG narrative and communications plan that spans customers, employees, media, investors, regulators, suppliers and vendors. It should be coherent and consistent but also resonate with each stakeholder group.

It will also be fascinating to watch the interaction between incumbent financial institutions and fintech innovators. This will increasingly take the form of collaboration as well as competition. Marketing and communications professionals need to excel at partnership marketing, as well as the other marketing services disciplines, such as public relations, advertising and content marketing. Partnerships need to be articulated properly to all stakeholders and their perceptions continuously assessed and fed back to the business to implement improvements. Channels, tactics and audiences will all need to be leveraged through collaborative marketing efforts by both partners in the partnership. The success of partnership marketing will drive the success of the partnership as a whole.

Finally, I would add that we’re increasingly seeing marketing and communications leaders take their seat at the executive table and that’s essential for the long-term success of the business. Finance, banking and investment firms face numerous threats and opportunities, significant market disruption, and multiple choices for how to market and communicate their proposition to the market. Carefully developing, calibrating and managing communications – across its component parts of strategy, content and distribution – is crucial for laying the groundwork and building sustainable value.

Partnership

our core value through the years

With over 127 years experience, we let expertise lead the way

As your partner of ﬁrst choice we promise to always deliver gold standard of value and excellence.

The Biggest Problem With Cryptocurrency, And How This Affects You

The world of cryptocurrency presents a plethora of opportunities, but all investors must see the full picture.

Cryptocurrency has remained one of the biggest financial talking points during the early parts of the year, and that trend is set to continue throughout the rest of 2022.

Millions of investors around the world have already dipped their toes into the digital marketplace while millions more are currently in the stage of consideration. It’s certainly not hard to see the appeal either.

Modern tech is at the forefront of business right now, as was underlined by Apple’s recent $3 trillion valuation, while stories like Bitcoin’s peak of over $65,000 in 2021 or the rapid growth of various altcoins have grabbed global headlines.

However, as with any investment, there are potential risks. Most investors appreciate the volatile nature of digital currencies, but most people will see this as a potential opportunity rather than a trigger for increased exposure.

There are other issues to consider, like ‘what happens to my crypto wallet if I die?’ but the most concerning point to monitor right now relates to government regulations. They already exist in many countries and are coming in many more. There is no doubt that they have the potential to dramatically impact your future cryptocurrency investments.

Research in America shows that under one in three investors believe that government regulation will be a good thing for the price of Bitcoin. However, many experts have stated that regulations around the globe are inevitable.

5 Reasons Global Government Regulations Are Inevitable

Global cryptocurrency market capitalisation is over $2 trillion Even in a slump, daily trading values are at over $1.7bn. One in three businesses in the most developed countries now accepts crypto.

The industry has grown by nearly 900% since the pandemic. 70% of Uk investors already (wrongly) think crypto markets are regulated worldwide.

In fact, famous voices like Jordan Belfort (Wolf of Wall Street) have stated that regulations are needed to combat problems caused by meme coins. Cryptocurrency has already become regulated in the U.S., European Union, and the United kingdom. The pressure for all nations to follow suit has become palpable.

Regulations can be deemed important due to the protection they offer investors - from cybertheft as well as added transparency with their investments - but it should be noted that universal regulations could cause problems for investors too. For starters, some of the aforementioned altcoins and meme coins could be rendered valueless. For investors already holding those digital assets, their portfolios could take a major hit at any time.

Furthermore, as regulations become more commonplace and universally aligned, the price movements for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other major cryptocurrency assets may be a lot slower. Given that the possibility of accelerated growth is one of the major attractions, it could have a major impact on how crypto investments are viewed, particularly by more casual investors. If trade volumes fall, that could potentially impact coin prices too.

Of course, regulations and legislation may also bring tax implications.

Does this mean regulation is the enemy? Absolutely not. Still, it should serve as a precautionary tale for new and experienced investors alike. keeping an eye on the latest developments relating to government regulations around the globe - not just in your country - should allow you to keep making calculated decisions for impressive ROIs.

The cryptocurrency ship hasn’t sailed, but effective monitoring could be the key to determining whether you sink or swim.

UNIFIN leading Mexico’s operational leasing sector

UNIFIN Financiera, S.A.B. de C.V. was founded in 1993 by Rodrigo Lebois and today leads the way in Mexico’s operational leasing sector. The entrepreneur started the company with just five employees but it’s grown to become the largest independent financial corporation in Latin America with assets of $4.4bn and a debt of $3.6bn.

The company now has 880 employees, offering operational leasing, factoring, auto loans, working capital loans, structured loans and insurance solutions. Operational leasing remains UNIFIN’s core market covering a wide range of areas, from cars, trucks and helicopters to heavy machinery and medical equipment, ensuring diversity throughout the operation. The success of the company has been driven by its philosophy of offering custom made financial solutions, providing all its clients with the highest quality of financial services backed by a team of specialists, who ensure the company remains in sound financial health.

UNIFIN´s strategic decision was to focus on offering the highest quality service, knowing that his company’s edge was in its attention to detail and tailored client approach. In 2019, under Mr. Sergio Camacho direction as CEO, UNIFIN started to develop an important digital transformation, with the objective to offer new financial and digital tools to help Mexican SMEs to better connect with their customers, increase their income and find new markets.

UNIFIN recognized the urgent need for SMEs to access financing and the fundamental role of technological platforms in bringing financing options to SMEs that have not been regularly served by traditional credit institutions. Adding to these new trends, UNIFIN created Uniclick, a state-of-the-art digital financial platform that offers an easy, fast, and simple process to pre-approve a line of credit in minutes. Thanks to its cutting-edge technological infrastructure and artificial intelligence laboratory, Uniclick will expand its presence in the financial market of the business sector, with innovative strategies based on the millions of data generated by its platform, which allows us to anticipate trends and needs of companies. SMEs - generating better credit proposals for SMEs.

The vision of Uniclick is to be the “one-stop-shop” of SMEs. This represents being a center of integral solutions for businesses, where in addition to providing agile and fair financing, offering tools and non-financial products that allow entrepreneurs to boost the growth of national businesses.

Unifin has recently established strategic partnerships with Google and Microsoft to promote Mexican SME´s in their digitalization process, offering innovative services and financial services. The objective is to help SMEs not only with the necessary financing by offering simple and unsecured credits for up to 3 million pesos, but also with

digital tools that allow them to accelerate their growth. What differentiates Uniclick from the competition is unquestionably it´s natively hybrid business model, which is its greatest differentiator, because in addition to the digital platform, which is capable of authorizing loans to SMEs in a matter of minutes, UNIFIN has presence and coverage at national level, which allows them to accompany SMEs both in person and remotely at all times, turning the expedited financing process into an experience tailored and chosen by the client.

In addition, UNIFIN has recently joined the UN Principles of Responsible Banking, the world’s largest global banking community focused on sustainable finance, sharing best practices, and working together on practical guidance and pioneering tools that benefit the entire industry. UNIFIN looks to contribute to equitable economic development. By adhering to these principles, they want to take a leadership role in accelerating the fundamental and necessary changes in the economy for current and future generations to achieve shared prosperity. International Investor has awarded UNIFIN Best Digital Transformation - Credit & Leasing Mexico 2022 and Business Personality Of The Year 2022 for Rodrigo Lebois, to understand the success of UNIFIN, we look closer to the resilient spirit of its founder.

Rodrigo Lebois Mateos Founder, Chairman of UNIFIN was born in Mexico City and graduated in Business Administration. At 30, he left the car sales company he worked for, and with his savings founded UNIFIN, a financial institution that began operating solely in the vehicle-leasing sector. Then came the financial crisis of December 1994, when the Mexican peso suffered a devaluation of 100%. As a result, on 1 January 1995, Lebois awoke to a $17m dollar debt. He devoted his energy to negotiating his debt, and by 2001 he had managed to pay it off completely. This was an exceptional feat; the vast majority of Mexican debtors either declared bankruptcy, declared themselves unable to meet their liabilities or simply disappeared. In 2001, he started over again, hired banking experts and managed to avoid being hit by the financial crisis of 2008. Lebois strongly believes that a good businessman is not merely an executive officer or president of a company, but that special talent is required. This belief is reflected in the company’s commitment to innovation. Lebois is an entrepreneur who loves his country, and believes a large part of success lies in the ability to build and develop a talented team of professionals.

Sustainable finance: a Swiss view

By: Grégoire Bordier, President of the Swiss Private Bankers Association

Financial institutions are willing to help investors find companies with a more sustainable behaviour, whether old ones that are adapting their activities or new ones that are developing better products for our future.There is something in the expression “sustainable finance” that implies that financial institutions are responsible for making the world sustainable. It is true that the Paris Agreement of 2015 has among its goals to make “finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development”.

This requires a first distinction: financial institutions as such are not a polluting industry, their activities produce little greenhouse gas emissions (e.g. official statistics attribute 0.5% of Swiss emissions to them). What is relevant are the emissions of the companies the securities of which are held by financial institutions. This leads to a second distinction: most securities held by a bank, asset manager or insurance do not belong to them, but to their clients. A direct influence on which securities to hold can thus only be exercised on the own assets; the others require the clients’ agreement.

This is not to say that a financial institution should just wait for their clients’ instructions. For instance, Swiss private bankers, being themselves quite sustainable with their centuries-long history and philanthropic activities, take it to heart to find out their clients’ preferences with respect to sustainability, to explain to them the advantages and risks of sustainable investments and to report the rating or impact of a given portfolio on climate for instance.

This requires training the client relationship managers in sustainability issues and integrating sustainable criteria in the investment processes. Clients will thus be made aware and advised on the possibilities to make their portfolio more sustainable, but in the end the decision belongs to them. A third distinction must be made between financing and investing. The first consists in raising new funds for a company, be it equity or debt, to develop new projects, which may or may not respect sustainable criteria. Investing on the other hand is just buying securities that already exist: this does not bring the underlying companies more cash, and selling securities only means that someone else, perhaps less sustainability-conscious, is buying them. Thus, one may choose its investments, but that will not make the disliked companies disappear.

It is therefore no surprise that recent stress tests run by regulators show that portfolios on average are geared towards a global warming of 4 o C to 5 o C. This is just a reflection of the global economy. The change has to come from the industry, the agriculture, the energy production, the transportation networks in each country. The financial industry may well draw attention on the financial risks linked to climate change for instance, but it is investors that can force a shift in current practices. States may

also forbid or support certain activities; in this sense taxonomies are just a statement of industrial politics. So, how to find out which companies are sustainable? Traditionally, the only purpose of a company was to maximise profits for its shareholders. It is nowadays acknowledged that a company must care about 3Ps: performance, people and planet. Indeed, taking care of its people and of the planet that provides the resources for its business are common-sense factors of success and sustainability for a company. But it still has to remain profitable, otherwise it’s good practices will not last for long.

While accounting standards to measure a company’s economic performance are well established, standards for the environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects of its activities are still in their infancy. The most advanced ones relate to climate, given the threat of global warming. To assess a company’s sustainable behaviour, the impact of its activities must be published and measured in the same way across all countries, so that reliable comparisons can be made.

In Switzerland, the Federal Council has decided to make it compulsory for large banks, insurance companies and listed companies to publish the effects of their activities

on the climate or the environment and the resulting financial risks in accordance with the international standard defined by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). The first publication will have to be made by 2024 at the latest and will cover activities in 2023. In order to determine whether a financial product is sustainable, banks need this information from the relevant companies.

Furthermore, there is still no uniform method for assessing company data. Swiss Sustainable Finance has identified eight approaches to evaluate the sustainability of an investment. For example, does it exclude certain sectors (e.g. arms, fossil fuels), does it select the best players in a sector (even if they still pollute), or are shareholders committed to improving the company’s practices? This diversity explains why the sustainability ratings given by various agencies are not consistent with each other.

Greenwashing refers to practices that aim to mislead the investor into believing that a product is more sustainable than it is. In reality, this term is often used when a product does not meet an investor’s expectations. For example, a fund that considers ESG criteria does not necessarily contain only non-polluting companies or companies that

have a positive impact on climate change. Therefore, to avoid disappointment, it is important to explain which aspects of sustainability have been taken into account and which strategy is being pursued.

There is a growing awareness that companies are not “brown” or “green”, but that there are many shades in between. The economy needs to rethink how it works. This will take time, as new solutions are far from being developed on a large enough scale to replace all our current consumption. Many companies, such as the oil industry, are in transition, because they have realised that they must adapt if they are not to become obsolete. But not supporting them in this transition would be like going from 5G to 2G again!

In Switzerland, the main sources of CO 2 emissions are buildings and vehicles. Tens of billions must therefore be spent to improve the insulation and heating of the former and to replace the latter by electric or hydrogen-powered vehicles. We also need to develop renewable energy sources. The banks are ready to finance these projects, but the will to initiate them lies with companies and individuals, in other words with all of us.

Arca Fondi a pioneer Asset Manager in Italy

Arca Fondi SGR is an Italian active asset management company, founded in 1983 by the association of 12 Cooperative Banks. Arca now manages around € 36 billion divided between Mutual Funds, Pension Fund and Institutional Accounts. Thanks to a network of distributors made up of over 100 banks and other financial institutions scattered throughout the country, its client base is made up of over 820,000 investors. In 2023 Arca Fondi will reach its fortieth year of activity, a great milestone for a company that has always been at the top of its nation in Asset Management.

In recent years, Arca has stepped up its innovative investments, using technology as a catalyst to rationalize its internal processes in order to improve productivity and ensure more efficient services. Arca Fondi has been a pioneer company since its creation, being one of the first Asset Managers to be created in Italy. The first two Funds, Arca RR and Arca BB, were launched in 1984, even today these are real Blockbusters, with an impeccable track record and an incredible compounded return of over 700%!

1998 was the turn of the Pension Fund, Arca Previdenza. In addition to being one of the first Open Pension Funds in Italy, today it is also the largest in the Country. In 2015 Sidera Funds Sicav was created, a Luxembourg-based platform dedicated to Private and Affluent customers. Two years later Arca Fondi made their debut with the PIR Funds (Piani Individuali di Rispamio), a segment dedicated to investments in the Italian “real economy”. In a short time Arca conquered leading positions also in said market. Finally, in 2019 Arca signed the United Nations Principles for Sustainable Investment (UNPRI) agreements, an important first step that led to the creation of a range of ESG Funds and an innovative ESG Rating system. Sustainability is one of the themes Arca is aiming for and thriving on. The “ESG Leaders” Funds are growing in number every year, many will be launched in 2022.

As said, innovation is not limited to the supply side of financial products, but also in creating new services for its partners. Arca is committed to building an integrated digital platform that can best support both its distributors and customers.

At the end of 2021 Arca launched a new version of its website, www.arcafondi.it. The work involved different company areas and was designed to better support the needs of customers. A new graphic design, new sections and new interactive features enrich the experience of those who navigate. It is now easier to find information as well as all the necessary documents. In the investments section it is possible to use widgets that help the investor to get an idea of the results he will be able to obtain by choosing certain types of financial products. All Arca Funds have a dedicated page which contains the main information and documents related to the Fund itself. Furthermore, thanks to a specific section, Arca’s commitment to “Sustainability” is highlighted even more. In the “3 minutes with Arca” blog, all the news, videos and much more are now included in “Primo Piano”, where the customer can always find new information on Arca’s initiatives as well as financial educational content.

Arcaclick is the area dedicated to all customers who have subscribed to a product. With the latest facial

recognition technologies, the registration process has recently been improved. The procedure can be carried out independently with a personal device or at the Bank. ArcaClick allows the customer to have his portfolio, documents and all the practices under control. Those who join the Pension Fund can quickly pay their contributions since 2017. ArcaClick is also accessible from the Arca Fondi App, a free and constantly updated application available on both iOS and Android. The App is an important tool especially for the growing centrality of smartphones in the life of all of us. Customers can always have their portfolio under control or read the latest news, discover the latest videos and much more. ArcaClick, the “Arca Fondi” App and the Area dedicated to commercial partners will be the next tools to be reviewed during 2022. As for the website, they will be updated and improved to be more usable by all categories of customers.

In 2019, Arca created a new internal division called InnovAction Lab with the aim of further growing in the Italian market while remaining up to the challenges of the future. InnovAction Lab focuses essentially on improving processes using the latest technologies, data analysis and by putting the customer at the center of attention. Over the past year, several projects have been put in place to improve relations with partners and customers. An internal Data Warehouse has been created which represents the real brain of all commercial and analysis

operations and which will be exploited thanks to the integration with a latest generation CRM adapted to the needs of an Asset Manager. To support commercial partners, new innovative solutions have been created such as a Smart Advisor able to help distributors to sell the most suitable products for customers. Recently a ChatBot, called Sara, has been developed to help anyone in the search for information on the Arca world in a flexible way through the website, WhatsApp or Telegram.

InnovAction Lab is a division that makes contamination between colleagues the central part of its work. Everyone works side by side to bring together different experiences so to reach the most efficient conclusion. One of the main focuses is that of sustainability. For example, the rethinking of many processes has led to a better integration and above all has been able to reduce paper consumption.

Today many of these solutions have become realities that can be appreciated by Arca Fondi’s customers and partners. But it is only the beginning, thanks to the talents and technology, Arca’s ecosystem is constantly evolving in order to guarantee the most efficient and safe experience.

Financial Inclusion In Africa - Is It Possible? And

What

Would It Take?

Is the state of finance in Africa improving for individuals and small businesses looking for access to everyday financial services, and what does it mean for the continent?

Financial inclusion and the availability of everyday financial services has been a priority across Africa for several generations. Can it finally be achieved? If it is, the time to unlock better finance in Africa is now.

Like the rest of the world, Africa’s economy has taken a major hit since the outbreak of COVID. Millions of jobs have been lost, as well as over 220,000 deaths, while both domestic and international trade have been harmed. This has been especially true in some of the continent’s most developed nations, like South Africa.

For all that suffering, there have been positive financial developments in recent times, not least thanks to the new wave of Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) that are supporting the continent as it looks to overcome challenges posed by the pandemic.

While millions continue to lack access to fundamental financial services, for both personal and business matters, several fintech developments have improved the situation for people in several African countries. The list includes cashless digital transactions, peer-to-peer micro-lending, crowdfunding, low-fee robo-advisors, and other resources that may provide access to individuals and small businesses where it would have previously been impossible.

There can be no dispute that the landscape of finance in Africa has an opportunity to thrive. The IFC makes a solid case, confirming that: “the continent is now home to more digital financial services deployments than any other region in the world, with almost half of the nearly 700 million individual users worldwide” while also confirming that Sub-Saharan Africans are now 6x more likely to have a mobile banking account than the global figure. Moreover, the continent is rich in resources that continue to facilitate the sale of commodities to global marketplaces.

As the growth continues in West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa and Southern Africa, the improved financial situations can filter down to create better banking situations for civilians and small business entities alike.

It hasn’t been an overnight boom and comes after several years of developments. However, the fact that Sub-Saharan Africa now boasts a 43% financial inclusion rate is telling. It also sets a blueprint for the rest of the continent to follow over the next decade, especially as the results of FI in the region have raised the daily per capita consumption rates.

Aside from digital financial facilities, several initiatives, including traditional banks, telephone banking, and meso financing, have all been utilised over the past 10-15 years. Increased accessibility and efficiency are beginning to turn the tide as Africa looks to ride the wave of growing international communications in spite of the problems caused by the pandemic.

Financial Inclusion in Africa is moving in the right direction, with improvements being seen across several territories due to both digital and traditional banking and everyday financial services. In particular, the inexpensive yet fast and reliable digital services - like transactions, deposits, creditare changing communities in both rural and urban settings while investments from Asia, Europe, and North America can accelerate that growth over the years to come.

If financial inclusion can be implemented properly, alongside The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), forecasts suggesting that the continent’s economy can grow over 1100% to $29trillion by 2050 may come true.

Luxembourg: The Global Fund Centre

Luxembourg investment funds started the year on the back of a new record high. On 31 December 2021, assets under management in the Grand Duchy stood at EUR 5.9 trillion, representing an increase of 17.8% or EUR 886 billion compared to 12 months earlier. More specifically, a 9.9% increase based on market valuation was complemented by an impressive 7.9% organic growth rate stemming from net subscriptions from both retail and institutional investors. The Luxembourg fund industry therefore retains its leading role as the largest investment fund centre in Europe, a landmark first achieved in 1999, regained in 2005, and held ever since.

Nearly all asset classes registered inflows. UCITS, the definitive standard for retail investment funds with built-in protection and worldwide renown, are a perfect match for Luxembourg. The Grand Duchy, which can itself be characterised as an agile and yet stable, flexible yet safe, efficient yet reliable investment fund hub, shares its adaptability with the UCITS cross-border fund brand and multi-purpose solution which has become an export hit since its inception more than three decades ago. Of all true cross-border UCITS – those registered for distribution in at least three countries – Luxembourg is home to 57%.

Investors from 77 countries have entrusted in excess of EUR 4.9 tn to Luxembourg UCITS, and the industry advocates the removal of any remaining or new barriers to cross-border distribution.

Less traditional asset classes often appear in an acronym disguise used for the corresponding vehicles, ranging from SICAR, SIF and RAIF to ELTIF and EuVECA. However, once the jargon is decoded, the asset classes grouped under the term “alternative investments” are often real assets and quite literally more tangible, as a general rule. The term “private assets” is preferred by some market participants, given that private equity and private debt play a major role along with infrastructure and property. Call them what you will though, investors have made it very clear that their demand for the asset class is only increasing. Although volumes in alternative funds are usually considerably smaller than in more liquid investment pools, the growth in regulated alternative funds that Luxembourg asset managers look after impresses with nearly 30% over the past three year – but perhaps this is not surprising given the unique expert knowledge the country has built up around all facets of servicing AIFs and their particular bespoke structures.

Early on, and with strong support from ALFI, the fund centre became one of the pioneers inflying the flag for sustainable investing. More than 15 years ago, in 2006, ALFI was a founder of LuxFLAG, a non-profit organisation awarding a series of recognised labels aimed at helping inform investors about fund investment and governance policies. Fast-forward to the end of 2020, and Luxembourg captured 44% of total net flows in sustainable funds made across all European domiciles, making it the leader in this important field too. Maintaining this position is a top priority for ALFI, as regard to ESG factors for many has ceased to be “nice to have”, but a matter of course that is also expected to be evidenced. ALFI engages in mobilising policymakers and market participants to make the quest for true sustainability the foundation of the entire fund value chain. Progress has been made, especially in the area of climate neutrality, but good governance and socially responsible business decisions should be equally self-evident. Good governance in particular is easily overlooked as an importantfactor in achieving fair business operations with long-term benefits for not just the market participants but society as a whole. The ALFI code of ethics, introduced in 1998, provides a framework of high-level principles and best practice recommendations for the governance of Luxembourg investment funds. A key ingredient in the recipe for a more sustainable economy, among which the financial sector and investment funds are crucial drivers, is quality data. How the ecological and social outcome and fairness of an investment can and should be measured remains one of the biggest challenges the industry faces. Technology can support the route from getting hold of the data itself to understanding the information and developing solutions from it. Luxembourg fosters innovative collaborations between experienced

investment industry players and newcomers from the technological field that have the potential to propel the small country to the fore once again.

Most individuals who consider a first-time investment today expect to invest via electronic channels, often ideally a smartphone app. The concept of a (human) investment advisor is an anachronism for many, which means that the matter of investor education, which has long secured a prominent place on the local agenda, is only growing in importance. Asset managers have a crucial role to play in this, as there is still quite a way to go in terms of making the investment process appropriately transparent. Sustainable companies are often leaders in transparency, disclosing in considerable detail the projects they finance with the invested monies. This is a serious appeal to investors who aim to do good – or at least definitely no harm – with the money they entrust to the asset manager, such as their personal contributions to pensions or other long-term savings. In this context, coupled with the increasing need for individuals to take responsibility for their own financial security later in life, the pan-European personal pension product, or PEPP, is of pronounced significance. The PEPP is a long-term, individual, non-occupational personal pension product of the third pillar that savers subscribe to on a voluntary basis to provide supplementary income upon retirement. Luxembourg is very well positioned to support the speedy uptake of the PEPP, and this “European pension”, like UCITS, has the potential to become another recognised brand in the investment world.

In Luxembourg, investors on the one hand and asset management and investment fund players on the other find the perfect interface location, dovetailing

products, processes and people. Here, the essential role of investment funds for the global economy becomes tangible, as the fund hub connects investors with market opportunities worldwide.

Cryptocurrency Platform Bybit Celebrates RecordBreaking Growth

Bybit was launched in March 2018 and after another bumper year, we have decided to publish a review of everything that has happened in the last 12 months showing how we have become one of the world’s fastest growing crypto platforms.

Last year, we grew from a derivatives only trading platform to a full cryptocurrency marketplace, leading to a fivefold increase in our user base across more than 150 countries. Now, we serve not just traders but all crypto lovers.

In the space of mere months, Bybit launched Spot Trading, Launchpad, Institutional Services, VIP Program, and scored a multi-year partnership with Oracle Red Bull Racing, this partnership marks the largest per annum deal of crypto’s foray into sports. An incredible trajectory given the platform started as a derivatives exchange in 2018 with only three trading pairs.

To date, Bybit has achieved 99.9% uptime and with one of the highest open interests and lowest slippages, has become the choice of crypto enthusiasts from beginners to professionals. Traders, in particular, enjoy our throughput rate that can handle up to 100,000 transactions per second.

And, with 24/7 customer support in multiple languages, no one is left out of our pledge to Listen, Care and Improve.

VOLUME

It’s been a record-breaking year for Bybit’s liquidity volume and our superior tech.

• Bybit hit an all-time high of over $1.7 trillion in overall trading volume in Q3 2021 — a sum equal to the GDP of Canada

Our average 24-hour trading volume in 2021 was over $11.8 billion

• Our highest daily trading volume was more than $76 billion, achieved on May 19, which is enough money to buy 326,000 Lamborghini Spyder sports cars

• On average, Bybit handled over 30,000 transactions per second in 2021

USERS

We’ve had a bumper year for user growth too.

• In 2021, Bybit saw an average of about 75,000 users logging in each day, which is a 377% increase from the previous 12 months

• The peak number of users in a single day was more than 255,000

• Over 4.7 million new users registered accounts with Bybit last year, this is more than the population of Rome — up 435% on the previous 12 months

PARTNERSHIPS

Last year, Bybit expanded our partnerships with excellent results. Here are some highlights:

• Oracle Red Bull Racing. As part of the deal, Bybit will get brand presence on Oracle Red Bull Racing’s race suits, events, and stunning race cars. Bybit also plans to release Red Bull Racing’s fan token alongside other crypto projects

• Borussia Dortmund. Bybit values talent and commits to building a field where talents can seize the moment and take the opportunity. Since 2020, Bybit

has partnered with this legendary soccer team as an exclusive Champion Partner

• Bybit also partnered with top esports teams NAVI, Astralis, Alliance and Virtus.Pro and Japanese professional soccer team Avispa Fukuoka

SECURITY

Last year, Bybit invested about 25% of our budget in security to safeguard our infrastructure — nearly twice the industry average.

• In the last 12 months, we have optimized the software development life cycle by ensuring all projects are heavily de-risked and aligned with security measures through static security scans, dynamic security scans and manual inspections

• We maintained several layers of protection: data layer, application layer, host layer, network layer, and business layer

• We got our response time to potential attacks to less than 10 minutes

EMPLOYEES

To keep up with our exponential growth we grew our team by 300%.

• Since January 2021, Bybit has hired over 1,200 new staff. We now have a total workforce of more than 1,800 from 50 different countries. Our IT and Security teams comprise 40% of this total

• Talent pipeline remains a key development area for our industry. We are an avid supporter of tertiary institutions that offer blockchain opportunities through courses and hackathons. Through event sponsorships, we have witnessed amazing ideas from the young minds and have recruited these bright minds to be part of Bybit’s future

DIGITAL MARKETS AND REGULATIONS

Bybit welcomes regulation and we are keen to work with regulators in all the jurisdictions. Unlike other exchanges, Bybit takes a proactive approach to work with regulators before offering services and products to new markets. In the past months, Australia and Dubai approved us for operation in their jurisdictions. They are big growth markets for us to offer our products as a one-stop crypto destination.

WORLD SERIES OF TRADING (WSOT)

Bybit has long been a first mover in esports — so much so we created the world’s first crypto trading competition, our flagship World Series of Trading (WSOT).

• Last year, Bybit’s WSOT saw a record 35,000 entries, up 280% from the previous year

• The massive number of entries drove the prize pool up to a historic $4.09 million — enough to buy 128 Rolex Skydweller watches

• Bybit has quadrupled its WSOT donation to $400,000 in BTC this year to support UNICEF in their efforts to provide STEM education for girls in Vietnam and deliver quality education in East Asia and the Pacific

DEVELOPING R&D THROUGH DAOS

BitDAO is one of the world’s largest decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) supported by Peter Thiel, Founders Fund, Pantera, Dragonfly, Spartan, Bybit, and more. The DAO hopes to support a broad range of projects in the form of research and development, liquidity bootstrapping, and funding, allowing BIT token holders to vote on proposals to foster technologies that present entirely new ways for people to work, engage, and transact together.

• Last year, Bybit pledged recurring contributions to the BitDAO treasury, which at 2021 rates, exceeds $1 billion per year

• BitDAO performed one of the largest DAO swaps ever in November 2021 by

• collaborating with Alameda Research to trade 100

million BIT for 3.36 million FTT — valued at $180 million at the time

P2P PAYMENTS AND CABITAL INTEGRATION

We believe it should be simple and safe for our users to buy crypto using their bank accounts.

• We recently established our peer-to-peer (P2P) system, allowing Bybit users to buy and sell USDT using fiat money with no platform or hidden fees

• Bybit has also partnered with Cabital, a leading global digital assets institution allowing users to buy crypto using EUR and GBP seamlessly

GIVING

As part of our core mission “to care,” Bybit has made strides in its mission to help create a level playing field and be a force for good.

We created a donation platform in partnership with The Giving Block that connects charities with traders and investors looking to make a difference. Launched on Nov. 18 the feature allows Bybit users to navigate within the exchange, donate to their favorite causes, and receive an automatic email receipt as confirmation of their contribution

• On Aug. 16, we announced our continued partnership with UNICEF that aims to support children’s digital learning. This includes STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) programs in Vietnam and further education programs in East Asia and the Pacific region. Bybit also donated $400,000 in Bitcoin to UNICEF, quadrupling its previous commitment

making an impact since 2010

The largest team of Search Experts focused purely on senior positions based in Africa

We believe that we can have a positive and lasting impact on Africa. We do this by ﬁnding the best leaders for our Clients to realise Africa’s potential.

Executives in Africa strives to be the Search Firm of choice for senior appointments across Africa. Established in 2010 by Sarah FitzMorris and Richard Putley, Executives in Africa are dedicated to delivering the very best leaders for our clients to unlock the potential of their businesses. The ﬁrm has become one of the largest Executive Search teams focusing purely on roles based in Africa and boasts French, Amharic, Portuguese and Arabic language capabilities. We have delivered over 700 Searches across 42 countries on the continent and are passionate about investing the time and resources to ensure we appoint the right leaders who will thrive and remain in their roles long term.

You want…

To hire leaders who unlock the growth potential in your business

To work with a partner who understands and can represent your business, in your sector and your country

To be conﬁ dent that you can access the best candidates in the market in particular those who aren’t actively looking

To choose from a shortlist of thoroughly assessed and suitably qualiﬁed candidates motivated to take the role

To appoint a candidate who will stay and deliver a long-term solution

To know that you will get results

Executives in Africa…

Is passionate about getting the right business leader to ﬁt your unique needs at this point in your business lifecycle

Understands the challenges of the African operating environment and the skills required for a business leader to be successful

Can access African nationals on the ground and in the Diaspora as well as expatriates

Works quickly and thoroughly using our proprietary EiA SuitAbility Assessments process to give you conﬁdence that recommended candidates are ﬁt to deliver your growth

94% of business leaders are in place after one year and remain long term

Will deliver results

Fope Oluleye building organisations with innovation, ambition and dynamism

Our Group CEO Fope Oluleye purpose is to build a set of organisations focused on reaching the zenith of their sectors. Fope has had experience in building ground-breaking companies from the age of 21. He and his companies have been the recipient of over 10 international awards since he started. Innovation, ambition and dynamism have been the key actors that run through the Group’s endeavours with the underlying theme to excel and build leading and defining companies.

THE ORIGINS OF ZENITH – HISTORY

Our origins date back to 2011 from the founding of our Uk company and we have rapidly grown into a dynamic set of businesses across three different continents across the world; Europe, Africa and North America. Zenith Guild Group is a collective set of private companies focused on investment across real estate, venture capital, renewable energy and other industries.

We are a firm that is in absolute pursuit of excellence.

The founding of our VC arm T Bridge Venture partners was in 2017 to invest in pioneering and gamechanging companies globally and providing private equity to companies. Alongside investing proprietary capital from our group level we also partner with family offices, wealth management and funds into co-investing into our chosen sectors and companies.

THE T BRIDGE APPROACH - STRATEGY

T Bridge realises that building successful firms means infusing them through both active collaboration and investment that will ultimately steer them onwards to growth and success. We want to create an ecosystem where our companies can thrive. Fope Oluleye describes a three-step process for identifying businesses that fit T Bridge VP’s investment profile.

1. Potential for viable high transformative growth through tackling a key problem in our chosen sectors.

• 2. Founder team with knowledge and understanding of the addressable market to execute its vision.

• 3. The company has a clear identity of where they sit within their sector and how they can impact it.

Most importantly, he recognises that those founders with boundless energy, untiring commitment to reaching their goals, and a deep desire to win as ones most likely to succeed. Through co-creating and fostering an environment that allows portfolio companies to shape their brand identity along with best in class resources T bridge believes they can further accelerate their growth.

THE INDUSTRY – VC & PORTFOLIO COMPANIES

The venture capital industry remains a very exciting space. It is the main source of capital to revolutionary businesses that seek to address prevalent problems. T Bridge aims to further add value by focusing on early-stage companies and founders that have enormous potential to disrupt current inefficient norms or create new innovative pathways and create lasting value for potential users and society as a whole. Within our portfolio we have invested in companies and funds in the cleantech/renewable energy, fintech, SAAS, consumer retail and health tech and have a number of companies raising in 2022 with some impressive updates;

EleXsys is an advanced power electronics device with a suite of AI applications enabling smart grids. Our investment into this company recognises the changing dynamic and incorporation of renewable energy to provide power to businesses and homes. The ground-breaking solar and battery microgrid being built to power the Adelaide store of Swedish furniture giant, IkEA, has reached a major milestone, after the rooftop PV component of the project was energised (turned on) in January 2022. Over the next year it plans to commence a number of partnerships and projects that incorporate battery storage and solar technology with the ability to trade two way into the grid.

Velocity Black – A virtual lifestyle assistant combining artificial intelligence and enterprise SAAS software that is being fastly adopted by large corporate customers.

Backed by $30M in venture capital, Velocity is one of the world’s fastest growing companies - the 3rd fastest

headquartered in the Uk according to Forbes and were named in Deloitte’s Fast 50 2020 list of the Uk’s fastest growing tech companies based on revenue growth over the last 4 years. With a membership base of over 60 countries and whose net worth is $300bn in addition number of renowned corporates such as Rolls Royce, A Landesbanken, LA Chargers they are revolutionising the way corporates and people can process requests. Velocity Black will continue to be a disrupt and evolve the status quo in the near future.

Ziglu is a pioneering fiat and cryptocurrency bank within the fintech space founded by the ex-founder of Starling Bank. With the fast adoption of cryptocurrency and it becoming more accepted as an asset class. Ziglu presented a very strong thesis for investment, as the fintech sector continues evolve, our investment in Ziglu a company that will help shape the sector in the upcoming years as it continues to grow in force. They are currently expanding the investment offering within app and now have licensing for EU.

LAUNCH AFRICA Ventures is a frontier pan African fund, a FIRST in Africa solving a significant funding gap and valuation arbitrage in the Seed to Series A bridge funding investment landscape in Africa. Focusing on B2B and B2C early stage startups, the fund was founded by experienced fund managers and investment banking professionals. Our investment into the fund to become an LP was based on the premise of the evolving and growing landscape of Venture capital on the continent of Africa and the significant problem they are solving for early stage startups.

To date Launch Africa has raised $33.5 million thus far, with a targeted final close of up to $40 million by our final close on March 18th, 2022. The fund has 200+ LPs split across the U.S., Europe, Asia and Africa. Commerz Ventures (the corporate VC arm of Commerz Bank) was the most recent prominent LP that came onboard at our last close for $2.5m. Thus far we have deployed a total of $20 million into 93 of Africa’s leading early-stage technology ventures, spread across 17 countries and multiple industry sectors.

Happy Joe: A foodtech app that promotes meals within your location based on their health benefits and rewards you with loyalty for consuming them. The company founded in 2020, a synonymous time with health consciousness due to the prevalent covid pandemic. An innovative first of its kind app targeting consumers and restaurants that want to learn more about the everyday health benefits of what they are consuming and restaurants to provide these benefits to customers. Having onboarded Elliott burton a leading global influencer who was sponsored by Gym Shark to head up marketing, they have also partnered with F45 gyms to offer value to their gyms. They will also be raising for Q1 2022 and their exciting expansion.

RENEWABLE ENERGY – BRIGHTSTAR GLOBAL & PASH

Our ever growing focus on renewable energy since the establishment of our subsidiary in 2015 has grown into ownership and operation of projects in Africa, Asia and other emerging markets.

Brightstar Solar Global’s focus is on subsaharan Africa and developing and managing solar projects across the Commercial and Industrial space, Utility scale and distributed energy systems with a focus on Nigeria and then sub-saharan Africa.

Over the next year we will deliver on our goal of 1000MW across our four main operational systems of large-scale utility solar farms, commercial solar systems, distributed mini energy grid systems and rooftop solar systems with a key emphasis on technological innovation and long term sustainability.

In Q1 2021, we became shareholders in PASH global Management, A subsidiary of Trafigura- one of the largest commodity traders in the world. PASH are an emerging market renewable developer of wind, solar & battery storage projects across Latin America, Europe Africa & Asia.

We are currently focused to acquire operational and ready to build assets within these geographic regions, with sizes between 10-200MWp. Our collective vision is to attain 2GW In each continent by 2026.

Pash are in advanced negotiations for 152MWp of RTB & operational assets across LATAM & Asia and will be announced by the end of Q1 2022.

This investment aligns to Zenith’s target to increase our portfolio of Renewable Energy projects to 1GW by the end of 2022. We are targeting utility scale, commercial and

industrial, distributed renewable energy projects across LATAM, EMEA, Asia and African regions. We will be looking to partner also with family offices, funds and JV partners to reach these objectives.

Our premise remains the same to be a gamechanger that invests and develops dynamic companies and we will continue to commit towards this goal.

Mohamed Al Dhaheri, Acting Executive Director of the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) shares the benefits of doing business in Abu Dhabi

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS FOR INTERNATIONAL COMPANIES CHOOSING ABU DHABI AS THEIR BASE TO ENTER OR EXPAND IN THE UAE, MIDDLE EAST AND WIDER REGION?

The UAE is the second largest economy in the Middle East and one of the best places in the world to do business. Investors choosing Abu Dhabi can leverage the UAE capital’s position as a strategic trade hub and launchpad to the wider region, with 80% of the world’s population within an eight-hour flight.

Abu Dhabi stands out for the level of support available and for a commitment to making business as easy as possible. The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) can plug international investors into an integrated support network, whether a company is looking for funding, networks, community or mentorship. These include business enablers, free zones, equity investors, incubators and accelerators.

HOW EASY IS DOING BUSINESS IN ABU DHABI?

Abu Dhabi is one of the easiest places in the world to do business thanks to the positive investment environment, enabling regulations, stability and security, access to talent, liveability, cutting-edge infrastructure and connectivity.

Abu Dhabi has put in place initiatives to expedite the set-up process and support businesses looking to make the emirate their home. From lower business setup fees to reduced requirements for starting a new commercial business, Abu Dhabi continues to streamline the establishment process. The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), for instance, has cut fees for commercial licence issuance and renewal by over 90%, reduced the regulatory burden by over 70% and introduced a new seamless digital experience for opening a new business in Abu Dhabi.

Financial and non-financial incentives are available to help businesses set up in the emirate. Investors can access financial support through grants and rebates from ADIO, as well as equity investments through ecosystem players such as ADQ and Mubadala. ADIO also provides non-financial incentives including assistance with access

to facilities, regulatory assistance for visas and licences, and potential exemptions for select government fees and requirements.

The UAE Commercial Companies Law was amended to permit 100% foreign ownership of companies incorporated in the UAE, effective on 1 June 2021. In Abu Dhabi, noncitizens are permitted to own economic licences and establish commercial companies with full 100% ownership for 1,105 registered commercial and industrial activities across a range of sectors. This promotes an open, flexible and business-friendly environment, demonstrating the government’s commitment to providing companies with the optimum conditions they need to operate.

Abu Dhabi’s five free zones, ADGM, kIZAD, Masdar City, Abu Dhabi Airport Free Zone (ADAFZ) and Twofour54, offer easy business setup and support for companies and startups, and have tailored regulations to meet the needs of the relevant industries they serve.

All these initiatives reflect the strength of collaboration and engagement between the government and private sector to identify evolving requirements and develop effective solutions to make doing business in Abu Dhabi as seamless as possible.

HOW EASY IS IT TO MOVE TO ABU DHABI?

To attract talent, immigration processes are designed to make it easy for skilled workers and those with higher education qualifications to obtain work permits. The UAE introduced long-term Golden Visas in 2019 for international talent working, creating, studying, excelling and investing in key sectors, and began offering

citizenship to select foreigners and professionals in 2021. The UAE’s Golden Visa is available in Abu Dhabi for international investors and top talent from around the world, providing them with visas for up to 10 years. The “Thrive in Abu Dhabi” programme, launched in 2021, builds on this initiative by encouraging talented professionals, students and investors to set down roots by highlighting the long-term residency in line with the emirate’s goals, specifically in terms of growing priority sectors and industries.

IS ABU DHABI FOCUSED ON ANY SECTORS IN PARTICULAR?

Abu Dhabi has made it a priority to advance technological solutions that further economic progress for the region and beyond. Consequently, innovation is an underlying theme for many of the emirate’s initiatives to support international investors.

ADIO focuses on creating partnerships with companies in innovation-focused sectors such as financial services, ICT, health services and biopharma, tourism and AgTech, among others. These are areas in which Abu Dhabi has a competitive advantage and can help drive innovation for global impact. The depth of support that the government provides to encourage the private sector to develop innovation in these sectors and others is a defining characteristic of Abu Dhabi’s business environment. We want to attract innovators, founders and startups to establish and grow here as we have the right incentives and environment to be able to support their development. ADIO’s Innovation Programme and many other government initiatives focus on supporting entrepreneurs and startups in these sectors. Furthermore,

Abu Dhabi is a safe ground for innovation and a place where entrepreneurs can confidently take commercial and creative risks.

HOW CAN ADIO HELP INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS ESTABLISH AND GROW IN ABU DHABI?

ADIO is the first port of call in Abu Dhabi for international investors. Our role is to support and guide companies to set them up for long-term success in Abu Dhabi. We help them understand the opportunities the market has to offer, highlighting areas for growth, facilitating connections with relevant entities and crafting longterm partnerships. Our investor care team provides a comprehensive range of tailored services that support the ambitions and ongoing growth of investors. These are complemented by comprehensive cash and non-cash incentives for businesses operating in high-growth areas.

DOES ADIO HAVE A PRESENCE OUTSIDE OF ABU DHABI?

Our international office network acts as an extension of ADIO. Our offices in Tel Aviv, New York, San Francisco, Frankfurt, London, Paris, Beijing and Seoul focus on facilitating connections between companies in those markets and Abu Dhabi.

HOW CAN INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS CONTACT ADIO?

ADIO’s Investor Care team is ready to assist international investors on every stage of their journey in Abu Dhabi. They can get in touch via the ADIO website (www. investinabudhabi.ae) or by contacting on our international offices.

Porsche Taycan: The sports car re-imagined with sustainability in mind

From the very beginning, Porsche pursued the vision of producing an all-electric vehicle that would be carbon neutral across the entire value chain. With the Porsche Taycan, the sports car manufacturer has demonstrated that sustainability and dynamic driving need not be mutually exclusive. The new plant built for the electric sports car in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen has been carbon-neutral since 2020, with the production site in Leipzig and the development centre in Weissach following suit at the beginning of 2021. Sustainability characterises the whole range of elements within product. In the interior, for example, individual vehicle components are made of recycled materials. Porsche is also committed to the use of green electricity in the expansion of the charging infrastructure. All charging operations with the Porsche Charging Service are already carbon-neutral. Moreover, the company’s direct battery cell suppliers have been required to use green electricity since 2020. Direct suppliers for new vehicle projects have been required to use green power in the production of Porsche components since mid2020.

Of the six billion euros that Porsche is investing in electric mobility by 2022, more than 700 million euros go into the construction of new production facilities for the Taycan. Parallel to the tightly balanced production of sports cars – with 250 Series 911 and 718 automobiles, more vehicles leave the plant than ever before – a new factory is being built in the existing factory in Zuffenhausen.

Porsche pays the highest attention to sustainability in all its aspects. Production on the site is CO₂-neutral, the energy-efficient buildings are well below the statutory energy requirements, all roofs of the new buildings are landscaped and partly equipped with photovoltaic systems. The electrical energy used at Porsche comes from renewable sources. Biogas-powered combined heat and power plants supply the site with heat and additional electricity. Increasingly electrified logistics vehicles and

rail transport powered by green electricity reduce CO₂ emissions in logistics. Added to this there are a host of other measures, with which Porsche is pursuing the goal of the “Zero-Impact-Factory”, a production without environmental influences.

Sustainability is one of the three pillars of the Porsche Production 4.0: smart, lean and green are the buzz words for the modern production methods of the sports car manufacturer. In addition to the ecological aspects (green) and the responsible and efficient use of resources (lean), Porsche Production 4.0 stands out for its transparency and networking (smart). People continue to be at the center of production. Modern technologies facilitate their work and support their craft.

The step into electric mobility is a job engine for the company: The Taycan and its CUV off shoot Taycan Cross Turismo will create 1,500 additional jobs. At the same time, the sports car manufacturer is establishing an unprecedented qualification initiative, in which the topic of electric mobility at Porsche is introduced to Porsche employees. All employees are offered a four-day qualification program in addition to extensive e-learning opportunities. For the colleagues which are directly involved in the production of the Taycan a multi-week training is planned.

Aspinal of London introduces the Reporter collection

Aspinal of London introduces the Reporter collection, a contemporary capsule of bags and small leather accessories designed to meet the needs of the modern-day man. Aspinal is well-known for its city professional business bags and document cases that have been extremely popular over the years, particularly the recognisable Mount Street Laptop Bag. Yet, the Reporter collection introduces a more casual aesthetic into the brand’s product portfolio.

The Reporter collection is designed for life on the go. Each piece is created with durability in mind from the everyday commute to travel further afield. Handcrafted using robust, Italian full-grain leather, the main body of the collection features a supple pebble finish with a contrasting high shine calf leather across the zips and trims to bring a deeper level of durability. The semi-structured design guarantees comfort and flexibility for the wearer while still maintaining the masculine silhouette of each design.

Fine craftsmanship and a timeless design ethos are at the heart of Aspinal of London, who are proud to create long-lasting and responsible luxury. Aspinal always encourages its customers to buy better and last; the Reporter collection aligns with these important brand values.

The collection is presented in an effortless colour palette of warm, earthy tones chosen for the ease they will work into every man’s wardrobe. The three colourways range from an incredible, rich tobacco brown complimented by majestic navy blue and neutral, solid black.

The Reporter Backpack is a nod to the much-loved Anderson silhouette, featuring the Aspinal signature ‘A’ detailing throughout. Designed to fit seamlessly into professional and off-duty wardrobes alike, the backpack is a marriage of style and practicality. Spacious enough for a 14” laptop, a smartphone and tablet, sufficiently secure for peace of mind, with a double closure leather drawstring concealed with stud-fastened flap.

The compact Reporter East West Messenger Bag is the ideal travel companion, with two spacious compartments to house all essentials, including a mobile phone. Teamed with a crossbody strap, the East West can be worn over the shoulder or crossbody using the fully adjustable and detachable webbing strap.

Combining a modern practicality and professionalism the Reporter Messenger is designed to be worn crossbody for versatile styling, with a large compartment to provide enough space for a laptop or portfolio. Finally, Aspinal’s iconic Mount Street Laptop Bag is given a updated seasonal update, featuring the soft grain leather in line with the collection, bringing a softer edge to this workwear staple.

Understated and masculine, the Boston Travel Bag is the perfect companion for weekend breaks and trips to the gym. Handcrafted using the finest full-grain leather with a pebble grain finish, the softly structured duffle-style shape is spacious enough for all your essentials. Designed with longevity in mind, this timeless leather travel bag has sturdy top handles and a detachable shoulder strap for superior comfort on the move.

Aspinaloflondon.com

The Davos Agenda Serves as a Great Preamble for the WEF Annual Meeting That Will be Celebrated in May It will be their first in-person event since the start of the pandemic.

Featuring heads of state and leaders from countless industries, the Davos Agenda 2022 took place this past January as a virtual event. Most of the conversation was around the pandemic response, and the role of innovation in the coming decades. At the time, the Omicron variant was spreading fast across Europe, so the nature of the meeting being remote was not surprising to anyone.

The event provided a profound insight into how these world figures see the current situation, and what is needed to be done so our societies can enjoy a steadier path to total recovery in a post-pandemic world.

One of the bigger names present at the meeting was xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China. He provided a brief speech in which he tried to put some serious emphasis on how countries need to be working together so the global immunization gap can be diminished to full closure.

Also present was Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI. He took the opportunity to announce the milestone of delivering more than 1 billion vaccine doses via COVAx, a project that he’s leading at the moment and that is helping poor countries fight COVID-19 in more efficient ways.

The Davos Agenda delivered, and the numbers tell a story of moderate success, opening the opportunity for having more virtual meetings like this in the future. The event was mentioned more than 45 thousand times by the global media, the forum’s website received almost 7 million views and 3 million people viewed the sessions via livestream and social media.

That’s not all, most of the videos created for social media in regards to the event, received a combined 18 million views, and 200 articles were written about the world leaders that were present at those talks.

ECONOMIC RECOVERY AS A VEHICLE FOR PROSPERITY

COVID-19 has been extremely harmful to the global economy, mostly to poor countries in Africa where decades of sustained progress just witnessed an abrupt interruption. Speakers gave examples on how the pandemic has reversed gains in growth, poverty reduction, and GDP projection.

On the other hand, Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank mentioned that the recovery has been stronger than expected, something that managed to brighten the faces of various people present at the sessions.

CLIMATE AND TECH INITIATIVES

John kerry, the US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate declared that “nobody is moving fast enough”, revealing his frustration in a brief message that tried to warn us about the impending consequences of ignoring the effects of climate change.

In the same tone, Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia, talked about how the pandemic made tech more important than ever, and how digital adoption is changing the global economy quicker than ever. Ursula

von der Leyen announced the European Chips Act while Naftali Bennet, Prime Minister of Israel explained how big data helped his country tackle the bigger challenges against the pandemic.

ANNUAL MEETING IN LESS THAN 80 DAYS

Rescheduled to 22-26 May, the famous annual meeting will take place in Davos-klosters, Switzerland, the theme will be “Working Together, Restoring Trust”. This will be the first in-person event since the pandemic started, so there’s a lot of buzz going on already about who’s going to attend and which points will be discussed.

Sources indicate that the main topics will be around pandemic recovery, climate change, stakeholder capitalism, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution that has already started.

Omicron was the main reason why the meeting was postponed last December, certainly catching everyone by surprise, even health experts.

“Current pandemic conditions make it extremely difficult to deliver a global in-person meeting. Preparations have been guided by expert advice and have benefited from the close collaboration of the Swiss government at all levels,” Said the official World Economic Forum’s website.

Founded by economist and engineer klaus Schwab, the World Economic Forum meeting is the most important event in regards to the global economy, public policy, and innovation. It takes place in the remote town of Davos which has a population of 10,898 inhabitants, and has proven to be a networking powerhouse for leaders and activists from all corners of the world.

International Investor Awards Winners 2022

COVID-19 change the way businesses work, the investment community had to take a step further and reinvent in many ways. In order to recognise the effort behind every individual and company during this time, we selected champions from a wide range of businesses.

The awards are open to any business, large, mid-size or small, established or start-up, provided they display first rate service, opportunity, innovation and performance. The following pages celebrate organisations that drive forward the world of international business and investment.

ABU DHABI INVESTMENT OFFICE (ADIO)

Best FDI Destination // MENA 2022

The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) helps businesses and companies of all sizes establish and grow in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

As the central government hub supporting investment in the emirate, ADIO offers tailored and personalised investor care, guidance and support for long-term, sustainable success.

ADIO’s AED 2 billion ($545 million) Innovation Programme provides a range of financial and non-financial incentives to businesses in the emirate’s high-growth areas, including financial services, tourism, AgTech, information and communication technology (ICT) and healthcare and biopharma, among others.

In 2021, ADIO opened eight international offices in Tel Aviv, New York, San Francisco, Frankfurt, London, Paris, Beijing and Seoul. These offices provide localised support and facilitate connections for innovative companies looking to expand to Abu Dhabi.

ACCESS BANK

Best Banking Environmental & Social Performance // Africa 2022

Access Bank Plc. is a leading full-service commercial Bank operating through a network of more than 600 branches and service outlets, spanning three continents, 14 countries and over 36 million customers. The Bank employs 25,000 people in its operations in Nigeria and has subsidiaries in Sub-Saharan Africa and the United kingdom (with a branch in Dubai, UAE) and representative offices in China, Lebanon and India.

Listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange since 1998, Access Bank is a diversified financial institution which combines a strong retail customer franchise and digital platform with deep corporate banking expertise and proven risk management and capital management capabilities. The Bank serves its various markets through four business segments: Retail, Business, Commercial and Corporate. The Bank has over 900,000 shareholders (including several Nigerian and International Institutional Investors) and has enjoyed what is arguably Africa’s most successful banking growth trajectory in the last twelve years. Following its merger with Diamond Bank in March 2019, Access Bank became one of Africa’s largest retail banks by retail customer base.

Best Spreads & Trading Conditions // 2022

Best Partners Program // 2022

BDSwiss is a leading financial services group of regulated entities, offering bespoke CFD trading and investment products to more than 1.5 million registered clients, in over 180 different countries. Since its inception back in 2012, BDSwiss has been providing top-class products, a wide range of platforms, competitive pricing, and fast execution on more than 1000 underlying instruments including leading company stocks and ETFs at direct market access as well as hundreds of CFDs on forex, shares, energies, metals, and indices. BDSwiss complies with a strict regulatory framework and operates its services on a global scale under a number of different licenses and registrations. Delivering a world-class trading experience through a regulated and transparent environment, BDSwiss employs over 300 professionals across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

BDSWISS

BVI FINANCE

20 Years of Financial Excellence // 2022

Best Offshore Financial Center // 2022

BVI Finance is the voice of the British Virgin Islands’ financial services industry; marketing and promoting its products and services, as well as managing and maintaining its excellent reputation as a premier offshore financial centre. Established in 2002 as the BVI International Finance Centre, the company was re-branded to BVI Finance in 2015.

The BVI has established itself as the leading provider of offshore financial services, not only due to its best-inclass innovative regulatory regime and business-friendly environment, but also through BVI Finance’s presence at conferences and trade events in our core and emerging markets, and support in maintaining a strong relationship with key stakeholders both locally and internationally. To retain the jurisdiction’s competiveness, BVI Finance partners with local and international practitioners, media outlets and investors in emerging and traditional markets.

BYBIT

Best Customer Rewards Program // Crypto 2022

Ben Zhou - Crypto CEO of the Year // 2022

Established in March 2018, Bybit is one of the fastest growing cryptocurrency derivatives exchanges, with more than a million registered users. Built on customer-centric values, the company endeavors to provide a professional, smart, intuitive and innovative trading experience to better serve customers in a timely manner. They are committed to creating a fair, transparent and efficient trading environment, and offer 24/7 multilanguage support as part of their service.

CI CAPITAL

Best Asset Manager // Egypt 2022

CI Capital is a diversified financial services group and Egypt’s leading provider of investment banking,leasing, and microfinance products and services.

Through its headquarters in Cairo and presence in New York and Dubai, CI Capital offers a wide range of financial solutions to a diversified client base that include global and regional institutions and family offices, large corporates, SMEs, and high net worth and individual investors.

COINMENA

Best Digital Exchange // MENA 2022

CoinMENA is the fastest growing crypto exchange in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and is fully licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain and in the European Union. Through CoinMENA, you can buy, sell, store, and receive digital assets safely and securely, as well as deposit and withdraw in your local currency. We aim to be the simplest and easiest way to purchase digital assets in the Middle East and North Africa. Our mission is to establish ourselves as the leading crypto service provider offering a wide range of crypto and financial services.

CORNER BANK

Best Private Banking Services // The Bahamas 2022

Excellence Banking Innovation // The Bahamas 2022

Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Ltd. has been a paragon of excellence in the world of private banking for over 20 years. Built on a solid foundation of constant innovation, strong financial positioning, and capital soundness, Cornèr Bank offers its globally diversified clientele competitive and tailored solutions in an increasingly complex world. Cornèr Bank brings expert knowledge and a wide range of top-tier financial services to serve not only International Clients but to Bahamians and residents alike. Through consistent product development, Cornèr has diversified its offerings to include the Cornèrtrader platform and an array of investment services. Cornèr Bank continues to experience remarkable growth and increased stability as it takes pride in maintaining its stellar international reputation. Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Ltd. is an affiliate of Swissbased parent company Cornèr Bank Ltd. and is licensed with and regulated by both the Central Bank of The Bahamas and the Securities Commission of The Bahamas.

CAPITAL 3PM

Best Fixed Income Investment Advisory Firm // 2021

Best Loan Note- Investment Advisory Firm

Since 2003, Capital 3PM has introduced institutions and high net worth individuals to secured, asset-backed or insured fixed income concepts. We offer our clients access to an unparalleled suite of fixedincome loan notes and corporate bonds.

Capital 3PM has almost two decades of experience in the global investment space, managing an established client base of both institutional and retail investors.

WHO WE HELP

We only work with high net worth or sophisticated investors that have been referred to us by private banks, family offices, wealth managers and sovereign wealth funds.

DEVERE CRYPTO

Most Innovative Crypto App // 2022

NIGEL GREEN

Financial CEO of the Year // 2022

deVere Crypto allows you to effortlessly buy, sell, store and exchange cryptocurrency. The deVere Crypto app lets you exchange fiat currency for Bitcoin and other altcoins, such as Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple, Dash, Monero, Stellar, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum classic, Zcash, EOS, Dogecoin, Cardano, Polkadot, Chainlink, PAx Gold, kyber Network, Synthetix, TRON, Filecoin, Uniswap, Solana and Ren, all at the touch of a button. Our simple, yet effective design is ideal for both beginners and experienced crypto traders. Build your portfolio, store and manage your digital coins in a single, easyto-use and secure app and crypto wallet. Use our crypto tracker to monitor your market position and performance with our live graphs that display daily, weekly, monthly and yearly price data.

EMIRATES REIT

Sharjah Complaint REIT Company of the Year // MENA 2022

Emirates REIT is the UAE largest listed Sharia compliant Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). It was the first REIT incorporated in the UAE in 2010 and has approximately USD 723 million of assets under management. Emirates REIT is incorporated in the DIFC and licensed by the DFSA.

EXECUTIVES IN AFRICA

Best African Region Executive Recruiting Firm // 2022

Executives in Africa is an Executive Search firm which believes it can have a positive and lasting impact on Africa by finding the right leaders for executive and senior management level appointments in Africa.

Our extensive international and panAfrican networks, combined with the understanding of recruiting into local markets in Africa, gives Executives in Africa an unrivalled ability to access and assess talent effectively.

By investing time, and by undertaking full due diligence of the market, we have supported over 700 businesses across 42 countries on the continent to hire the BEST available leader to meet the specific needs of their business. Our appointed leaders thrive because they have been evidently assessed to ensure they can technically deliver what is needed and also that they ‘fit’ the behavioural requirements for success. Our track record of success over the last 12 years is testament to our ability to deliver on even the most challenging of Searches.

FICOHSA

Best Banking Group // Central America 2022

Best Digital Transformation // Central America 2022

Grupo Financiero Ficohsa is a regional conglomerate with more than 27 years of experience, characterized by its innovation, strength, commitment and growth, aligned with the UN Global Compact to achieve sustainable development through a balance between economic growth, environmental care and social welfare. Fulfilling its corporate purpose of: facilitating solutions that transform lives.

The financial group offers a workplace with gender equity, diversity and inclusion, initiatives for professional and personal growth, job security, and the well-being of its employees, which include: professional training programs, an ethics program, health fairs, lactation rooms, and others.

Banco Ficohsa has been a pioneer in digital banking by creating the first electronic branch in Honduras “Interbanca” more than 20 years ago and has continuously renewed its technological platforms with the strictest security measures according to global standards, adapting them to the market needs to provide the best digital experience in all countries where it has presence.

FIRST ALLY

Best Financial Group // Nigeria 2022

First Ally Capital was founded in 2014 and licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission as a financial advisory firm and issuing house. Different vehicles within the group serve the distinct Nigerian socio-economic segments:

• First Ally Capital provides corporate/ project financial advisory and capita raising services to corporates.

First Ally Asset Management provides funds and wealth management services on a pooled and segregated basis for both retail and institutional investors.

• First Ally Bureau De Change provides retail foreign exchange services to the Group’s clients as well as passengers travelling in and out of Nigeria.

• Personal Trust Microfinance Bank provides banking services to SMEs and inclusive banking services to the underserved sectors of the economy.

• First Ally Properties provides real estate services from acquisitions and advisory to property/facility management for various clients.

First Ally Capital has used digital technology to make progress towards sustainable growth goals by focusing on value-creation and customer service.

FIRST BANK

Best Bank // Nigeria 2022

Best Banking Digital Transformation // Nigeria 2022

First Bank of Nigeria Limited First Bank of Nigeria Limited (FirstBank) is one of the premier banks in Africa with its impact woven into the fabric of society. The Bank has been sustaining its developmentoriented services for over 127 years as the region’s foremost financial inclusion services provider.

FirstBank offers a comprehensive range of retail and corporate financial services through more than 800 branches and over 157,000 Agent Banking locations to over 36 million customer accounts. As a national icon and an international player, FirstBank is one of the most enduring financial services brands in Africa with international footprints extending through its subsidiaries, FBN Bank (Uk). Limited in London and Paris, FBNBank in the Republic of Congo, Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra- Leone and Senegal, as well as a Representative Office in Beijing. FirstBank has been nimble at promoting a digital economy in Africa and has issued over 12 million cards, the first bank to achieve such milestone in Nigeria. Since its establishment in 1894, FirstBank has consistently built relationships with customers, focusing on the fundamentals of good corporate governance, strong liquidity, optimized risk management and leadership.

MABEL CAPITAL

Best Private Investment Firm // Spain 2022

MABEL CAPITAL is a private capital investment firm founded in Madrid with presence and assets in Madrid, Ibiza, Marbella, Lisbon, Los Angeles, Riyadh, Bahrain, and Philadelphia. The firm focuses on investing and diversifying its capital throughout Real Estate, Finance, Hospitality and other areas of interest.

Our social values commit us to sustainability and preservation of planet earth for the current and future generations. Each Project aims to improve the quality of our environment.

MABEL CAPITAL is committed to adding value, market performance and consistent quality.

NETWEALTH

Most Innovative Wealth Management Firm // UK 2022

We founded Netwealth in 2016 to give clients a better choice compared to established wealth managers. Many were not moving with the times and adapting to the needs of modern investors. We therefore combined the best elements of a traditional service with the benefits of a technology-enhanced approach.

This allows us to offer considerable advances: lower fees to help investments grow more, greater control to help investors manage their money how and when they wish, and industryleading transparency to relieve much of the stress of planning for the future. These improvements are backed up by a professional team with decades of experience at the highest level.

Whether investors are preparing for retirement, wish to grow their funds meaningfully in a tax-free wrapper or want sound advice to help secure their family’s future – our powerful, modern discretionary service means we are well placed to help them achieve their goals.

OMAN INSURANCE

Best Health Insurance Company // MENA 2022

Established in 1975, Oman Insurance Company (“Oman Insurance”) is one of the leading insurance providers in the UAE. They provide a wide range of comprehensive insurance solutions to more than 830,000 individuals and commercial clients in life, healthcare and general (property,energy, engineering, aviation, marine and liability) insurance. The company has operations across all Emirates in the UAE as well as in Oman and Turkey.

The company is committed to providing outstanding insurance solutions that help create and protect wealth and well being. The Dubai-based company achieve this mission by serving businesses and individuals with a team of 650 professionals through an intensive distribution network of branches, brokers, bancassurance partners, agencies, an e-commerce platform and a dedicated call centre.

SYLVAIN VIEUJOT

REIT CEO of the Year // UAE 2022

An entrepreneur with 30 years of experience in creating, expanding and listing companies, Mr. Vieujot is the visionary behind industry leaders such as Freelance.com (Listed on the French Stock Market – Alternet of Euronext), Equitativa, Platre.com and the Enata Group.

After arriving in the UAE in 2006, Mr. Vieujot recognised that real estate was one of the main drivers of Dubai’s economic growth and it seemed to be the ideal time to start what turned out to be the largest Shari’a compliant Emirates Real Estate Investment Trust in the world. Mr. Vieujot transferred the holding company of “Société de la Tour Eiffel”the first French listed REIT (SIIC) from Luxembourg to the Dubai International Financial Centre in 2006 and founded Equitativa Dubai and Emirates REIT. Today, Mr. Vieujot is the CEO and Deputy Chairman of the REIT Manager, Equitativa Dubai Limited as well as the co-founder and Chairman of the Equitativa Group, a group of companies that specialise in creating and managing financial products in emerging markets and particularly Real Estate Investment Trusts.

VAULT MARKETS

Most Secure Broker // South Africa 2022

Vault Markets team is made up of experienced and passionate International traders from within the Forex industry. Strategically combining their expertise to focus on developing and empowering African Forex markets to compete at a global scale. We’ve got over 40 years of combined experience in our Vault, which we are sharing with our valued Brokers and clients, to support their success and the prosperity of Africa as a whole.

Vault Markets is a South African-based licenced and regulated broker which aims to give you a better trading experience by allowing you to customise your account type to your trading style – less of what you don’t need, and more of what you do!

VORTO TRADING

Most Trusted Payments Provider // Africa 2022

Vorto is a deliverable foreign exchange trading house offering a bespoke service to a wide range of clients from institutional traders to corporate and private clients.

We remain committed to providing innovative  solutions for sustainable development in  order to ensure a greater tomorrow.