Research and Analytics
Research and Analytics
As crypto assets take hold, regulators need to step up.
Crypto assets offer a new world of opportunities: Quick and easy payments. Innovative financial services. Inclusive access to previously “unbanked” parts of the world. All are made possible by the crypto ecosystem. But along with the opportunities come challenges and risks.
If you’re Jeff Bezos, you’re not going to have some random dude manage your money and hope for the best. You’re not gonna open up a Robinhood account and risk it all on meme stocks like Gamestop. You’re going to hire the type of investor who has a PhD in mathematics and drives a Bugatti; a go-getter who wakes up with a turmeric latte and pores over satellite images of factories in Asia to predict the earnings of some 3D printing company most of us have never heard of. We’re talking about the best of the best in finance.
Dangote cement plc reported a 23% Return on Invested Capital (ROIC), which overshot its nearest competitor (BUA) by 600bps. Lafarge came in a distant third with an ROIC of 6%. We, however, note the gradual increase in Lafarge’s performance over the last five years as it continues to grow its ROIC from the 1% it reported in 2016. We believe this continued uptrend in its performance is hinged on the selloff of its South Africa operations, a strategic action that has continued to impact performance favourably.
The Federal Reserve’s new policy approach is that policymakers want to see “actual progress, not forecast progress” before deciding to change its policy stance. Substantial actual progress is occurring in the economy, some faster than others. How much monetary accommodation is needed to meet the ultimate employment and inflation objectives is debatable. But it is less than when the pandemic started and less after the passage of $1.9 trillion in federal stimulus.
Determining when a policy stance has become too accommodative is not an easy matter—but enabling excessive risk-taking to become well-entrenched is comparable to past policy mistakes by allowing a build-up of inflation and inflation expectations. Both are difficult to unwind, and past episodes have shown it is impossible without triggering significant adverse effects in the economy.
Empty office buildings. Reduced store hours. Unbelievably low hotel room rates. All are signs of the times. The containment measures put in place last year in response to the pandemic shuttered businesses and offices, and dealt a severe blow to the demand for commercial real estate—especially, in the retail, hotel, and office segments.
Beyond its immediate impact, the pandemic has also clouded the outlook for commercial real estate, given the advent of trends such as the decline in demand for traditional brick-and-mortar retail in favor of e-commerce, or for offices as work-from-home policies gain traction. Recent IMF analysis finds these trends could disrupt the market for commercial real estate and potentially threaten financial stability.
Each time the word housing pops up, especially the challenges that come with owning /acquiring a house, Affordable Housing or Housing Affordability follows as it is one of the major, if not the most severally cited, housing problems in the whole wide world. With a housing gap of 17 to 20 million units and a low estimated homeownership rate of 25%, Nigeria is not left behind in this problem. According to a UN report, Nigeria’s population is about 186 million. Over 60% of these people will be living in urban areas in the coming years, hence needing a long-term plan to make housing accessible and affordable in the country. There are too many obstacles and bottlenecks in the housing sector, including the land use act. In this article, I highlight ways housing can be more accessible irrespective of the sector’s challenges.
Being the transcript of the questions and answers segment of the discussions with the founders of SCALE which was held at the GIFTEDANALYSTS WhatsApp group chat on 20th March 2021.
Like any other companies, financial institutions prepare financial statements for regulatory purpose and assist their users in making economic decisions. However, banks’ business models are different from other companies. Thus they attract a unique regulatory focus.
Wealth management centres on multiplying the financial resources of individuals and institutional investors. The process of multiplying wealth is defined by the investment finesse of the wealth manager. In turn, the finesse of the wealth manager will usually be influenced by their ability to spot out suitable financial instruments and the diversification of the wealth […]
The pandemic has clearly redefined how stakeholders (high net worth individuals and private wealth managers) within the value chain of private wealth management see value creation in both the medium and long term. One noticeable event resulting from the global health crisis was the surge in system liquidity, mostly in advanced economies, following the fiscal and monetary support to contain the spread of the virus.
