32-Va n (Juard.. WEDNESDAY, MAY 23, 20 12
BUSINESS MONEY GUIDE Enterpl'lse Bank stressfree salary 'plus' laun chr~
NTERJ'RlSE Bank has lauDe bed a product, Enterprist Salary 'Plus ' , which puts additional value on the corporate electronic pay elemellt of the (:ashlite initiative . The prod,lCt, which lS one of the lates additions to the bank's bou!luet of electronic based prod ICts, provides an opportunit) for employees of subscribmg organizations to have acc! S5 to cheaper loans . Accordin~ 10 a statement [rom the bank. the Enterprise Salary PI !,IS' is a salary accounl domiciled with Enterprise J:ank in which the subscribi:ng ::ampany pays the workers th ough the bank, using the ~asy electronic corporate J:ay system. This mode of pay Dent ensures that the employ!t can authorize the paymeDi of his workers' salaries th ough the bank from anywb?re in the world . The vaJue addition for the employee o f such an organization, on one band, IS that he or sh ~ can have access to a wide r,lllge of banking facihties 10 f:mance the purchase of a ca~ household items, school fees, holiday travels and salary advance amongothe s
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Deutsche Bank tables p~an for parallel Greek euro ERMANY'S financial giant Deutsche Bank has Doatee. t he idea of a "geuro" - a parallel currency allowing Gn ece to devaluate while stayinH In the eurozone If an anti-hal -out government takes over Ir Athens, If left-wmg radIcals WIn the 17 June e lel tions lD Greece and stick to their promise of scrappLDg tiE' - IJO billion bail-out and its austerity requireme nt s. Greece could still stay ir 1he eurozone without fin utcial aid if It introdu ced a paralle l c urrency Si ys a Deutsche Bank stUdy published on Monday, M1Y 21st. The "geur( .. would consist of promlSSOr notes, a form of government rlcbt that can be sold on . It vouJd devaluate sharply ag al ,st the euro but would allow lhe government to buy Use Uome more time to carry oul r':!f')rms and pass budget cuts , "I tbi.nk such a parallel circuit alongsio:ie the ewo is the mos t probable developmen t. " Deutsche &nk chiel ec:momist Thomas Mayer said on Monday during a pre,s conference in Berlin. He s.tid the "geuro" would allow [ et!Ce to lower Its wages and boost exports: '7his way tbey:would be back
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From lell: Jay Alabraba, Co-lounder; paga; Ayo BaJomo, ED!COO, Erlho/eum ; Modupe Lampo, MD/CEO, EFJnA ; Orarles Ogunmola, MD/CIJO, AFRI-PAY Ltd. and Prated' S hJivaslava. MD, AirlCiJ, MoIJiUse durlng the EFl nA Mobile Pa yments IDnovaUoD Fornm,lo Lagos. Photo: Joe AJdntola, Photo Edi tor.
AfDB boosts African agribusiness with $100m BYBABAJIDE KOMOlAFE ~
Africa Development Bank (AIDB) has invested $100 million to establish Agvance Fund to boost investment in agriculture business across the continenL In a statement issued yesterday to announce the investment, the Bank group
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said that Agvance is the first agribusiness-focused Fund of Punds on the African conlinenL The Bank said , "Tbe strategic objective of Agvance Africa is to increase private investment flows into the agribusiness sector on the continent to address growing food security concerns and unleash the largely unex-
ploited potential of African agriculture and agribusiness sectors. "Agvance will be managed by Credit Suisse Customized Fund Investment Group (CFIG) and will target total capital commitments of USD 500 million. It is antiapated to invest in 12 to 15 best-indass private equity funds tar路 geltng portfolio companies
New CIBN President unveils 'Barometer' agenda BY ELIZABETH AMIHOR
guide bis preSidency and would be measured and EWLY elected reVIewed regularly to eoswe sus tained focus on the end President of Chartered goals, while periodic updates Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Mr. Olusegun Aina on progress and milestones has unveiled the attainments will be ' BAROMETER' agenda commurucated. designed to position the Elaborating on the vanous Institute for the evolvlDg aspect of the agenda, he sdld future of the banking industry. the institute would pursue In his acceptance speech he best bankmg practices by explained that the fostenng and nurturing world ' BAROMETER' is an class profeSSIonal banklOg acronym , which stands for ... education and practice. Best practice , Alliances, He said the Institute would Relevance, Opportumties, pwsue collaboration and Membersblp, Education, partnersh.tp mitiatives that Technology, Ethics and would ensure that fresh ideas Research. are constantly channelled into He said the aim of tbe the system. He said under his tenure the agenda is to blend the wisdom of the older lnstitute will play more policy generation members with the advocacy role and ehsure it dynamism, enterprise and positively influences the creativity of the younger decision niali:lng machinery 01 secto r reg-ulators and generation in the quest to reposition banking practices governments especially at the in Nlgerta. national level. "'The Institute The agenda, he sa.id, would would also contribute more
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sIgnificantly to the finandal system and tbe overall economy. Various initiatives aimed at promoting a more inclusive partidpation of members In the activities of the institution have been identified and pursued. In the area of education , he said that his administration will establish a CIBN banking school to fa cilitate the Implementauon of the banking competency framework with the buy-in of regulators and all corporate members, while new examination structure and new certification progrcmunes will be introduced . The Institute will leverage on information technology to create e-leaming plaUorms, e-library, online testingl examination. a more functional website and Im proved a.utomated and robust members data.base management platform.
along the agribusiness value chain and across the continenL "In addllton to being Agvance's anchor investor, AIDB has played a key role in developing the Agvance concept. with support from the Fund for Pnvate Sector Assistance (FAPA) , and wiJj work closely With the CFlG to design a state-of-the路art environmental and social management system In cooperation witb tbe World Wildlife Fund (WWF) , " Founded in 1999, CFIG currently has one of the largest dedicated alternative lDvestment teams in the world and is uruquely qualified to manage Agvance Afnca gIven its substantial assets under management, dedicated team and demonstrated private equity IOvestme nt experttse . 'i\gvance Africa is m hne with AIDB strategy losupport pnvale sector development on the conunent. Fundraising efforts will be conducted in close c ooperaUon With partner DFls. generaung a multiplie r e ffect on resources avatlable lor the deve lopment of the agriculture and agribusiness sectors. The initiative IS also complementary to c urre nt efforts undertaken by the AfDB's public sector window in cooperation with FAO and UNIDO in the context of African Agribusiness and Aqro-industries Development lnitiative (JADI) . '1\5 the first initiative of this nature on the continent, Aqvance Africa, will catalyze investment into tbe agribusiness sector, channelling capital to labourintensive activities, leading to inclusive job creation and promoting innovative , environmentally sustainable approaches to agribusiness."