In the old adage about whether a glass is half full or half empty, The Banker tends to go for the half full version. As a champion of the industry we are mindful of the difficulties and problems that beset the world but we also believe there are mainstream solutions that do not involve tearing everything up and starting again.
Denmark’s prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen shares our sentiments. “Globalisation – a way out of poverty?” was the title of a speech he gave to a meeting of the Danish Council for International Development Cooperation last month highlighting the opportunities globalisation can give to poor countries. It’s a fitting subject for the times and in Karina’s Kolumn this month, Mr Rasmussen explains his political philosophy.
Crédit Agricole, the world’s fifth largest bank in The Banker’s Top 1000, is also interested in seizing opportunities. In the past, 65% of its income has been generated in France and 35% overseas. The aim is to put these figures in balance by 2008, which requires substantial overseas growth. Chief executive officer Georges Pauget and chief financial officer Gilles de Margerie explain their strategy in our Western Europe section.
Lehman Brothers has a strategy of a different kind. The bank has always been regarded as a bond house but is also focused on developing M&A and equities. European investment banking co-heads Benoit d’Angelin and Perry Hoffmeister explain how this is progressing in this month’s Agenda column.
2005 was indeed a year of banking opportunity regardless of what else was going on in the world.
Our Deals of the Year 2006, which are announced this month, reflect this activity. This year the deals come from 52 countries.
Covering the world is The Banker’s speciality and this month our cover story looks at how Mario Draghi, the new Italian central bank governor, must set about restoring the bank’s reputation after the recent turmoil. In Pakistan there is also a new central bank governor as we report in our Asia section. Shamshad Akhtar, a former senior executive with the Asian Development Bank, is charged with assisting Pakistan’s economic recovery.
This month we also look at banking changes in Israel, at the question of foreign currency mortgages in Poland, at the fortunes of the financial industrial groups in Russia, and at a new stock exchange for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Argentina.
The implications of MasterCard’s initial public offering (IPO) are discussed in the retail section while Grupo Santander’s chief information officer José Maria Fuster is interviewed in TechVision. The difficulties of keeping banks in touch with their customers are also discussed.
No doubt 2006 will have its fair shares of problems but in banking there is no reason why the glass cannot stay half full. In our 80th anniversary year, The Banker will be sure to report it that way.
