In the 18 months that he has been in office, Lamido Sanusi has salvaged a crumbling financial sector, taken on Nigeria's powerful and corrupt bank managers and initiated reforms that have put Africa's most promising market back on the map for investors.

The leading member of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision explains some of the key concepts of Basel III, and how it relates to Basel I and II. Writer Michael Imeson

Iceland has come through a disastrous banking crisis and its president maintains that the country's new institutions are serving the economy well, despite the ban on them making overseas investments. Writer Spencer Anderson

The collapse of International Industrial Bank, one of Russia's largest privately owned banks, could signal a tougher climate for Russian institutions that focus on related-party lending. Writer Philip Alexander

Sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna became the main vehicle for the Kazakh government to rescue a distressed banking sector and ailing economy. Its CEO, Kairat Kelimbetov, explains the fund's next steps. Writer Philip Alexander

Home Credit Group, one of the largest unsecured retail lending specialists in eastern Europe, is pioneering the model in China and Vietnam. Writer Philip Alexander

Japanese banks have put themselves on a more solid footing, shown in particular by the performance of Mitsubishi UFJ, but the sluggish economy means their achievements have yet to reach spectacular levels. Writer Brian Caplen

Singapore's banks have reported stable but modest profits in recent years, but this is coming under threat from low interest rates and a lack of opportunity in an overcrowded market, leading many to consider international expansion. Writer Michelle Price

Bangladesh's finance minister reveals how the young nation, considered by Goldman Sachs to be a 'Next Eleven' country, can shake off the ills of nationalism, poverty and corruption to realise its much-touted potential. Writer Spencer Anderson