Nigeria has put in place a reform strategy that aims not only to improve economic performance but to change people’s negative perceptions of the country.

The burgeoning Sukuk bond market is just one sign of the global Islamic financial services industry’s spectacular growth, which Bahrain is promoting by providing a sound investment and regulatory environment. James Gavin and Jon Marks report.

A burgeoning oil economy and the government’s commitment to combat corruption is attracting foreign bankers once more to post-war Angola, writes Steven Swindells.

Paulo Miron, Sergio Rogante and Graham Nye of PricewaterhouseCoopers review the effects of inflation on Brazil’s banking sector.

The effects of an increase in US interest rates on the Latin American economy may be neutralised if the US can also deliver strong economic growth, writes Monica Campbell.

The region’s top 200 banks have made a remarkable recovery, boosting aggregate Tier 1 capital by 16%.

Tim Clissold argues that the Chinese economy of a decade ago has been completely transformed and is now quite capable of rising to the challenge of excessive growth.

Alexander V Zakharov, deputy chairman of the board of Sberbank, explains how the Russian bank has overcome various challenges to financing some of the country’s major domestic and export-oriented investment projects.

Moscow-based Globexbank is one of Russia’s top 10 banks, and the crises of the 1990s and the recent mini-crisis have made it stronger. Ben Aris reports.

With Russia’s banks failing to lend, it’s left to Russian companies to fend for themselves, showing an upturn in project finance.