Reform of Financial Institutions—— Getting it Right

The purpose of this article is to reflect upon the importance and the role of financial institutions before, during, and after the financial crisis and to outline proposals for alternative approaches to the financial crisis. Without an understanding of the historic development, nature and scope, and important limitations of modem financial institutions, the regulatory reform of modem financial institutions cannot be successful. The success of financial reforms and their restructuring can only be measured when modem financial institutions participate, support, and develop the real economy and support a more balanced, inclusive, and diverse social development process. This is what the really ＂exciting＂ banking and finance organizations should stand for. The regulatory reforms, bail-outs, and dominant ideas about the European banking union, for example, are impeding, rather than facilitating, hope for real economic and social recovery on both sides of the Atlantic. The method used in the present article, is legal and institutional analysis of the financial institutions. The empirical and comparative overview of the role and importance of financial institutions shows the variety of financial institutions developed in different historical and socio-economic circumstances. They show there is no one single best model of financial institutions that could be universally applicable. The design and the regulatory framework for the financial institutions should therefore take into account the overall strategy of economic and social development. In absence of any such comprehensive strategy it is unlikely that the regulatory reform of the financial institutions can be successful.

Plight and Countermeasures of Petty Credit Loan in Rural Financial Institutions in the Context of Rural Revitalization Strategy

The implementation of China's rural revitalization strategy will surely release a huge financial demand in rural areas.How to use the petty credit loan in rural financial institutions to develop rural economy is an effective way to implement the rural revitalization strategy.This paper first analyzes the significance of petty credit loan in rural financial institutions for rural revitalization strategy,then introduces the remarkable contribution of petty credit loan in China's rural financial institutions to actively solving the problems of farmers about difficult financing and expensive financing and elaborates on the main problems of petty credit loan business in rural financial institutions that still exist in the process of supporting rural revitalization,and finally gives several suggestions on solving the problems about the financing of farmers and the development of petty credit loan business in rural financial institutions.

The Influence of CSR Practices on Financial Performance： Evidence From Islamic Financial Institutions in Indonesia

The emergence of Islamic Financial Institutions （IFls） is expected to provide enormous benefits for the Muslims community in Indonesia such as the availability of IFIs based on Sharia law and the implementation of Islamic value in the community. Like Corporate Social Responsibility （CSR） practices in all business organizations, the IFI＇s CSR becomes one of the important factors in improving organizational performance. The implementation of CSR in IFIs is unique as it is based on Sharia law. Zakat and Qardh are the uniqueness of IFI＇s CSR practices. There are many studies which have investigated the relationship of Zakat and Qardh on organizational performance in Arabic and Muslim countries. As Muslim countries, Islamic laws including providing Zakat and Qardh are practices of every business organization. Indonesia is not a Muslim country, Zakat and Qardh are only required for IFIs as part of CSR practices. This study aims to analyze the influence of CSR practices on the financial performances of IFIs in Indonesia using gender as a control variable. The samples of this research were taken from the annual reports of nine Islamic banks for the period of 2010-2014. Regression method was used to analyze and test hypotheses. The results of this research indicate that the relationship between CSR practices and financial performance is significant, the value of R is 0.737, and R square is 0.543. This means that the implementation of CSR practices （Zakat and Qardh） improves organizational financial performances of IFIs in Indonesia. This study also has a limitation as it only focuses on Zakat and Qardh; thus in the future, it is necessary to advance the variable of CSR practices on the real social and environmental practices such as environmental improvement, increasing the quality of human resources, involving in any jobs or reducing unemployment and any other activities.

State Council Issued the “Regulations on the Control of Foreign Funded Financial Institutions”

The Xinhua News Agency has released the full text of the No.340 order of the State Council signed by Premier Zhu Rongji, on the publication of the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on the Control of Foreign Funded Financial Institutions, which will take effect on the date of February 1 in 2002.

Socio-Environmental Responsibility Policy in Financial Institutions

This research intents to analyze the influence of Socio-Environmental Responsibility Policy of Brazilian’s Central Bank on financial institutions economic performance listed at the Brazilian stock exchange.The data was collected from diversified sources(websites,explanatory notes,reference form and Economatica®data base)from 2012 up to 2017.As sample,22 financial institutions were considered for data collection and analysis.The results showed that the growth in shareholder’s equity and contingent liabilities have significant differences from the adoption of the Socio-Environmental Responsibility Policy.Considering six items of corporate governance and six items of risk management,no investigated institution presented all these mechanisms requested by Brazilian’s Central Bank.Brazilian’s financial institutions recognized a greater volume of liabilities and expenses after the implementation of such policy,which reduced their net equity.This research shed some lights in socio-environmental policies regarding corporate governance and risk management mechanisms.Objective:to analyze whether the adoption of a socio-environmental responsibility policy influences the performance indicators and the corporate governance and risk management framework of financial institutions listed on the Brazilian stock exchange.Method:Data were collected from the period 2012 to 2017,referring to 22 Brazilian financial institutions,which provided information to operationalize the variables.Results:the results showed that,from the performance indicators investigated,the growth in shareholders'equity and contingent liabilities presented significant differences as of the adoption of the socio-environmental responsibility policy.Twelve items were analyzed,six of which were corporate governance and six of risk management,noting that no investigated institution presented all the mechanisms provided by the Central Bank of Brazil.Contributions:the evidence suggests that Brazilian financial institutions began to recognize a greater volume of liabilities and expenses after the obligation to implement the socio-environmental responsibility policy,reducing their net equity.These results may be due to the improvement of the corporate governance structure and the adequacy of the risk management process.

Evolution of Financial Institutions in Post-1978 China: Interaction between the State and Market

Diversification has been a key characteristic in China＇s post-1978financial development, but specialization has progressed slowly. These two tendencies are contradictory as to the issue of whether financial development in post-1978 China has followed a market-oriented direction. Our preliminary explanation is that the causes of confiicting observations lie at the role of the state, which has been overwhelming and unusuaL The relatively large size of the government system seems to have embraced an “inside” market system.

Research on the Coordinated Development of Inclusive Finance and Financing for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises

As an important force in promoting economic and social development,small and medium-sized enterprises play a crucial role in enhancing China’s economic strength,creating employment opportunities,and promoting industrial structural transformation.However,due to their inherent weaknesses,small and medium-sized enterprises often face difficulties in financing within the traditional financial service system.This makes it difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises to inject vitality into the development of the market economy by expanding their financing scale.Since 2013,China has vigorously developed inclusive finance and extended the services of traditional financial institutions to small and medium-sized enterprises,providing policy guidance,resource support,and technical support to alleviate the financing difficulties of small and medium-sized enterprises.Based on this,this article focuses on the current financing problems faced by small and medium-sized enterprises and specifically elaborates on how to lower the financing threshold for small and medium-sized enterprises and broaden their financing channels through inclusive finance,in order to promote the development of inclusive finance and a virtuous cycle of financing for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Merger and Acquisition, the Next Day in the Hellenic Banking System, Evidence From the Greek Financial Crisis Period

The aim of this study is to examine if the merger of banks improves the profitability of banks before and after the completion of the merger,in the Hellenic Banking System.For this reason,data were collected one year before the merger took place and then for the following years.The consequences of merging banks using different financial indicators,such as the capital ratio index,the foreign-to-equity index and the loan burden numerator,were also investigated.The effectiveness of interpreting the improvement of the bank’s financial image before and after the merger,for the years 2007-2016,years,before and after the Greek Financial Crisis,in the mergers carried out in the Hellenic Banking System was examined.

The Influence of Financial Markets on Countries＇ Economic Life

This working paper aims to investigate one of the most present markets in whole economic life： financial market. Even if not everyone is playing on financial market, the result of trading on this markets can be seen and felt by any participant on economic life--individuals, businesses, and government. Those which are participating and trading on financial markets influence economic and social life in a way or another. The paper comes to showing how existence and trading on financial markets can change the money supply and behavior of individuals, businesses, and later they can affect entire economic and social life. The author uses financial data provided by international database such as： Eurostat, central banks, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, BMI Research, website of domestic ministries of finance, and/or economy. The research concluded that in those countries where there is an active and experienced financial market, with a huge volume of transactions, also exists a financial and fiscal stability. Unemployment rate is lower, and a higher level of confidence of investors. A very active financial market can also help governments to maintain their balance of payment in equilibrium and/or to accelerate the development of productive capacity, and for raising and maintaining social stability level.

The defects of fair value under global financial crisis

With the advent of the economic crisis, fair value once again becomes a hot topic. This paper discusses the issues of fair value from three aspects including the meaning of fair value, its serious impacts and its inapplicability in China. As for this point, this paper stress that the rub of the fair value is its inaccurate recognition elements which will inevitably lead to the inaccurate measurement. Finally, the paper puts forward the viewpoint that China should be careful enough to apply the fair value accounting.

How to set up a foreign-funded or Chinese-foreign joint venture financial institution in Shanghai

If you are representing a foreign-funded institution in setting up a foreign-funded bank or financial company in Shanghai, you should have a representative agency already established within the boundaries of China for more than two years, and general assets at the end of the previous year should not be less than US $ 10 billion. The country or region you are residing in should have

Using Artificial Intelligence to Combat Money Laundering

Banks and other financial institutions handle sensitive records regarding people, trusts, and corporations. Money, as a sensitive and useful commodity, makes financial organizations valuable and prone to criminal elements. Common criminal activities that target the banking sector include money laundering, identity and personal records theft, and terrorism financing. These are global issues that have garnered the attention of international bodies and governments. One method proposed to deal with illicit finance and money laundering is artificial intelligence (AI). AI implements various algorithms and techniques to monitor customers, markets, and financial transactions that help identify various banking habits. Understanding clients’ transactions and the nature of bank transfers enables AI to prevent and combat money laundering. This research offers an understanding of how artificial intelligence is used in the financial system to combat fraudulent activities such as money laundering. It is organized into five chapters covering various aspects of artificial intelligence and money laundering.

Challenges of the Performance Standards of the International Finance Corporation in Financing the African Integrated High-Speed Railway Network and the Way Forward: The Case of Standard Gauge Railway in Tanzania

Financing of the African Integrated High-Speed Railway Network (AIHSRN) through Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) Projects is very expensive. As a result, most of the African countries seek financial supports from the International Financial Institutions (IFIs). However, conditions provided by the IFIs through the Performance Standards (PS) of the International Financial Corporation (IFC) increase cost of the projects and thus, it becomes a burden to most of the African countries. This study aimed to explore the causes of IFC-PS through the SGR Projects that escalate costs and how to address them. The Tanzania SGR Lot 1 Project that covered 205 km from Dar es Salaam to Morogoro was selected as a case study. The methods used for data collection involved literature review, focus group discussions and interviews. The results and findings show a gap between the IFC-PS and the National Laws and Regulations that escalates costs of the projects if funds from the IFIs were to be secured. To bridge the gap, it is recommended that the African countries should engage into negotiations with the IFIs to agree to waive IFC-PS conditions that escalate costs provided they are adequately covered in the national laws and regulations;engagement of locally established national and regional financial institutions;and the responsible government institutions in the African countries should sit together for assessment and review of the IFC-PS against the national laws and regulations.

A multicriteria credit scoring model for SMEs using hybrid BWM and TOPSIS

Small-and medium-sized enterprises(SMEs)have a crucial influence on the economic development of every nation,but access to formal finance remains a barrier.Similarly,financial institutions encounter challenges in the assessment of SMEs’creditworthiness for the provision of financing.Financial institutions employ credit scoring models to identify potential borrowers and to determine loan pricing and collateral requirements.SMEs are perceived as unorganized in terms of financial data management compared to large corporations,making the assessment of credit risk based on inadequate financial data a cause for financial institutions’concern.The majority of existing models are data-driven and have faced criticism for failing to meet their assumptions.To address the issue of limited financial record keeping,this study developed and validated a system to predict SMEs’credit risk by introducing a multicriteria credit scoring model.The model was constructed using a hybrid best–worst method(BWM)and the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution(TOPSIS).Initially,the BWM determines the weight criteria,and TOPSIS is applied to score SMEs.A real-life case study was examined to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model,and a sensitivity analysis varying the weight of the criteria was performed to assess robustness against unpredictable financial situations.The findings indicated that SMEs’credit history,cash liquidity,and repayment period are the most crucial factors in lending,followed by return on capital,financial flexibility,and integrity.The proposed credit scoring model outperformed the existing commercial model in terms of its accuracy in predicting defaults.This model could assist financial institutions,providing a simple means for identifying potential SMEs to grant credit,and advance further research using alternative approaches.

A Statistical Analysis of Reliability of Audit Opinions as Bankruptcy Predictors

This research measures the reliability of audit firms in predicting bankruptcy for United States （US） listed financial institutions. The object of analysis is the going concern opinion （GCO）, widely considered as a bankruptcy warning signal to stakeholders. The sample is composed of 42 US listed financial companies that filed for Chapter 11 between 1998 and 2011. To highlight the differences between bankrupting and healthy firms, a matching sample composed of 42 randomly picked healthy US listed financial companies is collected. We concentrate on financial institutions, whereas the existing literature pays considerably greater attention to the industrial sector. This research imbalance is remarkable and particularly unexpected in the wake of recent financial scandals. Literature points out two main approaches on bankruptcy prediction： （1） purely mathematical; and （2） approaches based on a combination of auditor knowledge, expertise, and experience. The use of data mining techniques allows us to benefit from the best features of both approaches. Statistical tools used in the analysis are： Logit regression, support vector machines （SVMs）, and an AdaBoost meta-algorithm. Findings show a quite low reliability of GCOs in predicting bankruptcy. It is likely that auditors consider further information in supporting their audit opinions, aside from financial-economic ratios. The scant predictive ability of auditors might be due to critical relationships with distressed clients, as suggested by recent literature.

SMEs’Development in Afghanistan:Issues and New Management Perspectives

This research focuses on SMEs’development in Afghanistan:issues and new management perspectives.This study has been conducted and finished with an in-depth research results,findings,as well as recommendations for not only SMEs’owners but also relevant governmental and non-governmental organizations as well as financial institutions.The study mainly included surveys through questionnaire-with both open and close-ended questions-as well as face to face and virtual interviews with owners of SMEs,governmental and non-governmental organizations and financial institutions like lending banks.For data collection,the main target groups were owners of the SMEs.More than 100 SMEs were selected as sample size and were reached and asked for their opinions about research questions and other open and close-ended questions among which more than 90 responses were received(40 from small and more than 50 from medium sized enterprises).Apart from SMEs,interviews with three relevant governmental and three non-governmental organizations as well as three financial institutions like lending banks were conducted.Based on main findings of this research,limited access to sustainable finance,insecurity,high operational cost,lack of support,and limited access to national and international markets are the most current and main challenges of SMEs in Afghanistan.Findings of this research also show that the service and the e-commerce sectors are making great advancement comparing to manufacturing sector in Afghanistan owing to more and more people’s access to internet every day.In fact,Afghanistan has a great opportunity for e-commerce since people’s access to internet has been increasing dramatically-from 4.7 million users in 2018 to 7.65 million users in 2020.Furthermore,according to findings of this research,most of the SMEs in Afghanistan are also referring to e-business mainly because of avoiding from being taxed by the government or getting licenses.This paper also provides some recommendations for SMEs owners,governmental and non-governmental organizations(donors).

Economic Analysis of Microfinance： Evidence from China

China＇s evolutionary reform brought China economy enormous progress, which also subsided the poverty phenomenon. But the present anti-poverty task is still very arduous for China today. Peasant household＇s microfinance is a kind of important tool which contributes to the poverty alleviation. The sustainable development of microfinance has become a serous problem at present. This text analyses the sustainable development of microfinance through setting up the income model of microfinance, then puts forward the way to solve.

Social capital and folk lending in China’s hottest financial market

In 2011,respnding to a credit crunch,Wenzhou became the first and only municipality to institute complete financial reform.Wenzhou had been the fastest growing municipal economy in China's fastest-growing province for two decades.But the global financial crisis hit hard the informal financial networks which funded small and medium-sized enterprises.The so-called'Wenzhou model'has long been dependent on financial capital from other parts of China funnelled through these networks to fund local entrepreneurs,especially the person-to-person financing known as folk lending.These informal financial networks relied heavily on interpersonal connections,reputation and trust,the major ingredients of social capital in banking and finance.In order to generate the social capital lost in the credit crunch,Wenzhou created govermment financial intermediaries,but these have not had much success.However,peer-to-peer on-line financing companies(P2P platforms),established concurrently by private entre preneurs with ltte capital,have been highly succesful.In effect,P2P platforms have capitalised on the"Wenzhou model'by using the Wenzhou brand name to create a new form of financing net-work channel.

Establishing a Foreign-owned Financial Institution in China

Setting up a foreign-owned bank in China requires strict adherence to the China Banking Regulatory Commission’s(CBRC) Measures for the Implementation of Administrative Licensing ItemsConcerning Foreign-Funded