Luca Ventura, Author at Global Finance Magazine

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Banking

FOREIGN BANKS SECURE FOOTHOLD IN MYANMAR

Milestones | Myanmar After five decades of economic isolation, on October 1, Myanmar took its first big step into the global financial system, granting nine foreign lenders preliminary approval to operate in the country.

Economics, Policy & Regulation

NO QUICK FIX FOR SOUTH KOREA’S ECONOMY

SOUTH KOREA Appointed as part of Park’s cabinet reshuffle——Choi had been on the job only a few days when he unleashed a $40 billion stimulus plan to revitalize the country’s faltering economy, a package equivalent to almost 3% of GDP.

Capital Raising & Corporate Finance

MALAWI: NEW PRESIDENT BLESSING IN DISGUISE FOR FOREIGN DONORS

MALAWI A struggling economy and widespread corruption are but a few of the challenges new Malawian president Peter Mutharika will face during his five-year mandate.

Banking

ECB GETS TO WORK ON ITS NEW EUROZONE BANK SUPERVISORY ROLE

MILESTONES: EUROPE The ECB grows up as it takes on bank supervisory powers.

Economics, Policy & Regulation

CANADA: NEW FINANCE MINISTER HAS BIG SHOES TO FILL

When, on March 18, longtime Canadian Finance minister Jim Flaherty unexpectedly announced his resignation, few were perhaps more surprised than his soon-to-be successor, Joe Oliver, the 73-year-old minister of Natural Resources.

Banking

Italy: Remodeling The Vatican Bank

MILESTONES By Luca Ventura The oldest multinational in the world is about to get a substantial makeover. The news came on February 24th, when its CEO, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, also known as pope Francis, issued a Motu Proprio, ...

Emerging & Frontier Markets

IsraelPalestine Gas Accord

MILESTONES By Luca Ventura When in early January the US secretary of state John Kerry traveled to the Middle East,...

Economics, Policy & Regulation

The Return Of Ratings Shopping?

MILESTONES By Luca Ventura The announcement came early in November. Expressing the intention to break the monopoly of the Big Three in the financial ratings industry, credit ratings organizations from five countries proclaimed the launch of ARC Ratings, ...

Capital Raising & Corporate Finance

Apple Turns To Celebrity CEO

When Apple announced back in October that it had hired Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts to lead its retail operations, the initial shock among analysts and investors wore off quickly. Though it was a surprise move, it made perfect sense.

Capital Raising & Corporate Finance

China/Ukraine: Mutual Attractions

MILESTONES By Luca Ventura With a fifth of the worlds population but only 9% of its land, China in recent...

Emerging & Frontier Markets

Serbia: Can Lazar Krstic Cut It?

NEWSMAKERS By Luca Ventura Lazar Krsti has a daunting task ahead: saving Serbia from a debt crisis. A Yale graduate with no party affiliations or political experience, the 30-year-old McKinsey associate is expected to consolidate public finances and ...

Banking

Brazil: IMF Rep Opposes Greek Bailout

MILESTONES By Luca Ventura “Implementation has been unsatisfactory in almost all areas; growth and debt sustainability assumptions continue to be over-optimistic.” It is with these incendiary comments about Greece that Paulo Nogueira Batista, the representative of Brazil and ...