Former President Promises to Return in ‘Some Form’

[caption id="attachment_18476" align="alignright" width="300"] Donald Trump[/caption]

Just four hours before Joe Biden took the oath of office, outgoing US president Donald Trump crossed the White House South Lawn for the last time to be whisked away by Marine One on the first leg of a journey that ended at his Mar-a-Lago resort near West Palm Beach. Before he boarded Air Force One for the short flight to Florida, the still-president held a small farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, outside Washington DC. White House staffers reportedly struggled to find attendees, inviting numerous former officials who lost their positions in the administration after displeasing the president. The small gathering heard their former boss promise to return ‘in some form’.

With that, the Trump Era – short, loud, and erratic – came to its end. The last days of the Trump Administration passed in almost eerie silence after the president had both his Twitter and Facebook accounts cancelled, muzzling the loudhailers that not only launched his candidacy five years ago, but also sustained its momentum up to the surprise victory and subsequently proved priceless as tools for bypassing journalists and avoiding their difficult or awkward questions.

Mr Trump broke with a 150-year-old tradition and declined to be present at the swearing in of his successor. According to White House staffers, he did leave a letter for the incoming president. Its contents were not disclosed. The outgoing president persists in his fact-free conviction that he won the election by a landslide and was robbed of a second term in office by massive fraud.

All living former presidents attended the sober ceremony which is took place at the Capitol where only weeks before an unruly mob stormed and broke into the building, disrupting a joint session of Congress meant to confirm Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States. The procedure resumed after the Capitol had been cleared.

Just before he left the limelight he craved, and keeping with tradition, Mr Trump signed dozens of presidential pardons which – also true to tradition – caused a minor uproar and a predictable public outcry. Amongst those Mr Trump pardoned was his former campaign manager, political whisperer, and chief strategist Steve Bannon who plead not guilty to defrauding thousands of Trump fans who donated $25 million to the ‘We Build the Wall’ campaign. Mr Bannon, who was arrested whilst cruising the waters off Connecticut aboard the yacht of a Chinese billionaire, has been charged with the misappropriation of $1 million.

Mr Trump did not pardon himself or any members of his direct family. He did, however, let rapper Lil Wayne off the hook. Mr Wayne was arrested for possessing an unregistered loaded gold-plated handgun and faced up to ten years behind bars. Also granted a pardon was co-founder Anthony Levandovski of Google’s self-driving vehicle programme who had been serving an 18-month prison sentence for relaying trade secrets to rival Uber. To keep possibly inconvenient truths under wraps, Mr Trump also pardoned a number of politicians and former associates, including his erstwhile campaign manager Paul Manafort and the self-proclaimed master of political hardball and intrigue Roger Stone.

However, the number of pardons and commutations Mr Trump issued on the last day of his presidency compares favourably to those of his predecessors. His departure from the White House was an uncharacteristically low-key event. As soon as Mr Trump had left the building, the mainstream media he so despises started waxing lyrical about the incoming administration with CNN in particular going all-out and praising President Biden to high heaven, raising expectations to far beyond the reasonable and taking temporary leave of journalistic principles of impartiality and fairness in reporting.


Out with the Old: President Biden Sets to Work, COVID Top Priority

Freshly installed in the Oval Office, the 46th president of the United States immediately set to work reversing a slew of his predecessor’s orders and decisions. In a matter of minutes, Joe Biden's first acts renewed the country’s membership of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and committed the US to re-join the Paris climate accord. He also cancelled the ban on visitors from Muslim countries and halted work on Trump’s iconic wall, spanning part of the 3,145-kilometre-long border with Mexico. Only about 727 kilometres of wall has been built – all paid for by US tax dollars – with most of it replacing old fencing. During his single term in office, Trump managed to extend the wall by just 80 kilometres.

President Biden’s first acts as commander-in-chief concerned the ‘100 days masking challenge’ which requires mask wearing and social distancing in all federal buildings. The president urged Americans to cover up and help fight the Corona Pandemic which has now costs more than 400,000 lives in the US alone. President Biden also signed an executive order to appoint a covid-19 response coordinator who is to oversee and streamline all federal initiatives, programmes, and policies related to the fight against the pandemic. The new ‘corona tsar’ is also charged with organising the manufacture, supply, and distribution of vaccines, test kits, medical hardware, and personal protection equipment.

The previously embattled and side-lined Dr Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, took centre stage and said on Thursday that the US will join the Covax programme set up and run by the WHO to provide vaccines to disadvantaged countries. Fauci also revealed that his country will support other ‘multilateral efforts’ to combat the pandemic and said that the Biden Administration is ready to resume ‘regular engagement’ the WHO and fulfil its financial obligations to the organisation.

On his first day in office, President Biden also resuscitated the Office of International Health and Biodefense under the overall aegis of the National Security Council. The directorate was set up in 2014 but dismantled by Trump a few years later. Getting a head start on his signatory 1.9 billion stimulus package, which awaits approval by Congress, the new president ordered an immediate halt to foreclosures and evictions triggered by payment arrears resulting from loss of income. He also extended the pause on student loan repayments.

Setting both the tone and pace of a more environmentally minded administration, President Biden reversed the go-ahead for the development, exploration, and exploitation of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in Utah and the offshore wildlife protection areas of New England. He also cancelled the federal permits for the $9 billion Keystone XL pipeline which was to carry oil extracted from the tar sands of Western Canada to Nebraska.

President Biden also ordered the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to revert to its original arrest priorities which were changed on Trump’s first day in office four years ago. ICE officers are no longer allowed to target undocumented immigrants who have no prior arrest record and pose no danger to the community. Deportation flights have also been temporarily halted until a comprehensive new set of federal guidelines has been issued. In the days leading up to the change of guard in Washington, ICE hurriedly organised an exceptionally large number of deportation flights. President Biden moreover requested Congress to grant a path to citizenship for millions of ‘Dreamers’, undocumented youngsters who immigrated to the US with their parents but ended up in bureaucratic limbo.

By ditching key elements of the legacy left by Trump, the Biden Administration hopes to re-establish a sense of normality both at home and abroad. Yesterday, he addressed White House staffers and demanded decency, threatening to fire anyone treating colleagues with disrespect.

As President Biden took over the reins of power and set to work, markets worldwide inched higher. Investors’ feelings were buoyed in light of the outsized stimulus package which is expected to be fast-tracked through both houses of congress in near-record time, lifting not only markets but the national spirit as well.


Electronic Trading Came to the Fore in 2020, and Avelacom is Well-placed to Ease the Transition to Automation Technologies

The hold of electronic trading substantially tightened in world’s capital markets in 2020 as participants shifted en masse from voice-trading in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Avelacom, an authorised service provider of connectivity and infrastructure solutions for the world’s exchanges, expects this shift to continue in 2021 and beyond as more firms adapt their trading practices to remote working styles.

The firm owns and operates a global network connecting to 80 liquidity sources. The adaptation of the world markets to the extraordinary stresses of the pandemic reinforces the ever-growing need for low-latency connectivity solutions between the world’s major financial hubs.

This is a situation which plays into the hands for Avelacom, thanks to its worldwide connectivity network.

Avelacom is renowned for its low latency solutions in particular: it has six-years of experience in building shorter, new and unique paths between various exchanges, ECNs and crypto exchanges. It provides capital markets with the lowest latency infrastructure, market data and connectivity services.

Avelacom’s fibre network forms optimal routes to and from the fastest-growing markets, allowing companies to access new connectivity options and IT resources — with better control of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), but no compromise in data speed.

Trading firms looking for arbitrage and diversification opportunities are often sensitive to the cost of roll-out. Reliability and low latency are of primary importance to make entering these markets practical and beneficial.

Avelacom’s expertise and presence across emerging markets in APAC, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Latin America help make it easier to set-up and explore new trading opportunities.

It provides solutions which are asset-neutral and cover all key global markets. It offers the best latencies for the most popular FX triangle of New York-London-Tokyo, with optimal routes to and from the world’s e-FX hub, Singapore.

When it comes to equity, Avalacom provides access to new markets, including Istanbul, Riyadh, Tel Aviv, Moscow and Johannesburg. It also offers best-in-market commodity connections between CME, LME, Chinese markets and Brazil, and high-speed access to global cryptocurrency exchanges.

The company’s geographic expansion focuses on optimising existing routes. Over the past year, Avelacom set up additional PoPs in data centers including Tokyo, Dublin, Bangkok, Sao Paulo, Ashburn and San Jose.

The authorised service provider gives access to the world’s most important exchanges, including the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), Borsa İstanbul (BIST), Brasil Bolsa Balcao (B3), CME Group, Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX), Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), LMAX, London Metal Exchange (LME), Moscow Exchange (MoEx), Singapore Exchange (SGX), Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), and the Taiwan Futures Exchange (TAIFEX).


The First Days: The Need for Speed in US Politics

[caption id="attachment_18509" align="alignright" width="300"] President Joe Biden[/caption]

In his inauguration speech, President Joe Biden called US democracy precious and fragile: “And at this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed.”

The statement made for a stirring moment and afforded a sigh of relief after the events of January 6 when unruly hordes of assorted political misfits stormed the Capitol in Washington, effectively laying siege to Congress. Americans suddenly realised that their country’s democracy is not necessarily a given – or all that stable.

President Biden’s comforting reassurances about the resilience of the US system of government, and his promise to calm the waters and depolarise the public debate, are welcome and much needed. However, US democracy survived by the skin of its teeth and remains brittle. Its inconsistencies and flaws are many. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by a margin of three million, yet Donald Trump seized the White House. In 2000, George W Bush also lost the popular vote, albeit by a smaller margin, but managed to claim victory via the rather archaic electoral college.

What was dismissed a novel quirk twenty years ago – the last time such a discrepancy in the outcome had happened was in 1888 when Benjamin Harrison ousted incumbent Grover Cleveland on this technicality – seems to have become a feature of a system rigged by the state legislatures who are in control of the decennial redistricting exercise. Though on November 3, Donald Trump received seven million less votes than Joe Biden, it would have required only about 40,000 switched ballots in key battleground states for Trump to have secured a second term in office. This, perhaps, helps explain his frantic efforts to insist on recounts and finding lost or discarded ballots.

In the US Senate, now evenly split with Vice-President Kamala Harris holding the decisive vote, the fifty Democratic senators represent 41 million more people than their 50 Republican colleagues. The democratic feedback loop, whereby voters choose leaders who are then periodically judged on their performance and either replaced or confirmed, has been partially broken by a lopsided senate, the electoral college, and curious political americana such as gerrymandering – the practice of redrawing voting districts for the benefit of the ruling party – and filibustering, holding up or preventing unwanted legislation through interminable debates, usually over riders attached to the original bill. Though invented as a tactic in Ancient Rome, American senators and representatives have perfected the filibuster to an art form.

Millions of Americans remain disenfranchised as well. The around 700,000 residents of Washington DC have no representation in Congress. Nor do the 3.2 million inhabitants of Puerto Rico which subsists in a sort of political limbo – or purgatory – and has been promised statehood countless times without any discernible effect. Puerto Rico’s electoral roll would be larger than that of twenty existing states. In the Caribbean territory and Washington DC hopes are, again, high that the Democrats will come through and admit both into the union as the 51st and 52nd states.

Although the Biden Administration controls both the House and Senate, their majority is razor thin and may easily be neutralised by filibusters which need a sixty-vote majority to be shot down in the Senate – ten seats more than the Democrats command. Approval of President Biden’s signature $1.9 trillion rescue plan is not expected to suffer delays in the House of representatives but may struggle to sail through the Senate where a number of Republicans have already signalled their intention to filibuster. The acerbic political clime is unlikely to award the President the courtesy of a congressional honeymoon.

According to Amy Lerman, author of Good Enough for Government Work, the US government suffers a reputational crisis where people just assume poor outcomes of any federal policy initiative. The public focusses on the flaws and often overlooks the virtues and accomplishments. Disappointed and fed up, a growing number of voters is eager for the snake oil peddled by demagogues promising miracle cures. The title of Lerman's book originates from the Second World War when private business had to meet the exceptionally stringent standards imposed by a government dealing with multiple crises. However, in the 1960s and 1970s Good Enough for Government Work became a slur as standards were relaxed and services provided shrank in both reach and quality.

The Biden Administration has a two-year window of opportunity – the 2022 midterms loom large – to deliver on its promise to reconnect with Americans and make government part of the solution rather than originator of the problem. Its task is Herculean: the US, and indeed much of the world, is grappling with multiple self-reinforcing crises. First amongst these, of course, the Corona Pandemic and its economic fallout. The ebullience of the markets also poses a pressing concern. Waves of quantitative easing and a string of other loose monetary and fiscal policy initiatives have inflated equity markets to, what many analysts fear, a bubble almost unprecedented in size.

Seldom before has there been a greater disconnect between Main Street and Wall Street – and between the nation and its government. Those gaps need to be reduced. Bridges need building with no time to lose. President Biden is on the case and needs to keep moving fast along three key vectors: help people and small businesses effectively and visibly; deepen and broaden US democracy; and take politics seriously in recognition of the fact that the past four years may not have been a hiccup, but a reflection of a national mood turning sour. A defeat in the 2022 midterms, resulting in a lame duck administration, would prove that Trump – or someone who carries a similar lightning rod for public anger – was not an exception in American politics but its latest fixture.


UniCredit: Driving Social Change Through Banking

UniCredit is among the pioneers in the field of social impact banking, using it to drive its commitment to building a more inclusive society.

UniCredit’s Social Impact Banking (SIB) provides impact and inclusive finance to foster sustainable developement and social inclusion. It is dedicated to supporting communities in the bank's various markets.

SIB offers credit to individuals and businesses that are sometimes under-served or excluded from traditional products and services. It also supports social enterprises that generate benefits for the whole community. “We share our financial expertise to support the development of social companies,” says Laura Penna, Head of Group Social Impact Banking at UniCredit, “supporting them in managing their business to promote long-term sustainability.”

UniCredit also aims to connect the various actors in relevant territories to strengthen the contribution to finding a common solution for societal challenges, and grow overall social impact. “This involves engaging partners with whom we share the same vision,” says Penna, “but also our people. UniCredit colleagues — current and former — play an important role here as volunteers sharing know-how, skills and expertise.”

"Our behaviour is guided by our core values of ethics and respect and the principle of always doing the right thing vis-a-vis all our stakeholders."

Since its launch in Italy at the end of 2017, the SIB programme has provided some 4,200 loans, including impact finance and microcredit, across 11 UniCredit markets to support social entrepreneurs and initiatives with more than €180m.

There are two distinct elements to the Social Impact Banking approach: the combined economic and social impact assessment in the choice of the initiatives to support, and the culture of monitoring and measurement.

UniCredit provides a range of relevant business advisory and support services to complement this model. The client remains central at all times, and the bank accompanies them through all phases of business development.

UniCredit’s SIB supports micro-enterprises, profit and non-profit social entrepreneurs, and youth and disadvantaged groups through financial and entrepreneurial education programmes.

The microcredit model seeks to go beyond the commercial relationship between bank and client. It is based on an ecosystem able to cater to differing customer needs, with partners supporting the customer in defining the business idea and the business plan. The bank provides the necessary financing and its colleagues, part of the UniGens volunteer network, offer specialist assistance for the development of a business in its first 18-24 months.

The goal is to provide a tailored microcredit solution, including a range of aspects that are fundamental for business development, from industry relationships to relevant training and skills.

The bank also provides impact finance with advantageous conditions and support in terms of training, access to relevant networks and profile building.

Social Impact in Action

Recent examples of SIB beneficiaries include support for the construction of Neues Wohnen Coburg, an outpatient care and live-in facility in Coburg, Germany, a family-style residential community providing educational support as well as speech and occupational therapy and physiotherapy to young people with mental or physical disabilities.

In Italy, the bank recently launched an initiative to support female entrepreneurship with a focus on those companies that provide services of welfare to women and their families. In CEE, impact financing supported the Snow-White Kindergarten project for children from disadvantaged families in Romania, providing them with modern facilities and access to education. In Austria, the bank financed the expansion of the innovative wheelchair manufacturer Klaxon Mobility, that transforms wheelchairs into battery-powered tricycles using their proprietary Klaxon Klick technology.

Social Impact Banking is further committed to the support of financial education through various dedicated programmes that have so far reached over 49,200 beneficiaries, including young and disadvantaged people.
In Italy, this includes the Start Up Your Life initiative dedicated to high school students, and recognised by the Italian Ministry of Education. In 2020, a competition involving 300 schools took place (virtually) and formed part of the events of Italy’s official Financial Education Month. Two winning projects were selected by a panel of experts and the schools each received 13 computers to encourage school digitalisation.

In Germany, UniCredit partners with Joblinge to support students and jobseekers. More than 30 financial education initiatives have been delivered across nine other UniCredit markets since the roll-out of SIB outside Italy in 2019.

Do the Right Thing!

UniCredit’s strong social commitment is a significant part of its business philosophy, and Social Impact Banking has an important role to play. In addition to supporting their communities through SIB, UniCredit provided more than €14bn in state guaranteed loans and more than €36bn in moratoria to help European SMEs and individuals mitigate the Covid-19 emergency in the first nine months of 2020.

It has made significant donations across its various markets through UniCredit Foundation to support hospitals and non-profit organisations on the frontlines of the fight against the pandemic. This includes a group-wide employee fund-raising initiative in support of three of the Italian hospitals at the heart of the crisis. In just two weeks, more than 3000 donations from employees helped to raise a total of €1,228,000, of which one million euros was contributed by the UniCredit Foundation.

“Our behaviour is guided by our core values of ethics and respect and the principle of always doing the right thing vis-a-vis all our stakeholders,” says Penna. “In an era of growing social tensions, further exacerbated by the Covid-19 crisis, we know that banks have an increasingly crucial role, directly — supporting the more fragile social groups and the community at large — and indirectly, helping to drive the transformation towards a more responsible and socially oriented society.

“We will continue to play our part here as a good corporate citizen to all our communities, looking beyond economic returns to drive positive social change through banking.”


Lord Waverley: A New Chapter for the UK and a Meeting Place for the World

With the EU agreement now in place, the United Kingdom has the chance to develop a strategy that addresses the ambitions and goals of the country at large.

The halcyon days of yesteryear have not diminished but do need to be recalibrated. The UK has an historic opportunity to reset trade relations and do trade differently, creating a purposeful strategy for the future. Our new identity in the world should involve power broking, advocating values and working to bring solutions to long standing unresolved issues.

Global Briatin

Trade today impacts all walks of life so not only does that strategy need to be well defined, delivering benefit to all, but it must also help to deliver a more inclusive, sustainable and greener economy. As a G5 trading nation, a comprehensive trade strategy that incorporates trade policy, trade promotion, investment and trade finance with clear connectivity to climate, development, digital and foreign policy objectives is required.

As a sizeable economy on the global stage, the UK has an opportunity to help shape the future of the global trading system to ensure it rises to the challenges and opportunities that confront us. We must harness the opportunities of the digital economy and trade in services, tackling climate change and global finance gaps.

"Making trade work for everyone will require all voices to be represented at the table with robust consultation and transparency mechanisms to enable everyone into the process."

The agreements that are negotiated in the coming years will play a key role and have a decisive impact on our economy for decades. They present an opportunity for the UK to be a global standard setter and to design a trade strategy that creates an economy that is prosperous, more sustainable, more inclusive and greener, and which is guided by the long-term interests of our citizens and future generations, rather than short-term imperatives.

Trade generates losers and winners and demands difficult policy choices. It is important that policy options and trade-offs are discussed inclusively and transparently and that we take proactive steps to mitigate any negative effects. To be successful, Global Britain will need a strategy that is coherent and adds up to the sum of its parts combining our wealth of networks, relationships, and assets: all of which need to hinge together to allow us to capitalise on the opportunities and have real global influence.

To be successful means having the right capabilities in all areas. Balanced trade relations will be critical. To be effective on the world stage, the UK needs to be pragmatic and constructively engaged with all nation states. There is an important role to play as a bridge between developed economies and between emerging and frontier markets and developed economies. We must have positive trade relations with all. Good, balanced relations will open doors to new opportunities and so enable us to thrive as an independent trading nation.

A Vision

Trade policy should deliver a prosperous, more equitable, inclusive and sustainable economy in the UK and globally. It should promote trade for an outward-looking economy in a manner that actively promotes high labour, consumer, and environmental standards. It should be rooted in the day-to-day realities of small and large businesses, farmers, and workers, and reflect the priorities of consumers and be developed based on inclusive, meaningful consultation, transparency, and democratic oversight, openly confronting trade-offs and building consensus. This will help ensure that decision-making is informed and robust, and that our trade policy has the trust and confidence of stakeholders and the wider public.

Policy must be joined-up, working to support policy agendas in areas from agriculture and the environment, to innovation, industrial and digital strategy, to foreign affairs and international development.

Six objectives could guide the future of Global Britain:

1: Trade strategy that is green, supporting the climate and biodiversity, and reducing waste

2: Trade strategy that promotes economic opportunities and sustainable, high quality jobs in all parts of the UK, and enables communities to adapt to new opportunities and adjust to trade shocks

3: Trade strategy that supports fair and sustainable trade globally, reinvigorating the multilateral rules-based system and promoting responsible supply chains

4: Trade strategy that capitalises on the opportunities of the digital economy and promotes digital rights of citizens

5: Trade strategy that secures the confidence of stakeholders and the public, through meaningful consultation, and high levels of transparency and accountability

6: Trade strategy that promotes sustainable investment and finance and helps address the global trade finance gap

Much has happened at breakneck pace over the past four years. The agenda has been dominated by the singular goal of leaving the EU, but the opportunity now lies in developing a vision for what comes next. Few would argue with the premise of a ‘Global Britain’ but more work is needed to build a consensus around what this means for the country and to work around any inconsistency in policy.

Whilst an open vision as a preferred destination to do business is being promoted, legislation is being passed that will screen investors with UK interests anywhere in the world, with considerable penalties for noncompliance. This may have the effect of investors thinking twice about coming to the UK. This is not the intention.

A vision to make the UK the biggest investor in Africa but then reducing the development budget, will play a crucial role in helping build trade capability and relations across the continent. The approach towards China also needs careful balancing. To be a successful trading nation, access to markets with proportional trade relations is needed. Special consideration for the major trade power blocs of EU, US and China is fundamental. Policies and laws are being designed that target restricting access to China, the second largest economy, our 3rd largest export market and a country that is responsible for 20 percent of global trade. This could complicate ties into Asia or to help with agreements at the WTO.

The UK cannot afford to be single issue driven. These ambiguities require a vision that everyone can buy into and to ensure that trade benefits everyone. For the most part it is about being pragmatic and targeted in approach to ensure relations remain constructive, whilst single issues are addressed through appropriate channels. This approach will require nuance and diplomacy, areas in which with political will we excel. Standing back and asking some basic questions would be helpful; what do we want to be as a country, what do we want to achieve in the world with the freedoms we now have, and importantly, how do we deliver success consistently over the long term?

Firstly, we need to revisit our trade governance structures to deliver better outcomes from trade. Making trade work for everyone will require all voices to be represented at the table with robust consultation and transparency mechanisms to enable everyone into the process. This will help build consensus on approach and ensure that policies are right from the outset. Ultimately, this will lessen the risk at the latter stages of a trade negotiation when dealing with difficult issues.

We have seen situations in the past when not all constituencies are on board. It can be enough to sink the deal, as the EU discovered with the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership in 2018. A governance structure was put in place in 2018 and re-structured in 2020 but there are still scenarios where key voices are not being adequately consulted. Important gaps in strategy remain that need development, principally around trade in services and the environment.

Secondly, our minds ought to focus, and quickly, on the development of a comprehensive strategy covering policy, export promotion, investment and trade finance. A strategy that underpins and helps deliver our commitments on sustainability, climate and development as well as dovetailing with broader foreign policy objectives such as human rights and diplomatic relations. It also needs to set out clearly what we are working towards at the multilateral level and how we implement the strategy at bilateral level, spelling out the benefits at national level. Services trade is now 50 percent of global trade but is surprisingly undeveloped in terms of global rules. It starts with getting our own thinking straight. The UK could show real leadership in this area, but this will not be possible before a strategy has been developed.

Importantly, a trade strategy needs to contribute to the national ‘levelling up’ agenda to ensure every region and every community benefit with trade with the rest of the world. This may be as a direct benefit, such as specific industries and sectors gaining access to new growth markets, or through increased investment to compensate and mitigate for a loss of market access, investment or jobs. Every trade deal has winners and losers. It is important that those that lose out gain elsewhere to support an economic transition to another part of the economy with additional investment in skills and digital infrastructure. UK coastal towns that have lost out on fishing rights, for example, could benefit from access to new global opportunities.

We do not need to create a new vision or framework for much of this. Rather we need to implement our commitment to delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. This is the framework to building back stronger and driving the economic recovery in a way that delivers better outcomes, whether by driving economic prosperity or eradicating poverty and inequality. The SDG framework would helpfully provide a roadmap to addressing the structural inequalities for all to see, whether that is the north-south divide, impoverished coastal towns and communities, health and education inequality, the digital divide or our ambition to be a net zero economy by 2050. The SDGs bring all these agendas together under a single internationally recognised framework. Trade therefore should support the implementation of the SDG framework.

It would be amiss not to conclude on climate and global governance with G7 and COP26 taking place in the UK this year. Both are important opportunities. COP26 is not only an opportunity to reinforce our commitment to net zero emissions, to help chart a path forward on global challenges and show leadership on the global stage, but also to secure alignment to modernise trade and environment rules to achieve this goal. Such a move would be a huge step forward in removing ambiguities and trade barriers to green goods and services that help protect the environment and deliver a greener economy.

G7 and G20 are ideal platforms to rally the major economies of the world to commit to accelerating the digitisation of the global economy and with it bring a new, more inclusive era for trade where more SMEs, communities and economies can benefit from access to global opportunities.

About the Author

[caption id="attachment_13312" align="aligncenter" width="252"] Author: Lord Waverley[/caption]

Lord (JD) Waverley
Independent Member
House of Lords

Twitter: @LordWaverley

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jdwaverley


Exclusive Interview with IBM: Leading in a Hybrid World

[caption id="attachment_18540" align="alignright" width="300"] Hossam Seif El-Din[/caption]

How do you define a hybrid cloud platform and how is it driving client's digital transformation?

Hybrid cloud is IT infrastructure that connects at least one public cloud and at least one private cloud, and provides orchestration, management and application portability between them to create a single, flexible, optimal cloud infrastructure for running a company’s computing workloads. It is designed to help a company achieve its technical and business objectives more effectively and cost-efficiently than public cloud or private cloud alone. In fact, according to one recent study, companies derive up to 2.5x the value from hybrid cloud than from a single-cloud, single-vendor approach.

In simple terms, companies rarely start from scratch. They have complex and unique workloads and apps. They have messaging, data and transactional systems, all integrated into their operational and security systems. Hybrid cloud is about meeting them where they are at in terms of the IT infrastructure choices they have made and the various places where they will do computing; whether it is in a public cloud, a private cloud, or on premises.

Relying on only one infrastructure like one public cloud locks you in, and perhaps more importantly, it locks you into only one company’s innovation. And talking to our customers, we know that what they need is to be able to move faster and differentiate through technology and new business platforms. They want to be able to build more collaborative cultures and they need solutions that give them the flexibility to build and deploy any app or workload, anywhere - to which open source can be the answer. Open source is at the heart of hybrid cloud environments, which helps prevent customers from vendor lock-in. This is why IBM has been making significant investments to help accelerate innovation by offering a next-generation hybrid cloud platform built on open source technology.

What makes IBM's hybrid cloud approach unique?

Joining forces with Red Hat is, undeniably, a game changer. Through open source solutions like Red Hat OpenShift, we are providing customers with the unique ability to build mission-critical applications once and run them anywhere, making it easier to develop and deploy containers in virtually any cloud. With more than 20 years of leadership in open source communities, IBM puts open source technologies at the foundation of its services — incorporating Red Hat technologies reaffirms that.

Today, IBM is the number one hybrid cloud platform company. Our cloud business is much more comprehensive than any other cloud provider because it includes capabilities others don’t have and reflects the actual cloud buying patterns of enterprise clients. Our cloud business includes both as a service — infrastructure, software, platform and process — and hardware, software and services that enable enterprise clients to design, build, operate and integrate private, public and hybrid clouds.

The point is that the overall enterprise cloud marketplace is not defined by what providers are trying to sell, but by what clients are buying. Enterprises need a holistic set of technologies and capabilities to run mission critical workloads on the cloud, as well as deep industry expertise that can transform operations and help accelerate their digital transformation. This is especially true today as the pandemic has created an urgent need for businesses to shift many of their operations and offerings to the cloud.

We keep hearing the term industry-specific clouds. What can you tell us about it and why are companies shifting to industry-specific clouds?

Working with clients, IBM has seen that a 'one-cloud-fits-all' approach doesn't work and that hybrid cloud is the next major shift in the evolution of enterprise IT. This is especially more critical when it comes to clients in highly regulated industries, including financial services, healthcare, insurance, telco and more, as there are also unique regulatory and compliance, security and data protection requirements to consider.

To address such needs, IBM announced the world’s first public cloud for the financial services industry - IBM Cloud for Financial Services -to help address the requirements of financial services institutions for regulatory compliance, security and resiliency. This was done in collaboration with Bank of America. And today, we are seeing several global banks, including BNP Paribas join a growing ecosystem of financial institutions and technology providers that will adopt IBM Cloud for financial services in order to leverage those unique and leading security capabilities.

In the energy sector, Schlumberger, IBM and Red Hat are collaborating to build a hybrid cloud system that makes energy exploration data and analytics available worldwide in an easy-to-manage package. Red Hat's OpenShift container environment will help Schlumberger deploy this advanced toolkit to partners, clients and resellers around the world.

At IBM, we believe that every client journey to cloud is unique, with efforts focused on specialized application tasks, workloads, security and compliance requirements, along with specific industry and customer needs. IBM's hybrid cloud approach is at the epicenter of this swift and massive transformation. It allows organizations the flexibility to balance the need to keep some workloads on-premise or in a private cloud while also taking advantage of the speed and flexibility of the public cloud.

Do you think the pandemic influenced journeys to the cloud?

There is no doubt that this pandemic is a powerful force of disruption and an unprecedented tragedy, but it has been a critical turning point. Transformation journeys that were going to last a few years are now being compacted into months.

In response to the challenges presented by COVID-19, governments and business were under immense pressure to innovate and digitally transform. And with most companies only 20 percent along their cloud journey, business continuity and maintaining operations were some of the key issues organizations had to face, especially with the sudden shift of workforce from on-site to remote work.

So if there is anything the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us, it is the critical importance of technology solutions that enable speed, flexibility, insight, and innovation. So to answer your question, yes. This global crisis was and still is a catalyst for many companies to accelerate their move to cloud. And we now, more than ever, understand the importance of being able to operate anywhere and having an IT architecture that can take full advantage of applications and data no matter where they reside.

In your opinion, do you think the skills gap is widening as technology advances?

In general, digital transformation continues to disrupt and transform industries. So, it is no wonder that many traditional skills are becoming obsolete in the face of modern technology. While certain hard skills may lose importance over time, other types of skills are likely to evolve because of technological disruptions, such automation, AI and machine learning.

For decades automation has touched most industries – from the factory floor to banking transactions and oil refineries. However, intelligent automation enables change at a whole new level. AI and automation, or intelligent automation, are altering the way humans and machines interact, in terms of how data is analysed, decisions are made, and tasks and activities within a workflow or system are performed. These technologies are already changing how every job is performed, eliminating repetitive tasks but increasing the need for creative thinkers. In fact, IBM believes that 100% of jobs will eventually change due to artificial intelligence.

So, the priority right now is to help people around the world prepare for these jobs and to reskill existing workforce in order to remain relevant and be able to benefit more from the prosperity that new technology creates. In fact, IBM has been working closely with government and private entities, such as The Ministry of Education in the UAE, Abu Dhabi School of Government, Saudi Arabia Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and GEMS Education to make IBM’s Digital-Nation available to their communities and ecosystem. IBM Digital-Nation is a cloud-based online self-paced learning and innovation platform designed to deliver advanced knowledge and skills in key emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, cloud, coding, Internet of Things (IoT), quantum computing, data science and analytics, and cybersecurity.

IBM also recently opened up Open P-TECH for several of our countries across the Middle East and Africa. It is a free digital education experience platform that is designed to equip young people and educators with foundational knowledge about emerging technology and professional skills.

About Hossam El-Din

Hossam Seif El-Din is the General Manager of IBM in the Middle East and Pakistan and the Vice President of Enterprise & Commercial for IBM Middle East and Africa. In his dual capacity, Hossam is focused on formulating and executing IBM's strategy across the region, and responsible for expanding the company's footprint, offerings and services and developing high-performance local teams.

IBM in the Middle East

IBM has been operating in the Middle East since 1947, when it installed the first computer in the region over 70 years ago. It has been playing a vital role in shaping the region’s information technology landscape.

Today, IBM is a leading cloud platform and AI solutions company and is continuously transforming its business to address the emerging needs of businesses and societies and help customers and partners accelerate their digital transformation journeys.


British Virgin Islands Rise to Top of Financial Services Industry with BVI Finance CEO Elise Donovan

[caption id="attachment_18547" align="alignright" width="300"] BVI Finance CEO: Elise Donovan[/caption]

As the voice of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) financial services industry, BVI Finance and its CEO Elise Donovan, are responsible for championing, promoting and educating audiences around the world about the attributes and advantages of the BVI as a leading International Finance Centre.

Since her taking up the post as CEO of BVI Finance in 2019, Donovan has played a pivotal role in expanding and deepening the BVI’s financial services footprint in key cities around the world, most notably in Asia and Africa. In partnership with the BVI Government, BVI Finance has built strategic relationships with stakeholders in the public and private sectors and participated in major international conferences, events and forums. Restricted by the ‘lockdown’ conditions during 2020, BVI Finance has adapted in typical BVI style and utilized video platforms to engage with stakeholders virtually across a number of jurisdictions including in the Middle East and Asia.

When asked about the BVI’s reputation as a leading international financial centre, Donovan said: “The BVI Business Company has long been the cornerstone of the financial services industry in the BVI. Designed over 35 years ago, this was the first of its kind (offshore business company) that was innovative, practical and versatile underpinned by a robust and secure legal framework. It has been much emulated but never bettered. The financial services industry has grown around the BVI Company and today the BVI is home to the world’s top financial and professional services providers.”

Donovan has a wealth of knowledge and expertise and her passion for the BVI and Financial Services is clear, having previously served as the BVI Government’s Asia and Europe representative, Director of the BVI International Affairs Secretariat, Executive Director of the BVI International Finance Centre (the forerunner to BVI Finance) and a member of the BVI’s Tax Information Exchange Agreement Negotiating Team with countries such as China, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

Reflecting on the news that the BVI Finance was awarded ‘Best Offshore Financial Services Provider- Global 2020’, Donovan noted that it was due to the BVI’s resilience and constant drive to adapt and innovate to meet the needs of clients and the changing global regulatory landscape. The BVI for example was one of the first IFCs to introduce a FinTech Regulatory “Sandbox”, which provides financial institutions with the digital infrastructure to test new products and services.

“The BVI’s reputation comes from our thorough approach to meeting and often exceeding international standards whilst keeping a sharp focus on the needs of those businesses and individuals who do business in the BVI. We try and stay ahead of emergent trends and this is why the BVI is held in such esteem today.”

When asked about the future of BVI Finance, Donovan was emphatic: “The BVI will continue to go from strength to strength. We have navigated the challenges of operating in a complex and fast changing landscape and we will continue to evolve in the future.”


Head of ESG Client Strategies, North America at Invesco - Glen K Yelton: ESG is Important for the Planet and For Us

[caption id="attachment_18551" align="alignright" width="300"] Head of ESG Client Strategies: Glen K Yelton[/caption]

Glen K Yelton is a leader in ESG with more than 20 years of experience in sustainable investing.

Yelton joined Invesco in 2019 as head of ESG client strategies for North America, and is currently based in Atlanta. He works with product teams to identify new opportunities in ESG, and contributes to building ESG strategies.

Yelton works in a 13-member team led by Cathrine de Coninck-Lopez, global head of ESG for Invesco. Previously, Yelton has served as the director of ESG and impact investing on OppenheimerFunds’ SNW Investment Team. SNW was an independent firm acquired by Oppenheimer that focused on building and managing customised and tax-efficient fixed income portfolios. In this role, Yelton led a team directly supporting Oppenheimer’s ESG and investment strategies.

Prior to joining the SNW team in 2015, Yelton managed the ESG research programme at IW Financial, a global ESG data and ratings firm. During his tenure, the firm developed and deployed several innovative data and ratings solutions. Before that, he oversaw ESG data collection at American Values Investments. Yelton has also provided competitive intelligence research for a variety of Fortune 100 clients across several industries, and served as an interrogator for the US Army and graduated from East Tennessee State University.

Invesco recently launched Invesco ESGintel, where its ESG team partnered with Invesco’s Technology, Strategy Innovation and Planning team to create a proprietary ESG ratings tool. The tool provides comprehensive coverage of ESG insights, metrics, data points and direction of change on over 8,000 companies.

ESGintel takes a sector materiality focus to select indicators to ensure a targeted focus on the issues that matter most for sustainable value-creation and risk management. This provides a holistic view on how a company’s value chain is impacted by ESG issues.

Invesco is committed to ESG investing as it recognises that ESG matters greatly to clients, communities and stakeholders. “It also matters to us,” says Yelton. “By 2023, our goal is to have 70 percent of our global assets to be ESG integrated and 10 percent of our AUM to be dedicated to ESG strategies.”

For Invesco, ESG investing is an essential part of the solution for a sustainable future and an important agent of change in driving a holistic perspective on the investment industry’s role. “Invesco’s commitment goes beyond delivering elements of ESG at a functional level,” says Yelton. “It goes to the heart of the way we are working with our clients to realise the value they seek.”


Jeffrey Phlegar: A CEO with a Full Plate, an Open Mind — and a Commitment to ESG Integration

[caption id="attachment_18554" align="alignright" width="300"] MacKay Shields chairman and CEO: Jeffrey Phlegar[/caption]

MacKay Shields chairman and chief executive Jeffrey Phlegar leads development and execution of the firm’s strategic direction — and holds overall responsibility for the boutique’s $144bn global business.

In his capacity as steward to the portfolios entrusted to his care, Phlegar believes that “through our actions as investment managers and citizens, we have a responsibility to contribute to the well-being of the communities in which we operate, live, and serve”.

MacKay’s key value pillars of integrity, respect, development, equality and service guide its commitments to clients, employees, and communities. “Our recognition of the importance of ESG considerations in the way we live, conduct our business, and how we both assess and manage risk in client portfolios are natural extensions of these key value pillars,” says Phlegar.

Since joining MacKay Shields in 2011, Phlegar has focused on incorporating ESG and sustainability into investment processes as part of MacKay’s risk management and long-term value-creation philosophies.

He has additional responsibilities as vice-chairman of the parent company’s affiliate, New York Life Investment International. Phlegar is also a member of New York Life boutique Candriam’s Belgium board of directors, and a member of the management committee of New York Life Investment Management.

Phlegar explains that “ESG and sustainability factors, including climate-related matters, can have a material impact on the long-term risk and return profile of investment portfolios and as such – consistent with our fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of our clients – should receive appropriate consideration in research, portfolio construction, and risk management.”

MacKay’s investment teams have always emphasized a bottom-up research-driven assessment of both risk and return. The consideration of ESG-related risks and opportunities, alongside more traditional factors, is a natural extension of the MacKay approach. Phlegar concludes: “Our investment teams are responsible for assessing and managing ESG related risks. We do not outsource that responsibility. We own it. MacKay’s 2020 highly favourable PRI rating is indicative of that commitment.”


Trojan Holding’s Hamad Salem Al Ameri: A Man Who Loves to Build

[caption id="attachment_18560" align="alignright" width="300"] Managing Director: Eng Hamad Salem Al Ameri[/caption]

Eng Hamad Salem Al Ameri is a man of ambition who has paved a strong path in the construction industry, developing a highly regarded reputation for delivering projects of the utmost quality, in a timely manner.

Agraduate in engineering from the American University of Dubai, Al Ameri also earned an MBA from the Canadian University in the emirate. He rose from the ranks and currently holds managerial and director roles in such key industries as as real estate development and contracting; international investments and finance; government, non-profit, and public institutions. In addition to oil, energy and utilities sectors.

In 2009, Al Ameri founded Trojan Holding in the UAE, with small trailers on site doubling as offices. Today, the holding company boasts several business verticals with more than 25,000 employees. In addition to his role as Vice Chairman of the Board and Managing Director of Trojan Holding, Al Ameri sits on the board of several companies in the region.

Al Ameri is renowned for improving efficiencies and streamlining processes within the corporate group and for the consolidation of resources among related companies to attain economies of scale and optimum productivity. Setting up the group as a one-stop shop, he employs a huge technical team to work on every element of a building, be it large or small, delivering everything on time and in-house.

This contractor has an impressive global footprint, covering countries in the GCC region and Europe. Always ready for fresh challenges, Al Ameri is nevertheless selective, bidding only on the right developments, at the right time, and in the right places. He places much focus on sustainability within host communities, and puts effort into the protection of the environment, and the conservation of resources.

Hamad Salem Al Ameri is a big supporter of Abu Dhabi’s 2030 Vision through direct contribution to the emirate’s social and human development and the creation of a sustainable, knowledge-based nation. As part of a personal mission, he launched Trojan Young Engineers (TYE), a CSR initiative enabling young engineering students to gain hands-on experience of working in the industry through a rich programme including construction site tours. To date, four cycles of TYE have been successfully launched, with more to come.

His hard work, insight and ambition have resulted in an illustrious professional path for the construction expert both regionally and globally. A path that is sure to point to further horizons, perhaps exceeding his own expectations.


East Africa Metals President and CEO Andrew Lee Smith's Passion, Ability and  Concern for Community Win Accolades from All Sides

[caption id="attachment_18563" align="alignright" width="300"] East Africa Metals President and CEO: Andrew Lee Smith[/caption]

East Africa Metals president and CEO Andrew Lee Smith is a professional geologist with 30 years of experience exploring, developing, and operating African and North American base and precious metals mining projects.

He holds an Honours BSc in Earth Sciences from the University of Waterloo and is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia. Smith received the Mining Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 1994 from the Quebec Prospectors Association for his role in the development of the Beaufor and Sleeping Giant mines. He was named Outstanding Alumnus of 2009 by the Science Faculty of the University of Waterloo for his contributions to international mineral exploration.

Smith is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and achieved the ICD.D accreditation — the only professional designation for Canadian directors recognised nationally and internationally.

This is a man with exploration and discovery at the heart of his career. During his first-year geology course, Smith was inspired by Dr Alan Morgan, and his professional passion was ignited. The University of Waterloo later came to recognise Smith as one of the most successful alumni. In 2009, he received the Faculty of Science Distinguished Alumni Award.

After graduating from the Earth Sciences programme, Smith moved to Quebec to work for Aurizon Mines. Over the next decade, the geologist assisted in bringing two gold mines into operation. In 1994, Smith received the Mining Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the Quebec Prospectors Association. Later that year, Aurizon transferred Smith to Vancouver to take an executive role as vice- president of exploration.

The experience gained in his role as vice-president of an Canadian public company prepared Smith for success in the world of entrepreneurship. In 2000, he formed True North Gems Inc, a publicly traded Canadian junior resource company focused on the exploration and development of North American gemstone projects. True North has discovered and explored coloured stone prospects, including Yukon emeralds, Baffin Island sapphires, and the Fiskenaesset Ruby deposit on the south-west coast of Greenland. The quality of stones in the properties controlled by True North are among the best in the world.

One of Smith’s most significant accomplishments is the negotiation and signing of an agreement with Kaska Dene, First Nation of the Yukon. The True North agreement has been called a major milestone and a landmark agreement in First Nation relations in Canada, the first time in Canadian history that a corporation has recognised the unresolved rights of First Nations to resources from their traditional territories.

In 2004, Smith formed Canaco Resources Inc, a Canadian junior resource company focused on gold exploration in Tanzania. In September 2009, Canaco was pleased to announce a major gold discovery in the region.

Smith has made notable contributions to Canadian and international mining for his discovery.

Smith believes in giving back to the community. In each of his exploration activities, he has involved graduate students, many of whom have gone on to complete degrees. Through the companies he has founded, he has struck unique agreements for profit-sharing with the indigenous people. He has built schools and brought clean water for communities around his company’s gold mines in Africa.

Barry Warner, chair of the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, sums Smith thus: “He is a passionate and gifted geologist. He is a wise and entrepreneurial businessman. He is a caring and unassuming individual. We are extremely proud to count him among our own.”


Pragmatic Play CEO Julian Jarvis: On Leadership, Business Excellence and iGaming Regulatory Trends

[caption id="attachment_18566" align="alignright" width="300"] CEO at Pragmatic Play: Julian Jarvis[/caption]

Julian Jarvis has over 20 years’ experience working in some of the leading online businesses: America Online and AOL Time Warner, PartyGaming Plc — which he helped take onto the FTSE 100 in 2005.

Now Jarvis is chief executive of Pragmatic Play, a fast-growing multi-product content provider to the gaming industry, offering innovative, regulated and mobile-focused products, from bingo and virtual sports to casinos.

A lawyer by training, Jarvis started out as a barrister in the UK before moving into the world of technology-based businesses. At first, he did that in his capacity as a lawyer, but he moved on to a variety of management roles.

“Legal and regulatory issues have always played a key role in the types of businesses I am attracted to,” he says. “There have been great opportunities created at the crossroads where new technology meets emerging regulatory environments — and I enjoy the business and legal challenges that arise. Those who cope well with them can create very valuable businesses in a short period of time.”

Having been at the centre of the dotcom boom with the-then internet giant AOL — and later as a pioneer of responsible and regulated online gambling — Julian Jarvis is familiar with the value of good CSR, and offering trusted digital products and services within an appropriately regulated environment.

“Online products and services are really all about selling trust,” he says. “Never more so than in the regulated online gambling sector. Increasingly, only brands that pay attention to what customers and regulators are going to need in the future in terms of compliance, privacy and digital experience will be able to build sustainable value over the long term. We work hard at this and I think it pays off.”

Among his responsibilities to the Pragmatic Play group and its holding company, Jarvis oversees a team of legal and compliance professionals at the forefront of the issues affecting the online gambling markets. “I have an excellent team whose enthusiasm and expertise adds significant value to the organisation,” he says. “We see regulatory compliance as an essential part of our product, not a bolt-on.

“It also helps to have a product development and sales teams which are, in my view, the best in the industry. The combination fuels our success.”

Aside from internet businesses and online gambling, Jarvis has been founder of a digital ledger technology business. He has also been involved in Gibraltar’s DLT ecosystem — another area where new technology meets emerging regulation.

Julian Jarvis is a qualified non-executive director and a governor of an independent schools’ group — Prior Park Schools — having co-founded a new secondary school in his adopted home of the past 16 years, Prior Park in Gibraltar.


Professor Robert Anthony, Anthony & Cie: A Specialist in Many Fields with a Passion for All Things Financial and Family Office

[caption id="attachment_18569" align="alignright" width="300"] Principal Partner: Professor Robert Anthony[/caption]

Anthony & Cie is a multi-family office which orchestrates financial, legal, real estate and tax advice in France.

Robert Anthony is the principal partner at Anthony & Cie, which was established in 1978 and is currently based on the French Riviera. He is an independent member of Geneva Group International (GGI), a British Chartered Certified Accountant and a Certified Financial Planner (France).

As an international family office, Anthony & Cie manages cross-border strategies for international clients. It is currently active in Europe, Latin America and Africa, thanks to the global alliance of independent professional firms, GGI. It mainly brings its expertise to private individuals and professionals in France.

Robert Anthony was formerly Professor of International Tax Law at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego, California. He has been a member of the board of Sophia Business Angels for several years.

As an independent member of GGI, he chaired a practice group of private equity and international wealth management for four years.

Robert Anthony is a member of several associations: ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants), CNCGP (Chambre Nationale des Conseils en Gestion de Patrimoine), CGPC (Conseil en Gestion de Patrimoine Certifié).

Over the years, he has submitted articles to various international journals, and authored a book, International Fiscal Strategy, published by Monitor Press in London.

He regularly speaks at international summits and conferences as an expert in tax and family offices. Robert Anthony’s expertise and in-depth knowledge is constantly in demand, and he has delivered lectures at conferences and gatherings around the world.

In the past, Robert Anthony has been editor of Europe for Tax Analysts and a member of the committee at the Institute of Directors (Monaco branch). He has been an honorary magistrate in the UK, and chairman of the Association of Combined Youth Clubs under the Royal Patronage of the Princess Royal in the UK.

For further information, please visit antco.com


Does Anyone Care About the Environment? Nordea Finance CEO Peter Hupfeld Does, and Always Has

[caption id="attachment_18572" align="alignright" width="300"] Nordea Finance CEO: Peter Hupfeld[/caption]

When Nordea Finance CEO Peter Hupfeld graduated as an environmental engineer in 1998 he, like many of his fellow students, had big dreams of making a difference. “Then I stepped out into reality, and no one really cared about environmental issues,” he says.

Hupfeld has a background in management consultancy and held executive positions in a Nordic insurance company before joining the largest finance company in the region, Nordea Finance.

Since taking on the role in 2015, Hupfeld has driven an ambitious agenda to transform the company into one that is customer-centric, with a Nordic mindset applied to its four local markets. The result has been a steady increase in customer satisfaction scores over the past four years. “I’m really proud of how far we’ve come,” he says, “but we still have work to do.”

“I’m really proud of how far we’ve come,” he says, “but we still have work to do.”

The finance industry as a whole is noticing a significant shift in customer preferences from ownership towards more sustainable leasing options, and this trend is expected to increase.

“We were part of the first wave of what we call ‘green financing’ across several of our business lines two years ago,” says Hupfeld. “This trend started with larger items like cars and heavy machinery, and is now flowing into smaller items like electrical bicycles and information and communication technology (ICT) circular economies — making greener solutions accessible to a broader range of people and industries.”

In addition to his CEO role in Nordea Finance, Hupfeld participates on the board of Leaseurope, a federation bringing together leasing company associations across Europe. “Nordea Finance and the finance industry more broadly have a significant role to play in providing relevant offers for customers and partners looking for more sustainable solutions, and in educating the industries we serve about how they can finance in a greener way.”

As more and more companies commit to CSR targets, car fleet financing is an area where companies look to reduce their CO2 emissions. “A lot of larger and mid-sized corporates are looking to place CO2 restrictions on company cars,” says Hupfeld. “We do the same in Nordea Group. This is where we can offer greener leasing solutions such as hybrids or purely electrical vehicles.

“While we can offer greener solutions across the Nordics, local infrastructure and governmental subsidisation also has a big impact on customer preference. In Norway, for example, government subsidies supporting greener options and infrastructure for electric vehicles (Evs) has increased exponentially over recent years. Today, more than half of the new vehicles sold in Norway are EVs.
“The other Nordic countries have some way to go in comparison, so we need to work closely with our partners, read the trends, try to influence the authorities and go live with products that are locally relevant.”

In 2020, Hupfeld’s ambitions to make a difference are a little more pragmatic than they were in 1998. “There’s still a gap between the buzz in society where people or corporates have ambitions to support greener options, and the moment they are willing to pay extra for it.

“Greener financing is one way we can help our customers, partners and society more broadly, to close that gap.”


VEON Works to Bridge the Digital Divide: Joint Leaders Sergi Herrero and Kaan Terzioğlu Show the Way

[caption id="attachment_18575" align="alignright" width="300"] Sergi Herrero and Kaan Terzioğlu[/caption]

There is often truth in old adages. “Two heads are better than one” is well-known wisdom — but it has rarely been applied to corporate leadership. There are only a handful of examples of companies with two CEOs. VEON, an international telecoms and digital services provider headquartered in Amsterdam, is a successful addition to the list with Kaan Terzioğlu and Sergi Herrero as its co-CEOs.

This leadership pair is defining the next growth phase of the business, bringing a wealth of complementary skills and experience to the mix.

Herrero hails from Facebook, where he served as the company’s Global Director of Payments and Commerce. At Facebook he oversaw the launch and growth of payments and commerce ecosystems for Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram. He also led the deployment of Charitable Giving and was instrumental in scaling the Facebook Ads payments business and the broader expansion of the platform’s global marketplace.

Herrero joined VEON in September 2019 to run the new VEON Ventures division, which is leading the company’s growth ambitions beyond traditional telecoms, with a focus on digital products in adjacent markets like content, AdTech and financial services. His expertise in digital payments made him a perfect match for the new division and, later, an ideal partner for Terzioğlu.

Terzioğlu joined VEON with a track record in successfully transforming telecommunication companies into digital operators. He is a passionate believer in the need for the telecoms industry to reinvent itself by putting changing customer needs at its core. At VEON, this means encouraging local leadership teams to deliver 4G services that transform customer experiences to match connected lifestyles.

Terzioğlu’s 30 years of experience in telecoms and technology includes global leadership roles at Arthur Anderson and Cisco, as well as 4 years as the CEO of Turkcell, during which he was recognized for his “Outstanding Contribution to the Mobile Industry” by the GSMA, the mobile industry’s leading global organization, which he currently serves as a Board member.

Herrero and Terzioğlu were appointed as VEON’s co-COOs in November 2019 and confirmed as co-CEOs just four months later. Both are determined to continue the company’s evolution from traditional telecoms to a provider of connectivity services designed around a superior customer experience.

“As telecommunications companies, we have massive resources at our disposal to meet the changing needs of our customers” Terzioğlu explains. “It is not just about providing minutes and gigabytes to the end-user. It’s about changing the nature of their relationship with their operators, not least in emerging economies where our ability to promote digital inclusion and individual empowerment brings with it enormous social and economic opportunity.”

Nowhere was this relationship more evident than in the role VEON played during the early stages of COVID-19. VEON’s operating companies not only provided emergency connectivity in the immediate aftermath of the outbreak, but sustained livelihoods and lifestyles throughout by providing essential services for home working, online education and e-commerce.

“Ours is a digital services company built around the competitive advantage of large, regulated connectivity networks in multiple markets,” Herrero explains. “To be successful we must listen to our customers — to what they like, dislike and what they lack — and develop the products and resources to match. Follow that rule and there should always be an audience for our services.”

The company has already claimed a large audience, with more than 200 million customers across 9 markets, spanning three continents. It is one of the world's biggest mobile operators, boasting network coverage over 10% of the world’s population. This footprint is expected to expand further over the coming years as VEON accelerates the roll-out of 4G networks across nations that rank amongst the world’s fastest-growing in smartphone penetration and digital adoption.

Digital financial services represent an immediate growth opportunity for VEON where its plans are already well advanced. “VEON operates in some of the world’s most unbanked nations. In half our markets, more than 50 percent of the adult population has no bank account. Pakistan tops this list, with around 80 percent of men and close to 95 percent of women without basic banking access,” Herrero said. "Bridging this gap by offering access to financial services through a mobile phone goes beyond the convenience benefit and has the potential to change people’s social and financial circumstances profoundly.”

And with that comes the opportunity to unlock value in many areas of the economy, as well as to boost sustainability and fair access to resources.

“The technologies that we have today can be extremely powerful tools to level and elevate the playing field” Terzioğlu insists. “Opportunities to close the digital gap, to provide customized services to groups with special needs, as well as to improve the efficiency of industries varying from agriculture to manufacturing, are huge when we invest in connectivity and digital services with the right mindset. We not only have the opportunity, but also the responsibility to be a positive force for innovation and betterment in an era of unprecedented technological and social change.”


International Financial Centres in the Post-Covid World

[caption id="attachment_18547" align="alignright" width="300"] Author: BVI Finance CEO Elise Donovan[/caption]

IFCs such as BVI have proved to be an integral element in keeping the wheels of the global economy turning during the pandemic.

International financial centres (IFCs) play a fundamental role in the global economy. Historically, they have helped to facilitate cross-border business, enabling an easy and effective flow of assets around the globe – and in so doing, have had a critical part to play in the growth of major economies such as China. Over the years, these destinations have become ever more sophisticated and specialised. Today, IFCs cater to a wide range of international customers - from start-ups and family offices to multinational banks; they also provide an array of services such as asset management and protection, tax planning, access to capital and insurance.

Among the IFCs, the British Virgin Islands (BVI) has emerged as a leading financial centre. It has repeatedly proven its resilience, having overcome its fair share of challenges both natural and geopolitical. Not only has the BVI developed a culture of innovation in order to overcome barriers, it has also achieved a strong and practical sense of preparedness.

Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, the BVI’s robust digital and technological infrastructure enabled its financial services to continue to engage with clients and ensure business continuity at a critical time. Going forward, this will become an important factor as governments around the world try to rebuild their economies after the effects of the pandemic. Although many countries have already responded with unprecedented fiscal support for their private sector, this is only effective in the short term; a strong and sustainable recovery from the pandemic will depend on supporting businesses to consolidate and thrive, and this is where IFCs like the BVI are especially well-placed to support.

Reliable and Trusted Destinations

IFCs provide an optimal environment for businesses to thrive, one that is characterised by stability and jurisdictional neutrality. This is a key factor in easing cross-border business as clients can efficiently set up new structures that are recognised globally. For example, in the BVI, where the legal system is based on English common law, businesses can be confident that they are supported by a robust and reliable legal framework that provides strong shareholder protection and is compatible with other international contracts. Coupled with a mature legal system that provides expert assistance and important economic incentives such as efficient administrative costs and tax neutrality, IFCs are designed to foster growth and prosperity. This is a hallmark of most leading IFCs, which have built a business-supportive environment with specialised institutions and systems to help businesses grow.

Compliance and Innovation

However, providing a truly business-friendly environment also hinges on having a fully compliant and robust regulatory framework – one where good governance is actively enforced, and businesses can operate with full confidence in the legitimacy of the institutions. Those within the industry recognise that having a strong track record of effective regulation is essential to qualify as a leading IFC, and to have a meaningful and positive contribution to the global economy.

The BVI has adopted a range of measures to bolster its regulatory regime such as the OECD’s Common Reporting Standard (CRS). It is also compliant with the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing – the global standard for combating financial crime and money laundering. The BVI was also one of the first jurisdictions to introduce anti-money laundering (AML) legislation in 1999; it has implemented comprehensive AML laws and has adopted stringent rules in know-your customer (KYC) due diligence, consistent with the FATF.

At a domestic level, the BVI is regulated by the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission, which serves as an autonomous regulatory authority responsible for the regulation and inspection of all financial services in the jurisdiction. One standout feature of the BVI’s active pursuit of good governance and regulation is its Beneficial Ownership Secure Search system (BOSSs). Developed in 2017, BOSSs is a cloud-based and de-centralised platform which uses the highest levels of security and encryption to hold verified data on companies incorporated in the BVI. And while it is commercially private, the data on the platform can be shared with international law enforcement. This is a robust and internally compliant regime which has been praised by prominent law enforcement authorities, like the UK’s National Crime Agency and was integral to disclosing information that warranted the UK's first Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO), obtained by the NCA in 2018.

However, the debate around publicly accessibly registers is far from resolved. Though the discussion risks becoming highly politicised, what is clear is that greater and more comprehensive dialogue and cooperation is needed between industry, policy makers and regulators to produce an effective, global solution.

Growth in FinTech

In addition to adopting global standards that encourage good governance, the BVI, like many IFCs, is also actively investing in its own digital and regulatory capabilities. As a result of the pandemic, we have seen the importance and urgency to provide the right regulatory environment for crypto-currencies and other digital technology, which have enabled deals, transactions and other financial activities to continue.

Over the years, many IFCs had already invested in regulatory innovation to encourage greater activity. However, in August last year, the BVI launched its Fintech Regulatory Sandbox, a test bed to enable fintech businesses to conduct live-testing and improve its models before they launch. Unlike similar initiatives in other countries, the BVI Sandbox is designed to host firms and projects for up to 18 months, giving more opportunity for developers to hone their product, build experience and scale. This light-touch approach to regulation is helping to stimulate innovation and leverage technology in ways that improve business processes.

The Future and Beyond

It is this constant drive to innovate and produce market-leading solutions, alongside its strict adherence to global standards, which sets the BVI apart as a leading financial centre. IFCs continue to play a major role in the global economy – their commitment to international cooperation and adhering to regulatory standards have ensured their relevance and attraction. The BVI’s reliable institutions and culture of compliance are important magnets for businesses and means the BVI is well equipped to help them grow, raise funds and attract investment. This is now more critical than ever as the pandemic has had a profound impact on the world economy. By working alongside and supporting businesses, IFCs can play a pivotal role in the recovery of major economies worldwide in the coming years.

Elise Donovan

Chief Executive Officer, BVI Finance


Credit Where It’s Due: Fitch Wrote the Book on This One

Fitch Ratings has been creating value for global markets and challenging conventional thinking since 1923, when it invented its now-familiar AAA to D ratings scale.

As a division of Fitch Group, the firm is dedicated to providing credit ratings and independent, forward-looking credit opinions. Fitch Ratings offers global perspectives shaped by local market experience and credit market expertise.

In an era of volatility and technological transformation, Fitch remains committed to providing transparency and insights to empower clients to make better-informed decisions. The additional context and perspective have helped investors to fund growth and make important judgments with greater confidence.

"As the importance of ESG concerns became increasingly apparent, Fitch was the first agency to systematically publish opinions on the relevance of ESG to individual credit ratings."

Global interconnectedness and the current speed of change mean Fitch experts are in constant demand. The company has more than 4,000 employees drawing on the experience of some 20,000 entities, including sovereigns, businesses and investment products. Fitch’s ability to view things from all angles, simplify complex issues, and provide consistent, transparent intelligence gives it the edge in a highly competitive market.

Global Enterprise and Industry Experience

Behind Fitch’s offerings stands a global enterprise focused on credit market needs. It is backed by sector and regional specialists with profound experience and world-class insight.

More than 4,000 employees in over 30 countries, including 1,600 analysts

Coverage of 200 countries

45 offices worldwide with more than half in emerging and growth markets.

Fitch Ratings is distinguished by broad sector expertise that has been developed and honed by 100 years of industry and analytical experience. Fitch’s rigorous analysis has led to the creation of market-leading tools, methodologies, indices, and analytical products to help investors manage risk and grow their businesses.

ESG, Fitch in China and More

In response to the pandemic, Fitch last year published 1,100 reports and commentaries that distinguish it from its competitors with their insight. From timely assessments of Australian bushfires and flooding in China to global lockdowns and vaccine developments, Fitch has been providing market participants with unmatched analysis and evaluation.

Fitch Group strives to expand its offering beyond credit ratings and research, market solutions and services, training and professional development. As the importance of ESG concerns became increasingly apparent, Fitch was the first agency to systematically publish opinions on the relevance of ESG to individual credit ratings. Fitch’s in-depth database — covering more than 150,000 related data points on 10,750 entities and transactions — remains unmatched.

In a bold move last year, Fitch Ratings entered China's credit-rating market as part of the country’s partial trade deal with the US. "We’re confident that market participants will continue to value our independent analysis, transparent methodologies and rigorous ratings process in line with international best-practice," said Danny Chen, chief executive of Fitch Bohua.


Anita McBain: Spreading the Gospel of ESG to the Investment World in Clear, Honest and Understandable Terms

[caption id="attachment_18602" align="alignright" width="300"] Head of EMEA ESG Research at Citi: Anita McBain[/caption]

Anita McBain is part of a new breed of professionals that believe the industry must focus on the ecological risks of an inter-connected world — and find solutions, fast.

As the Covid-19 pandemic began to spread across the globe, McBain was one of the first to warn of the consequences of unsustainable behaviour, financial and non-financial. Head of responsible investments at London-based management firm M&G at the time, she wrote a blistering report on the risks of failing to recognise these dangers.

McBain drew attention to the fact that deforestation, generally caused by human population growth, displaced animals which shed viruses due to the stress inflicted upon them — often in or near human settlements.

She also maintained that the Covid-19 pandemic was not entirely unexpected. “For years scientists have warned of the spill-over of viruses from animals into humans,” she wrote. “Today we are experiencing the consequences of the inextricable link between human, animal and ecosystem health.”

As the world’s population is expected to balloon from 7.8 billion today to 9.8 billion by 2050, the supply of food — often in the form of “wild” meat — will become critical. And it will inevitably lead to more viruses leaping the species barrier, she believes, unless an integrated global response is devised.

Anita McBain has been a champion of ESG criteria for the past 15 years, persuading investors of the need to be socially conscious. A growing number of industry experts believe ESG should be a core principle for all businesses. The pandemic, McBain says, has amplified the need for action.

In September, she was recruited to head EMEA ESG research at global investment bank Citi, where she crusades for sustainability. “Globalisation has lifted millions of people out of poverty,” she says, “but there are also downsides.

“Competition to meet global demand has resulted in over-exploitation of natural resources and unsustainable practices, with rising population growth and socio-economic trends linking into biodiversity loss, climate change and the emergence of new communicable diseases.

“The asset management industry should consider a ‘nexus approach’ to investing, which examines different interactions and links among multiple sectors.” McBain believes investors have a role to play in directing capital towards companies that demonstrate resilience and offer long-term solutions.

“Responsible investment involves encouraging investee companies, and pushing for the development of consumption and production models that are sustainable over the long term,” she says.

At Citi, she is responsible for leading the integration of ESG into the process, advising on climate change and broader sustainability themes. Her award-winning research, Citi believes, will significantly strengthen its ESG presence.

Anita McBain earned an MBA at Edinburgh University before going on to post graduate work at Cambridge University, where she studied leadership and sustainable business. Her colleagues describe her as knowledgeable, passionate, engaging and constantly full of ideas.

Those who have worked with her believe McBain is a leader who truly understands the link between people, planet and profit. She has a deep knowledge of the issues at stake, which she communicates in a determined, tenacious and engaging manner.

Identifying risks and coming up with solutions is her speciality. As one of her former colleagues put it: “She has a motivating and positive voice, one that anyone would be grateful to have on their team.”


Juan Antonio Niño Pulgar: Weathering the Pandemic’s Storm and Growing Stronger by the Day

Active Capital Reinsurance, Ltd. (ACTIVE RE), domiciled in Barbados, operates with a general insurance and reinsurance license granted by the island’s Financial Services Commission. The company was established in 2007 and specialises in bancassurance and associated products, providing reinsurance coverage for large financial institutions, such as banks and credit organisations not only throughout Latin America but also elsewhere in the world.

In 2015, prompted by globalisation, ACTIVE RE adopted a progressive diversification strategy with a view to enhancing the company’s global reach and adding to its suite of products and services to better serve existing and new clients. This effort allowed ACTIVE RE to develop a sizeable global portfolio of products and solutions, including the full range of bancassurance in addition to traditional lines of reinsurance such as bonds and surety, property and engineering, general liability, maritime, energy, and alternative risk transfer solutions. The company abides by its motto ‘Benefits for All’ and its operational philosophy – ‘put clients first, measure risks twice, and after due diligence, pay claims, always’.

"The Corona Pandemic has not stopped ACTIVE RE's global expansion and diversification: the twin engines of corporate growth."

As of November 2020, ACTIVE RE offers reinsurance products and risk management services to 418 ceding companies and 152 brokers in 110 countries across Europe, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific and Middle East and North Africa regions. As a matter of course, the company’s operations and processes are derived from strong ethical principles and fully compliant with all relevant international regulations to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

Powered by Tech

ACTIVE RE’s corporate trajectory unfolds at a time of transcendental societal and economic change which affects the reinsurance industry as well. The company’s strategy and business model underpin its operations and include an emphasis on technology. ACTIVE RE has been an early adopter of new technology which it considers a crucial driver of performance. By prioritising investments in communication, the company has strengthened its global network of more than 50 associates of 13 nationalities, spread over a dozen 12 countries and proficient in 8 languages. This network provides multiple bespoke touchpoints for clients, suppliers, and strategic partners.

After being upgraded in June 2018, credit rating agency AM Best earlier this year reaffirmed ACTIVE RE’s Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-”. The outlook for these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. This represents the apex of an ascending track record that began in 2014 when the company secured its first international investment-grade rating. ACTIVE RE management is justifiably proud to be included in the select group of global companies rated by AM Best and found to possess the strongest possible level of balance sheet capitalisation under the new BCAR model (Best's capital adequacy ratio).

Over the last five years, ACTIVE RE has reported a gross annual average premium of $110 million. Between 2007 and 2020, the accumulated total amounts to $931 million which testifies to the high-class financial security offered to clients. These results may be attributed to a well-diversified portfolio and a conservative underwriting policy, as well as the appropriate retention of core business, the cession of balances, and accumulations to first-line retro capabilities.

No Stopping

ACTIVE RE’s role as a ‘global, specialised, and innovative’ reinsurer entails, amongst others, a sustained effort to preserve and improve its excellent ratings, capitalisation, and financial strength. This includes continuous technology upgrades and investments in human resources and professional skills development in order to field the best analytical tools and create innovative solutions that add tangible value and benefits to the customer proposition.

The Corona Pandemic has not stopped ACTIVE RE’s global expansion and diversification: the twin engines of corporate growth. During the pandemic, the company has welcomed eight new colleagues from Mexico, Lebanon, Argentina, Russia, and Panama to the team. It has proved possible to preserve positive outcomes by the effective control of the cashflow cycle. Other factors that helped ACTIVE RE navigate the health emergency include a conservative approach to underwriting policies, raising the level of its reserve provisions, and a further diversification of the portfolio.

The company has also managed to check fixed operational expenses by leveraging technology for significant gains in efficiency and expanding distribution channels with the inclusion of MGAs (managing general agents). Despite strict mobility restrictions, ACTIVE RE has continued to conduct business without interruption thanks to an agile and seamless transition of personnel to home offices.

In 2020, as the company celebrates its thirteenth anniversary with pandemic that unhinges the future, ACTIVE RE has proved its resilience and staying power with talent, technology, innovation, and diversification – a potent mix that has strengthened the business and enables it to face the years ahead with confidence. The company is determined to serve its growing global clientele with an unwavering commitment, and unequalled dedication, to operational excellence.

Present developments around the world have forced ACTIVE RE to raise the bar higher still in 2021. The company is challenging its own objectives and working hard to compile a strong agenda that enables it to unlock new and promising markets such as Africa, forge new distribution channels, and establish connections with world class brokers. The company is also determined to raise its already premium AM Best investment grade rating from the current stable outlook to positive. New lines of business to explore and exploit in the year ahead include maritime, liabilities, sureties, special lines for financial institutions, and satellite and aviation.

ACTIVE RE is thankful to its clients for the trust, support, and loyalty shown, and to its strategic allies, distribution channels, retrocessionaires, staff, and employees for being part of an exciting journey which builds on experience and keeps gathering momentum as a result. i

About the Author

[caption id="attachment_17492" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Author: Juan Antonio Niño[/caption]

Juan Antonio Niño Pulgar is the Chairman and CEO of Active Capital Reinsurance, Ltd.


Uranium Production at Spain’s Salamanca Project: SDG Champion Berkeley Energia Will Create Jobs, New Skills and Prosperity

Berkeley Energia Ltd is the owner of the Salamanca Project which will contribute significantly to sustainable recovery following COVID-19.

The Salamanca project, with a production of 4.4 Mlb of Uranium per year, will be one of the top 10 producers worldwide. It is being developed to the highest international standards, and the company's commitment to health, safety and the environment remains a priority. Since 2012, the Company and Salmanca project has been certified in Sustainable Mining (UNE 22,470-80), Environmental Management (ISO 14,001), and more recently in Health and Safety (ISO 45,001) as awarded by AENOR, an independent Spanish government agency.

[caption id="attachment_18609" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Berkeley Energia: The team[/caption]

The company is led by Mr Robert Behets (MD), and the in-country team is a highly experienced group of professionals led by Mr Francisco Bellón (COO). The fundamental role in the project’s development is played by a specific department for Environmental Management and Sustainability led by Mrs Lucía García (Manager of Sustainability), ever mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.

The sustainability strategy is driven by the Programme of Objectives defined in 2020, which strongly contributes to the achievement of the SDGs.

Berkeley is working according to the following key focuses:

Ecodesign: The choice of transfer mining that minimises the footprint of the project, the closed circuit of industrial water and zero discharge, as well as heap leaching (that does not generate tailings in the form of sludge) are some examples of ecodesign.

Eco-Innovation: The re-use of waste-water and sludge from municipalities for industrial use will minimise the flow of water captured from streams and produce materials for the revegetation of the site.

Circular Economy: Concerned with the Life Cycle perspective, the objective is maximum efficiency of resources used. This strategy focuses on responsible consumption, minimising waste, optimising important resources such as water
and energy, as well as reducing CO2 emissions. The objective is to minimise the Environmental Footprint of activities.

Eco-efficiency: Digitisation of the company contributes to the optimisation of resources, which translates into minimising the environmental impact. Likewise, installing LED lighting and implementing Fleet Control for the optimisation of material movement will help protect the environment while improving economic performance.

Sustainable performance: Committed to creating employment in the province of Salamanca, the project will create 500 jobs during construction, and over 1000 direct and indirect jobs in the operational phase – compatible with existing activities (since 2012 the company has allowed neighbours to make temporary use of its land for agricultural activity).

Environmental and sustainability training: Berkeley has set up a training centre for staff and local people to be trained in new skills. An interactive space will be created for environmental education and the dissemination of information regarding the importance of sustainability.

“At Berkeley we are aiming for progress in creating a sustainable future and, therefore, our business strategy is aligned with the sustainability principles defined by the United Nations," reports Lucía García.

Berkeley is committed to continue developing its projects in a safe and sustainable manner.