Here’s what Goldman is telling big money clients about Bitcoin

Businessam StaffAugust 9, 2017

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is acknowledging that it’s getting harder for institutional investors to ignore the cryptocurrency market with total assets ballooning to $120 billion and Bitcoin soaring more than 200 percent this year. “Whether or not you believe in the merit of investing in cryptocurrencies (you know who you are), real dollars are at […]

Bureaus De Change automation, an imperative for customer verification

Businessam StaffAugust 9, 2017

Bureaus De Change (BDCs), as critical stakeholders in the Foreign Exchange (FOREX) Market, are known for the sale of small volumes of international currencies for Invisibles. Such include Personal Travelling Allowances (PTA), Business Travelling Allowances (BTA), overseas school fees and payment of medical fees abroad. Since the renewed onslaught of currency speculators on the Naira, […]

The great escape: How credit raters ducked reform

Businessam StaffAugust 2, 2017

After the subprime crisis, rules-tightening didn’t hit S&P, Moody’s, and Fitch as hard as the banks. There’s a revealing scene in the film version of Michael Lewis’s The Big Short. It’s 2007; the subprime mortgage crisis has yet to unfold. Two hedge fund managers visit a Standard & Poor’s executive in her office on Water […]

If you must invest in commodities, here is how

Businessam StaffJuly 31, 2017

I recently wrote about how commodities are good for traders, but bad for investors as a useful long-term buy-and-hold financial asset. A broad basket of commodities has given investors lower returns than cash equivalents with higher volatility than stocks. That higher volatility means there will be cyclical swings where commodities see huge gains as well […]

Blockchain use case: Addressing corruption, social problems in Africa

Businessam StaffJuly 31, 2017

Inadequate infrastructure is a major problem faced by Africa and other developing parts of the world. Besides the technical implications that have hindered the infrastructural development of the aforementioned parts of the world, human interference is also key in slowing down their rates of development. Afrikanus Kofi Akosah Adusei, acting Africa community manager of XinFin, […]

The significance of Google’s investment in Africa’s tech industry

Businessam StaffJuly 30, 2017

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that by 2035, Africa’s working age population (15-69) will exceed the rest of the world’s, reaching an estimated 1 billion. With an annual job creation rate of only 3 to 4 million, there is a crucial need to generate more opportunities. To maximise the economic dividends of its rising […]

The world’s biggest tax bill is just the latest blow for gold miner

Businessam StaffJuly 27, 2017

It was supposed to mark a fresh start for the African business of the world’s biggest gold producer. In November 2014, African Barrick Gold Plc would get a new name and new management to distance itself from a troublesome past and disputes with local politicians. Less than three years later, things are worse than ever. […]

Don’t worry about losing your charger, this phone can make calls without a battery

Businessam StaffJuly 17, 2017

Instead of batteries, a new cell phone harvests the few microwatts of power it needs from a different source: ambient radio signals or light. Researchers were also able to make Skype calls using the battery-free phone, demonstrating that the prototype—made of commercial, off-the-shelf components—can receive and transmit speech and communicate with a base station. “We’ve […]

If you never have enough time… then slow down

Businessam StaffJuly 16, 2017

“Busy!” I’m not sure when this became the default reply to “How are you?” But rising numbers of us rattle through our days as inadequate servants of insatiable to-do lists. Most of us can expect 1,000 months on earth, longer than any previous generation. Yet we feel time poor. Even if we get the fabled […]