Within three days of South Korea imposing currency controls, Indonesia (a member of G-20) unveiled several policy measures to regulate potentially destabilizing capital flows. The policy announcement by Indonesia is the latest initiative by emerging markets to tame speculative money which could pose a threat to their economies and financial systems.
On June 16, 2010, Bank Indonesia, country’s central bank, announced the following policy measures:
1. To make short-term investments less attractive, there will be a one-month minimum holding period on Sertifikat Bank Indonesia (SBIs) with effect from July 7,…
On June 13, 2010, South Korea announced a series of currency controls to protect its economy from external shocks. The new currency controls are much wider in scope than foreign exchange liquidity controls announced earlier in 2009.
The imposition of currency controls by the Korean authorities has to be analyzed against the backdrop of the global financial crisis. Despite its strong economic fundamentals, South Korea witnessed sudden and large capital outflows due to deleveraging during the global financial crisis. It has been reported…
The massive investments by private equity firms coupled with an initial public offer (IPO) by SKS Microfinance have ignited a debate about the ethics and objectives of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in India.
The SKS Microfinance, the largest MFI in India with substantial investments by private equity firms and hedge funds, is planning to raise Rs.11000 million ($250 million) through an IPO. According to media reports, the original promoters of SKS Microfinance have sold part of their stake to a hedge fund thereby making a…
By Kavaljit Singh | Jointly Published by Madhyam and FERN | March 2010
With the onset of the global financial crisis and the subsequent squeeze in credit and insurance markets, there is a renewed global demand for export credit and investment insurance products offered by ECAs. Despite previous predictions of the demise of official ECAs, the current global financial crisis has reasserted their position as dominant players in the trade finance markets as they have stepped-in to fill the huge gap left by the private market.
The financial crisis has dramatically changed the…
By Kavaljit Singh and Myriam Vander Stichele | SOMO Paper | September 2009
The European Union (EU) and India are negotiating a free trade agreement (FTA) which encompasses liberalisation and deregulation of financial services. This paper wants
to raise policy issues that run much deeper than the current liberalisation debate and consider who will benefit and who will lose from the FTA. This paper first looks at the performance of EU banks in India, especially as compared to the developmental needs of the un-banked and under-banked regions and groups of people in India.
