Author: OBG Admin

Pham Hong Hai-CEO-HSBC Vietnam

Mongolian banks’ strong track record in reaching residents in remote areas

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In some ways, Mongolia can be considered “well-banked” in terms of banking access. It has one of the highest branch per capita ratios in the world. At 69 per 100,000 (according to World Bank 2012 numbers), it has far more banking outlets for each inhabitant than its peers and neighbours: South Korea is at 18; China, 8; and Russia, 38. Additionally, over 80% of Mongolians have bank accounts. In other ways, however, there is poor access to banking. Mongolia’s branch per sq km ratio is very low, at 0.67 (compared with Korea’s 50). Reach Banks themselves have done a good job of reaching far-flung regions.

Daniel Asare-Kyei-CEO-Esoko; Curtis Vanderpuije-CEO-ExpressPay; and Daniel Marfo-General Manager-Zipline Ghana

Under pressure: Several factors have prompted concerns about the sector, but there are signs of improvement

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Banks in Mongolia saw weaker profits in 2015 as one of Asia’s fastest growing economies cools, triggering higher borrowing costs and an increase in non-performing loans (NPLs), while credit rating agencies are also watching the banks’ vulnerability to China’s continued economic slowdown. Recent downgrades in Mongolia’s sovereign credit rating following falls in commodity prices have added more pressure by increasing the cost of borrowing in overseas markets. The devaluation of the tugrik, which has lost about a quarter of its value against the US dollar

APU: Beverages

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The Company Established in 1924, three years after Mongolia’s communist revolution, APU – which comes from the name Arkhi Pivo Undaa, meaning “vodka, beer, drinks” – is the country’s largest beverage producer and its first national brand. APU was partially privatised in 1992 with 51% of its shares retained by the state and 49% floated on the Mongolian Stock Exchange. In 2001 the remainder of the state’s shares were sold in public auction. APU has a market share of around 52% in the Mongolian beer market, down from 55% in 2011, and a market share of 64% in the country’s vodka market, up from 58%

Gobi: Garments & textiles

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The Company Gobi was established in 1981 with Japanese economic and technical assistance to process natural goat and camel hair and produce cashmere and camel wool products from these fibres. The company has since developed into one of the five largest cashmere producers in the world, and currently employees around 1000 people. Gobi was partially privatised in 1993, when 26.5% of its equity was floated on the Mongolian Stock Exchange. In July 2007 the remaining shares were sold for $13.85m to a Japanese consortium, Toshisoke Investment Bank and HS Security. The company currently exports its products to more than 200 companies across 40 countries, where

Mongolian Mining Corporation: Mining

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The Company Mongolian Mining Corporation (MMC) is a coking coal production and export company headquartered in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, and was the first local coking coal producer to be listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company participates in the mining, processing and manufacturing of coal products, and owns and operates an open-pit coking coal mine at the Ukhaa Khudag deposit in the Tavan Tolgoi coal formation and a second mine at the Baruun Naran deposit, both of which are located in the South Gobi region. MMC is also involved in the construction of a coal handling and preparation plant that will help support its

Tavan Tolgoi: Mining

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The Company Separate from Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi, Tavan Tolgoi (TT), or small Tavan Tolgoi, is one of the largest coal mining companies in Mongolia. TT has around 80m tonnes of coking coal reserves and 100m tonnes of high-grade thermal coal reserves. The company operates in Tavan Tolgoi, one of the world’s largest untapped coking and thermal coal deposits, located 267 km from the Chinese border in the Gobi desert in southern Mongolia. According to exploration work conducted under the Soviets, the deposit is estimated at 6.4bn tonnes of resources. TT is set to gain a competitive advantage in 2015, thanks to its location next to

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

Enhanced integration in Nigeria aimed at boosting regional trade

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As the continent’s largest economy, Nigeria plays a central role in West Africa both diplomatically and economically, and nowhere is this more evident than in the influence it exerts within ECOWAS – West Africa’s economic and trade grouping. ECOWAS was founded in 1975 and its charter revised in 1993 with the mission of promoting economic integration through monetary and economic unity and creating a single trading bloc. Today the group is composed of 15 member states, and has expanded its role to include mutual defence assistance measures and non-aggression protocols. Boosting Trade Nigeria has laid out an ambitious plan to increase regional trade, to build

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

Measures to address security issues in Nigeria’s north

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Nigeria’s rich ethnic and religious diversity, coupled with its resource wealth and poor governance, has at times contributed to localised incidences of violence, ranging from an insurgency in the oil-producing Delta region starting in the 1990s to tensions between villages in the country’s “middle belt”, where Muslim and Christian populations regularly mix. Rarely are identity issues the sole factor behind such problems, and just as frequently economic concerns, whether grazing rights or unemployment, play a large a role. Aggresive Approach Addressing such factors is tricky in any country – as similar insurgencies elsewhere in Latin America and Asia have demonstrated – although Nigeria has had

Chaim Zach-Managing Director and CEO-Agric International Technology and Trade; Kabiru Rabiu-Group Executive Director-BUA Group; and Aliyu Abbati Abdulhameed-Managing Director

Questions raised by Nigeria’s recalibrated GDP figures

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The product of two years of work, recalibrated figures for Nigeria’s GDP, which shifted the base year from 1990 to 2010, were published in April 2014. As a result, the economy leapfrogged 10 places in global rankings, with 89% growth in GDP in one stroke. As in any rebasing exercise though, the new figures are a double-edged sword. The updated national accounts reveal previously underestimated dynamic sectors and further raise Nigeria’s profile amongst foreign investors. Yet, they also compound chronic challenges facing Africa’s (now) largest economy, including low fiscal revenue, difficulties in job-creating sectors and persistent poverty. More accurate figures make for better policy-making though,