Sheikh Ahmad Duaij Jaber Al Sabah-Chairman-Commercial Bank of Kuwait

Talk of the town: Increased demand for data stimulates telecoms activities and brings a new mobile operator to the market

  The Omani telecoms industry is among the most developed in the region in terms of the services provided and the competitiveness of the market. The mobile penetration rate increased to 143% in June 2019, up from 141.3% in 2018. Meanwhile, the number of fixedline subscriptions grew to 448,189 in the same period, marking a penetration rate of 72%. Currently, there are 15 licensed telecoms providers in the country classified across three categories. The first includes the country’s four main operators, Omantel, Ooredoo Oman, Awasr

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

Weathering the storm: The countries of Asia Pacific must work to equip themselves to handle the effects of climate change

  Recent years have seen the issue of climate change and its potential ecological and economic effects move more clearly into the spotlight. It is now widely accepted that the planet cannot sustain current high-carbon industrial and consumer behaviours. With scientific knowledge on the subject now better informed and more reliable, economic models used to forecast the fiscal impacts of a steadily destabilising environment are also more sophisticated. The result is consensus that climate change will have major economic and social impacts; the uncertainty now

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George Richani-CEO-Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait

Forward planning: National blueprint outlines sustainable development projects through public-private partnerships

  Among its provisions, the Myanmar Sustainable Development Plan (MSDP) 2018-30 – the country’s long-term development strategy – highlights the need for major reforms in the way the nation trades. Noting that years of isolation from the international community has led to a deterioration in the country’s trading capacity, the MSDP outlines a plan to boost exports and facilitate investment flows. The MSDP states that, “Myanmar will review its institutional and legal framework governing domestic and international trade, and pursue a range of policies to

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

In the market: Capital markets are anticipated to expand as reforms open them up to foreign and local investors

  Now occupying the impressive downtown premises of the former central bank, the Yangon Stock Exchange (YSX) celebrated its third year of business in March 2019. However, as one of the region’s youngest stock exchanges, the YSX is still in the process of catching up to its regional peers. The YSX is seeking to establish a wider international profile, as foreign investment and international traders will be essential to the stock exchange’s expansion. In July 2019 regulators announced further liberalisation to this end, allowing foreign

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Éric N’guessan-Managing Partner-EY Côte d’Ivoire

Foreign participation: Liberalisation continues in a bid to boost credit growth

  As part of ongoing efforts to liberalise the financial services sector and increase credit to the private sector, the Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) has introduced regulations to facilitate foreign investment in domestic lenders. In January 2019 the CBM issued Regulation No. 1 of 2019, allowing foreign banks and financial institutions to hold equity of up to 35% in local banks, starting in January 2020. To obtain approval from the CBM, a domestic lender will have to provide a copy of the agreement with the overseas institution along with the proposed equity ratio. This change is expected to enhance competition, improve service quality and

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George Richani-CEO-Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait

Greater inclusion: Increased access to microfinance has far-reaching effects

  In a country where 70% of the population work in rural communities, and around a quarter of all citizens live below the poverty line, microfinance is one of the few available sources for personal and business funding. Myanmar’s microfinance institutions (MFIs) are thus a vital part of efforts to boost access to credit. Indicators of financial inclusion have historically been low in the country. According to the Making Access Possible (MAP) initiative of the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), in 2014 only 6% of adults had more than one financial product, 30% used formal financial services and 5% had a bank account. As a

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Pham Hong Hai-CEO-HSBC Vietnam

Standard procedure: Countries across Asia Pacific roll out financial reporting regulations based on an international framework

  The banks of Asia Pacific have been subject to successive waves of regulatory changes in recent years. Remaining compliant with strengthened anti-money laundering rules, know-your-customer guidelines and a raft of sustainability and transparency initiatives proved to be a resource-consuming process for the region’s lending institutions. However, one regulatory shift in particular has monopolised the attention of banks’ management and audit committees. The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 9 replaced the International Accounting Standards 39 (IAS 39) framework, which for more than a decade was

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

Tech revolution: Mobile banking is prioritised under financial inclusion strategy

  Mobile banking has been a key factor in the recent improvement of Myanmar’s financial inclusion rates. Following the liberalisation of the telecoms industry in 2014, the country has seen a surge in mobile phone ownership, partly as a result of cheaper data and better network competition, making it an effective channel for financial services and products. The country’s electronic payments gateways and regulations have been playing catch up with this development, at times struggling to keep pace with the services offered by a range of new financial technology start-ups, as well as with innovations in existing banking and microfinance entities. Mobile Myanmar ICT market

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

International resources: Foreign investment brings new capital and training opportunities

  November 2019 saw five foreign life insurance companies gain licences to operate fully owned subsidiaries in Myanmar, heralding the start of a new chapter in the industry’s history. At the same time six joint ventures between foreign and local insurers were also licensed, with this, too, set to have a strong impact on the dynamism of the sector. The opening up of the market to these foreign firms promises not only greater investment and competition in the sector, but also an injection of overseas expertise. Nevertheless, more remains to be done for the sector to fully benefit from international investment, including the reform of

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George Richani-CEO-Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait

Future rollout: Preparations continue apace ahead of 5G deployment

  Myanmar has enjoyed one of the most rapid and successful deployments of telecommunications infrastructure around the world, in part due to a regulatory framework that allows multiple operators to share the use of cell towers. This has ensured building and maintaining infrastructure is cost effective for the companies involved, as they can on-board additional tower tenants at close to zero cost. Lay of the Land Investment in telecoms infrastructure continues apace. In mid-2018 there were more than 14,500 towers in Myanmar, with some estimates putting the figure at 20,000. A further 8000-9000 towers may be required to meet demand for smartphone data services. Tower

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