Cellular Credit Cards Released in India
September 21, 2005 | Category: Credit Cards
Visa, Airtel, and Indian financial services organization, ICICI Bank have teamed up to develop a mobile phone that has the ability to act as a credit card. The new product, known as mChq, is a mobile-to-mobile payment option that allows customers of Airtel and ICICI Bank Visa cardholders to use their cell phones to pay for purchases.
The payment process involves the merchant sending a text message bill to the customer’s cell phone. The purchaser then has 60 seconds to approve the transaction using their handset. Once this is done, the bank is automatically instructed to transfer the money, and both parties receive electronic receipts on their mobile devices.
For now, ICICI Bank is the only bank to offer this service, and it is currently only available at about 100 retail outlets in major Indian cities. If this technology works well, however, it is something that we will likely see popping up in many more markets, around the world.
US Money Market Fund Assets on the Rise
September 16, 2005 | Category: Investing
According to Thursday’s report from the Investment Company Institute, assets of US retail money market mutual funds rose by over $805 million over the last week, to $818.33 billion.
This gain is despite the fact that tax-exempt fund assets fell by $338 million, as this loss was made up for by a $1.14 billion increase in taxable funds.
The overall assets of money market funds increased by $4.8 billion to $1.967 trillion for the week.
Palo Alto Releases New Business Planning Software
September 12, 2005 | Category: Financial Planning
Palo Alto Software has just announced the release of a new version of its flagship business planning programs. The new programs will be called Business Plan Pro 2006 and Business Plan Pro 2006 PREMIER. They will include a variety of new features, including options to calculate detailed exit strategy, as well as financial risks and contingencies. 500 sample business plans will also be included, making it easier for first time users to find examples similar to their specific needs.
Although not all business owners need this kind of software, it is definitely an excellent tool for beginners and those who have trouble forming a plan from scratch. Using an application like Business Plan Pro can make it a lot easier for many business owners to articulate their best ideas into an impressive business plan, which is the key to obtaining good deals on business loans.
Hurricane Katrina May Impact up to 360,000 Real Estate Loans
September 8, 2005 | Category: Loans, Insurance
The Mortgage Bankers Association believes that as many as 360,000 mortgages and other real estate loans, valued at up to $48 billion, may be either directly or indirectly affected by Hurricane Katrina.
Many of the people living in areas affected by the hurricane may be unable to make their mortgage payments on time, which has resulted in many fears about being charged hefty late fees by lenders.
Fortunately, lenders have now addressed these fears. Although policies differ from company to company, most mortgage bankers have now agreed to offer grace periods to those who live in the affected areas. This means that most of those living in the hurricane-ravaged regions will not be charged late fees this month, and their credit ratings will not be damaged by failure to pay on time
In addition to this, mortgage bankers will assist borrowers in making contact with their home insurance companies to make any necessary claims resulting from the storm.
Russian Private Equity Investment Expected to Continue Growing
September 7, 2005 | Category: Investing
The amount of private equity investing going on in Russia will continue to grow in 2006, said experts on Wednesday. Kirill Dmitriyev, the managing director of Delta Private Equity Partners believes that the monetary amount invested in private equity could as much as double by the end of next year.
Consumer goods companies are expected to continue attracting the greatest interest, however, other sectors are also likely to experience growth.
The Russian science and technology industry remains largely untapped, due to its high perceived risk level. Start-ups in this industry have had a lot of trouble getting funding over the past few years, due to a lack of venture capital from institutional investors who are likely to invest in lower risk projects.
There is no doubt that the Russia’s science and technology sector has a lot of potential, but convincing investors that this potential can make them money is the true challenge.
Patricia Cloherty, from Delta Private Equity Partners believes that the industry will improve over the coming years, just as the consumer goods sector has. “There is nowhere to go but up,” she was quoted as saying.