e-Wallets & Alternatives

If you are familiar with PayPal, Skrill or Apple Pay, then you know what an e-wallet is; an online application that allows you to deposit, withdraw, send, receive and manage money for financial transactions online. The best e-wallets will provide you with similar services to a bank account, with some restrictions (due to AML concerns) and somewhat less legal protections as they are not true banks.

Why e-Wallets?
They allow people and businesses to transact 24/7 conveniently and instantly, while also providing you with the option of connecting all your payment instruments (such as credit/debit cards, bank accounts, cryptocurrencies and others) on one seamless platform. They are faster, easier and often cheaper than traditional bank transactions.

e-Wallets for Cryptocurrency
Another category of e-wallets has become very popular over the past few years, and these are cryptocurrency e-wallets. They allow you to hold and transfer money instantly using cryptocurrencies, without involving the traditional banking system at all (except when converting to/from fiat currency). This means that they are super cheap and, because of the decentralized nature of blockchain, are also extremely reliable and secure. Bitcoin for example, has a 99.985% uptime which is higher than Apple, Google and other payment services providers.

Drawbacks of e-Wallets & Alternatives
High fees and lack of interoperability are the main drawbacks of e-wallets. For example, you cannot send money from Paypal to Skrill, or vice versa, without jumping through a series of complicated hoops, which are expensive and often insecure. Especially for SMEs, this means needing to maintain and fund multiple wallets and or incur huge fees, while still facing issues with currency conversion and other impediments to seamless international transactions.

This is where global payments platforms such as Exim Wave from Euro Exim Bank, shine. Exim Wave allows SMEs to transact instantly in over 150 global currencies, while being able to send and receive money through any globally recognized e-wallet, including cryptocurrency wallets and traditional wire transfers.

Through Exim Wave and our partnership with RippleNet, we provide SMEs around the world with cheap, frictionless and secure all-in-one global payments solutions, allowing your business to be as agile and adaptable as possible. Enjoy 24/7 access and customer support with no monthly fees or hidden costs, along with the ability to optimize your payment processes according to your needs. Speak to one of our experts to get started today!

For more info: www.euroeximbank.com

What is an Investment Bond?

A bond is essentially a loan contract between two parties. The seller of the bond receives a loan from the buyer of the bond, for the value stated on the bond. The bond issuer (seller) then pays the bondholder (buyer) the interest due on that loan (bond), periodically for the entire duration of the bond. Upon maturation (or expiry) of the bond, the bond issuer will pay back to the bondholder the entirety of the original capital that was lent via the bond (aka the face value).

This makes bonds units of debt issued by an entity, usually a corporation or government, and this debt is non-collateralized. Thus, depending on the bond issuer, this can be a relatively safe or relatively risky investment, with interest (coupon) rates on these bonds compensating for such increased or decreased risk. Bonds are categorized as fixed income securities, as the interest generated periodically will be fixed, though variable rate bonds are also available.

Why Bonds Are Issued?
Companies and governments will issue bonds to raise capital through debt to fund business expansion or expenses. In the case of a business, it may be expansion of reach or capacity, while governments will borrow to fund development and wars. This volume of borrowing is usually significantly more than any bank is able to meet and thus bonds, through public debt markets, provide an excellent route to raise the funds needed.

Bonds Are Thus Tradeable
Once issued and sold to the public or investors, bonds then become tradeable as securities on centralized exchanges or in OTC markets. The price of a bond will be affected by applicable interest rates, with interest rates having an inverse relationship with the price of a bond; i.e., when rates rise, prices fall and vice-versa. Bond prices are also impacted by forces of supply and demand in the market, credit quality of the issuer, time to expiration and coupon rates vs. interest rates.

Important Terms
Here are some important terms you come across when dealing with bonds:

Face Value – This is how much the bond will be worth at maturity and it is also the reference amount used to calculate interest payments. Basically, it is the amount that was originally borrowed via the bond, regardless of the current price of the bond. For example, in the case of a bond with a face value of USD 1,000; whether you buy it at 1,050 or 950, you will still receive only 1,000 at maturity.

Coupon Rate – This is the interest rate the issuer will pay on the bond.

Coupon Date – This is the date(s) on which interest payments are made.

Maturity Date – The date on which the bond will mature.

Issuing Price – Original price the issuer sold the bonds for.

For more info: www.euroeximbank.com

Rising Indian Exports of Light Vessels, Fire Boats & Floating Docks

India’s ship building industry is experiencing significant growth in the export of light vessels, fire boats & floating docks, based on healthy increases in 2019 export figures. These vessels and floating structures come under Commodity Group 8905 in the UN Harmonized System Codes and are defined as, “Light-vessels, fire-floats, dredgers, floating cranes and other vessels, the navigability of which is subsidiary to their main function; floating docks; floating or submersible drilling or production platforms”. They are used the world over for aquatic transport, development and support activities.

Rising Export Figures
The total value of Group 8905 exports from India in 2019 was USD 4.12 billion, which is a 101% increase year-on-year, up from USD 2.03 billion in 2018. This amounts to 1.27% of total exports from India, which is significant. It is clear that this is an industry that is now poised to see further growth, particularly in the atmosphere of a global pandemic, where there is increased reliance on maritime activity to ensure economical, sustainable and frictionless supply chains for many goods.

Top Export Destinations for Indian Group 8905 Ships & Floating Structures
Top destinations for Indian exports in this category are largely concentrated in Asia and some parts of Europe. The top 10 countries include, along with market share and value of trade:

  • Singapore – 49% (2.04 billion US$)
  • United Arab Emirates – 18.1% (749 million US$)
  • Indonesia – 13.8% (571 million US$)
  • Cyprus – 8.36% (345 million US$)
  • Sri Lanka – 4.59% (189 million US$)
  • Malaysia – 3.42% (141 million US$)
  • Bangladesh – 1.07% (44 million US$)
  • Namibia – less than 1% (24 million US$)
  • Norway – less than 1% (14.1 million US$)
  • Mauritius – less than 1% (2.71 million US$)

A Golden Opportunity for India
The fact that Indian exports in this category have enjoyed such healthy growth indicates that confidence in Indian engineering and workmanship is growing and that Indian technology is now price competitive and more accessible. Going forward, Indian companies in this sector can further capitalize on this favourable environment to spur more growth within the industry, while also seeking to enter into new markets.

For more info: www.euroeximbank.com

How to Avoid an Escrow Dispute

Many international trade transactions are completed using an escrow account. This method works to increase trust between two parties who are not familiar with each other. For example, the exporter may request the importer to place a certain amount of money in an escrow account; either the full amount for the shipment or an ‘advance’ amount.

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Automation is Transforming Agriculture

Traditionally, farming evokes images of hard labour and toiling in the sun. While that has not entirely changed, the people (or should we say “things”) doing the toiling and hard labour, are changing rapidly. We are fast moving to an age of automated farming, and not the type of automation you may imagine with big dirty machines and extremely costly infrastructure. Instead, by harnessing the power of AI, big data and existing and emerging technologies, the tech revolution is now coming to farms and its win-win for all.

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Africa Tech Hubs Strengthening Tech Ecosystem

There is a tech boom going on in Africa, like almost everywhere else. However, the growth of the space is incredibly rapid in the continent. Accordingly, in 2019 there were 618 active tech hubs, while in 2018, this figure was only 442. That is a 40% leap forward. Tech hubs are defined as organizations that are currently offering facilities and support for digital and tech entrepreneurs. About a quarter of these are only co-working spaces, however, they play an important social role and serve as a space for innovation and collaboration. Unfortunately, 2020 figures were not available at the time of this writing.

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