Our Scans · (FS.1.03) Private Banking & Wealth Management · Weekly Summary

• The World Bank further identified tourism and private consumption as the pivotal factors propelling growth, with tourist arrivals expected to reach 90% of pre-pandemic levels in 2024. Thaiger
• The Bank of England said it is taking a deeper look at risks from the opaque private equity sector, and why valuations of Britain's biggest banks are subdued compared with their international rivals. The Guardian
• The creation of a wealth technology solution that provides digital tools and software solutions in one integrated platform and is customized for the Middle East, will greatly enhance the ability of regional wealth managers to grow in a scalable and client-centric way. FinExtra
• The financial markets and private sector economists expect the Reserve Bank to start cutting interest rates later in 2024. The Conversation
• Buoyed by strong private-sector investment and a pick-up in services spending, the Q3 GDP growth was even higher than the projections of the Reserve Bank of India which projected real GDP growth for FY24 at 7% with Q3 at 6.5% and Q4 at 6%. Mint
• Many finance leaders have an opportunity to improve their tax processes - and enhance their business' performance - by implementing more technology and a strategic tax plan. Grant Thornton
• In 2024, wealth management firms are expected to leverage personalization strategies to attract affluent investors and expand their client base. Fintech Singapore
• The World Bank's position on the use of disaster insurance and risk transfer backed by private capital markets and reinsurance capacity has been building over the last few years. Artemis.bm
• The affluent population and investable income will grow in 2024, intensifying competition among banks, wealth management firms and WealthTechs. //www.investmentweek.co.uk/
• 76% of investors surveyed said they expect private credit firms to lend at a more rapid clip than banks in the next two years. Institutional Investor
• Banks will focus on leveraging Wealth Management Connect 2.0 to enhance their digital wealth agenda and ensure a seamless end-to-end customer journey, from onboarding to the sale of wealth management products. KPMG
• The Reserve Bank of India has updated its bank holiday matrix, which now states that all banks (including PSU and private banks) in Uttar Pradesh will be closed for the full day. ETBFSI.com
• Interest costs will continue to soak up nearly half of net tax revenues, while the Reserve Bank of India may have a tough time managing interest rates as the private investment cycle strengthens further. Mint
• With growing investable wealth in India, banks and wealth management firms have a huge opportunity for growth. News18
• For the US and its partners, including development banks and some of the financial sector's biggest private institutions, success will give new credibility to their environmental commitments and burnish their influence in the Global South. Phys Org
• To help bolster countries' resilience and spur the private sector to act, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) plans to offer clauses in sovereign loans that allow automatic debt reprofiling following a disaster. Insurance Journal
• As banks look to reduce their carbon footprint, they are increasingly moving operations to the public cloud, with over half of respondents agreeing that banks will no longer own any private data centers in the next five years. The Fintech Times
• Trade finance can take the form of credit or guarantees, and is an important tool for the World Bank as it helps to de-risk financing to developing countries, which are often penalised by higher than normal interest rates when they try to raise finance privately. The Guardian
• Looking ahead to 2024, Global SWF expects assets for all state-owned investors - including sovereign wealth funds, central banks and pension funds - to surpass a previous peak in 2021 of $50.8 trillion in assets under management as they take account of the paper gains of the past year. The Daily Star
• Overall, the average S&P 500 target for the investment banks, research firms, and wealth managers that Fortune collected data from was 4,910, implying meager returns of just 3% for investors in 2024 after 2023's over 24% surge. Fortune
• KKR expects to see continued demand growth in ABF and sees private capital playing a critical role as banks are increasingly pulling back from consumer and commercial lending and divesting non-core loan portfolios. Seeking Alpha

Last updated: 18 April 2024