Remove Errors from Your Credit Line

Your credit score is made with information from the major credit bureaus. These bureaus are made up of employees. Employees are humans and human beings are imperfect. It is entirely possible that there are errors on your credit line. You will knock some points off your score to look at your lines of credit, but if you find errors you will be able to increase your score by correcting them. Derogatory marks represent when you haven’t made a payment on time or when you have made another mistake. When you have errors and derogatory marks, they’ll be negatively impacting your credit. Fix these to improve your credit standing and make your life better.

Use Your Credit Card, Pay it Off Every Month

One of the most effective ways to build credit is to use a credit card carefully. When you are approved for a credit card, you should use it but pay off the totality of what you owe every month. It’s a great way to quickly build credit because you aren’t paying much interest. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on your card, but if you pay the full bill every time you get it you will open doors to new financial opportunities. Never pay the minimum payment. When you are using your credit card carefully, you will be able to improve your life without that much effort.

Make a Large Purchase

Another way to make your life better with lending is to make a large purchase. Few people buy a house without taking out a mortgage. A mortgage loan is dependent upon how much money you can put down and what kind of terms you can get. You can take out home equity refinance if you already have bought the house and are looking to keep more money in your pocket. This uses your house as collateral, making it a secured loan. Another purchase that is made with secured loans is a car. Auto loans are a great way to buy a vehicle if you need one and don’t have the money. The interest rates vary for car loans. Making a large purchase can greatly improve the quality of your life.

Use Personal Loans

Taking out a personal loan can help you in many ways. With a personal loan, you can get some money for bills, necessities, and other expenses. Personal loans can also greatly increase your credit score and open doors to financial opportunities. If you already have good credit, you could get an unsecured loan, which means that you don’t have to use collateral. Pay the money back as soon as possible and you will be able to improve your credit and facilitate your life.

Consolidate Your Debt

If you’re struggling with debt to various creditors, you might want to think about consolidating your debt. Debt consolidation is when you pay off your remaining balances with a loan. This takes various debts and turns them into a single balance with a monthly payment and a single interest rate. Taking out a loan may sound frightening if you have debt, but it could end up helping you.

Life is tough and when you are struggling financially it is even harder. With credit and loans, you can improve your life, but you can also ruin it. It’s important to know what you are getting into and to have a plan to get out of it. When you do, you can really change your life for the better and open new doors. Finance isn’t everything, but pursuing these opportunities will make it all easier.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post How to Improve Your Credit and Lending Ability appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Making a decent profit isn’t easy, but it happens. And when it does, the question becomes, “What are you going to do with it?” The answer could determine the fate of your business, as well as decide your own personal fortunes.

While the best way to spend hard-earned profits varies from one situation to another, the following are six suggestions worth considering:

Reinvest in the business

The most common way business owners spend profits is by reinvesting them into the enterprise. Maybe you want better equipment or a bigger and brighter sign out front. Whatever the specific intent, putting profits back into the business is one of the safest ways to spend the money. That said, frivolous purchases with no real connection to future profit potential should be scrutinized. That employee game room might sound fun, but will it help drive further success? Meanwhile, investing in better equipment will lead to improved operational capacity, driving up your output and growing sales as a result.

Pay off business debt

It takes a lot of capital to start a business. Chances are, you have a decent amount of debt as a result. Rather than keep making the minimum payments each month, consider paying the debt off in full, courtesy of your hard-earned profits. While this may not always be the best way to spend profits, since some forms of debt are more manageable over time than others, loans with exceptionally high interest should be paid off as soon as possible. 

Play the odds

Are you the sole owner of the business? If so, then you can spend the profits however you wish. With this in mind, those with a knack for placing bets should consider using some of the proceeds to play the odds. Whether it’s betting on NFL live lines or trying your luck at the tables, there are plenty of ways to turn a modest profit into significant winnings. With that said, it’s critical that you play responsibly. Limit your play money to a fraction of your total profits in order to limit the damage if you run into bad luck. But if you end up winning big, it’s arguably the best way to spend your business profits.

Purchase property

If the current market is any indicator, real estate remains one of the best investments one can make. Business owners may want to purchase property with their profits, especially if said property can be used to benefit the business going forward. It worked for Walt Disney! But even if the property is bought purely for speculation, there’s a good chance it will churn a profit in the future. With this in mind, consider using business profits to get into real estate.

Spend it on marketing

Marketing is a luxury for businesses just starting out. But when businesses achieve success, marketing becomes an accessible way to maintain that success going forward. With this in mind, business owners should seriously consider investing profits into a marketing campaign. The return on investment has the potential to be a game changer going forward.

Save for the future

Of course, you could always take the safe approach, so to speak, and deposit your profits into a savings account. While it might not be the most prudent move, factoring in inflation, it’s certainly one of the safest places to put your profits. That way, in the event of a future business opportunity, you have the cash on hand to make moves fast. Or, it turns into a nest egg you can use in retirement. Whatever the end game, turning profits into savings is always something to consider.

There’s no guarantee when running a business. Generating a significant profit proves elusive for most enterprises. At best, they break even. But when you manage to make a decent profit, the next step is figuring out what to do with it. If you use it for one of the suggestions offered above, you’ll increase the odds of making the most of your fortune. Good luck!

Julie Steinbeck is a freelance writer from Florida. She enjoys covering topics related to business, finance, and travel.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Best Ways to Spend Hard-Earned Profits appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Strategize

When deciding how you’ll list your home, there are basically two conventional options, you can list it with an agent or sell it yourself. 

If you’re planning to sell your home, one of the more conventional ways is to list it with an agent. The upside to this is that they know just what it takes to sell and do it quickly in the area. They’re able to streamline things such as negotiations, contract prep work, signing, and even closing. That said, you do have to pay them a percentage for this service.

You might also decide to sell your own home. One benefit to this is that you’ll save on what you’d have to pay a real estate agent. You’ll need to know how to price your home, as well as how to negotiate the escrow timeline. You should also consult with an attorney that knows a thing or two about real estate law. They can review any contracts in order to ensure they are properly filled out. 

In addition to the conventional choices, there are also several alternative ways to sell your home fast. One of these is to contact one of the house flipping companies in your area. They typically take homes in any condition and fix them up and sell them again for a profit. You can also sell to an investor, to a developer, or at an auction. The advantage with these is you don’t have to market your property or wait for the perfect buyer to come along.

Declutter and Clean

If you decide to take either of the conventional sales routes, there are several you can do to help a home sell quickly. One thing that you definitely need to do is to make sure the interior is as appealing as possible. This means it needs to be clean and free from clutter. To a potential buyer, a home that is cluttered appears to be too small.

To remedy this situation, hold a garage sale, donate unwanted items to charity and then consider renting a storage unit. Use it to pack away those belongings you want to keep or any large furnishings that make rooms appear to be small, messy, or crowded. 

You might also want to organize your closets. Buyers tend to look for storage space, and this means they’ll definitely be looking in your pantries, storage areas, and closets. Don’t make the mistake of cramming your extra stuff into these spots. Leave ample space in them in order to give potential buyers the impression that there’s plenty of room for their stuff. 

Along with the decluttering, you should perform a deep clean in every space in the house. This includes cleaning the baseboards and door frames, kitchen cabinets, carpets, and tiles. If you’re tight on time, hire a team of professionals for this. 

Make Repairs

You may not have the time to complete major renovations, but it’s still critical to make those minor fixes that may otherwise deter any potential buyers. Patch those spots where paint has cracked or peeled, repair any loose door handles, fix loose tiles, and tighten any faucets that drip. You might also consider painting the interior, swapping out faded or old light fixtures, installing new cabinet hardware, and purchasing newer or matching appliances. 

Selling your home doesn’t need to be difficult. If you take the right steps and prepare, all you’ll need is the right buyer.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Tips to Sell Your Home Quickly appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Samir Ceric is a well-known investor and entrepreneur who has managed various senior executive roles in his professional career. Being from a multi-faceted family, Samir feels privileged to be nurtured with values of philanthropy and charity.

His love for Mathematics urged him to pursue a Master’s with majors in Decision Theory, Statistics, and Probability from Università di Bologna. There, he realised that Mathematics is not just about numbers, “The human behaviour and psychology are based on stats and probability. So, these subjects helped me understand the world, the life, and the society that we live in as rather a different kind of a platform- just a number crunching exercise.”, he explained.

Explaining to Dinis about his multicultural experience during his extensive professional years of investment banking and entrepreneurship, he said, “We should celebrate the similarities, but we learn about the differences in the way that helps us do business, help us open opportunities for each other, help us combine interests, and generate success stories as a result of that.”

Golden words of a veteran

Speaking directly from his experience, Samir told Dinis that the gist of progressing along to the C-level is the ability to spot and create opportunities. He emphasised the essence of inspiring, encouraging, and empowering those around us.

Sharing the key element to being a true leader, he said, “If you can be the leader that recognises the potential lying around when the people are struggling and is able to articulate the challenges to the investment groups and boards at the times when they are also looking to make the decisions, you are doing the right things, you are on the road to success.”

To Dinis’s curiosity as to how he deals with the challenges, Samir had the most pragmatic answer. According to him, no achievement or success comes without lessons learnt. He is a firm believer that ‘There are no failures in life, only lessons learnt.’

“Even if you don’t achieve all the things, you set out to achieve, you will probably achieve so much more if you are ambitious, committed, and showcase the most difficult skill to acquire- patience. If you can draw from difficulties, challenges, and failures, you sharpen yourself, improve your character, and dramatically improve your chances of success.”, he enlightened.

Blocksport: A holistic ecosystem that is one-of-its-kind

As the discussion progressed to more intriguing elements, Dinis congratulated Samir for his achievements in life, especially for his exemplary contribution to his current organisation. Explaining the unique nature of Blocksport, Samir said that it is the only sports tech company in the world that offers a full ecosystem for sporting entities and their fans.

“The fan engagement and the ability to offer fans even better opportunities to engage with their beloved clubs is something that’s been massively overlooked over the past few years, and it’s still today. So, Blocksport has thought of a full ecosystem for all these sporting entities to be able to help them facilitate opportunities in terms of revenue creation, improvement of their sponsorship, activation missions, improvements in fan engagement, and has come up with a very smart thing which is a non-speculative fan token.”, he explained.

He further mentioned to Dinis that the token products offer better utilities and benefits for fans and sporting entities. Also, he added that educating the community is the prime focus of Blocksport. While on one hand the club management is made aware to involve itself responsibly in the crypto space, the fan base is educated about the better content that can be made available at the digitalised platform- never-before experiences, opportunities, and digital assets (NFTs).

Pointing at the element that maintains the sustainability of the project, Samir said, “I think that five years down the line when we look back, we will see that all this buzz that’s been happening in the sports tech industry, majority of the buzz is long gone, and the players like Blocksport are sustained because they held the hierarchy to the utmost importance.”

Explaining this pyramid in the sports industry, he said that it has the fans at the top, the sports management in the middle, and the players like blockchain technology providers at the bottom. “We are here to serve the industry, we are not here to steal the customer data. Our partners own all the data, we are purely the facilitator and the enabler for further engagement and new revenue creation, in order to make their business model succeed.”, he elaborated.

Highlighting the achievements of the project, Samir told Dinis that Blocksport has launched token offerings for two of the sporting clubs already, including Partizan BC and Empoli FC. Bulgarian Football Federation and Kaizan Chiefs Football Club, the biggest franchise in South Africa, have also been signed and are in the planning phase of releasing their fan engagement apps and fan token offerings. Taking cultural differences into account, the company is strategically identifying a variety of markets to penetrate worldwide.

Speaking of Blocksport’s plans to bridge blockchain, 4IR, and the metaverse, Samir told Dinis, “Metaverse is something I’m very excited about and something that Blocksport is very keen to develop in partnerships and corporations at other places.”

Concluding an enlightening interview, Samir told Dinis that he is a supporter of the Blue Ocean business strategy, which believes in incorporation and collaboration. “We will only benefit and win if we truly want to incorporate our partners and also competitors. We will not win even if all we care about is the return of investment towards the investment groups or dragon horses of those companies.”, he shared.

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4IR: AI Blockchain Fintech IoT Reinventing a Nation by Dinis Guarda and Rais Hussin (4irbook.com)

Dinis Guarda citiesabc openbusinesscouncil Series is also available as podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dinis-guarda-citiesabc-openbusinesscouncil-series/id1510330391

On Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1vA8KaDaRpJ0mAfpNbfTSF?si=H_WngL4RSOyu1W7VAmM41w&dl_branch=1

Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5idXp6c3Byb3V0LmNvbS8xMDMyMzg4LnJzcw==

Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/953a5156-823c-4e86-baeb-4fda1128e44c/DINIS-GUARDA-CITIESABC-OPENBUSINESSCOUNCIL-SERIES

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Dinis Guarda Interviews Samir Ceric, COO Of Blocksport & Discusses Digitalisation & Tokenization In the Sports & Industry appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Although you’ve mastered many professional skill sets – such as C++ with its wide variety of paradigms, or five-stage sales funnels – managing all the money you make is a different matter.

Still, a negative cash-flow scenario isn’t necessary. Check out some easy-to-follow suggestions that will help you manage your money better so you can focus on what matters most — running your business.

Apply for Tax Exemptions

Did you know that if you do business outside the United States, you might qualify for an exemption on your expenses there? If, for example, your company has incurred business costs in France, like hotel stays and restaurant meals, then you can claim a French VAT recovery.

When starting a new business or expanding an existing one, you can save money with tax breaks. To qualify for exemptions, keep up to date with relevant new laws and regulations both domestically and internationally.

Create Multiple Streams of Income

Owning a business often involves a feast or famine cycle. At times, you’re swamped with work. Other times, you don’t have any client projects. Creating another source of income can help you manage your finances if you run out of assignments from your existing clientele. Ideally, your second source of income should enhance your primary one.

It is unnecessary to rely on your existing business model for cash flow. If, for example, you’re a web designer, you don’t have to earn all your cash from clients. You can also make money assisting beginner web designers to upgrade their skills by setting up a profitable blog. Your advice may include visual design tips or software recommendations.

A blog is a fantastic way to build an online presence and earn passive income. Here are some tips to generate multiple revenue streams from it:

• Identify affiliate marketing opportunities. Affiliate links let you earn commissions when readers buy products or services linked to your content. For example, you can recommend online courses in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript that you’ve taken.

• Offer courses in web design. You can profit from your knowledge and experience by attracting people interested in your web design hacks. Making and selling online courses is one of the most popular ways bloggers make money online.

• Create and sell an eBook. Describe how you’ve used time management, problem solving, or communication skills to improve your business. Sell your PDF on your blog.

Create a Budget and Stick to It

Budget your work-from-home business to cover all your costs. There are many financial apps that you can use to stay on top of your company’s finances.

You can budget for your home-based business by:

• Tracking expenses with small business management software

• Installing a budgeting app on your phone

• Using online subscription-based accounting software

Track Your Business Expenses

The easiest way to track business expenses is to use an online SaaS-based expense tracker. Create an account on a fiscal management website and input all your expenses. The online program will calculate your monthly, annual, and overtime spending to help you detect when you’re wasting money on unnecessary business expenses.

Manage Your Income and Expenses

Online personal finance services that link to your bank account can help you track your income and expenses. With them, you can budget, save money, and manage your cash flow more efficiently. They also offer features that help you find the best credit card, get tailored investment recommendations, and even shop for business software at the lowest prices.

Apply These Ideas

In today’s fast-paced business world, managing your home-based business finances better will give you financial stability to boost your productivity and creativity. These straightforward ideas will help you keep track of your income and expenditures, pay your bills on time, and manage your home-based finances better with them.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Financial Chaos? Managing Your Own Business Is Easier Than You Think! appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Change is a powerful feature. It reshapes global business and society (as a whole). As the emerging technologies turn human-centric in their nature, financial services are also facing a breakthrough in their conventional mechanisms. This is pivotal in its evolution into a more sustainable and inclusive industry altogether. This evolved version promises to restore public trust, with almost no trade-offs between yielding profits and ensuring positive social impact.

The financial services are undergoing disruptive innovation due to key driving factors- evolving customer expectations, rapidly advancing technologies, and changing landscape of regulatory grounds. Fintech innovations like cryptocurrencies, Big Data, and peer-to-peer lending are grabbing the attention and imagination of investors and customers.

Creating the Future: a Hacker’s Guide to Financial Services is a comprehensive report powered by Finastra FusionFabric.Cloud, where over 50 contributors have shared over a hundred predictions on the financial future. The report by Fintech Talents (by VC Innovations Ltd.) creates a relevant narrative, depicting some of the intriguing insights over what trends are going to redefine the future of our existing financial and banking system.

Path-breaking solutions to carve out better financial systems

ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance) for a sustainable finance

Over the past few years, the ESG criterion is a popular key metric that investors use to evaluate businesses. The parameters that decide the ESG criteria differ as per the industry standards. The environmental criteria could include everything from energy usage to how waste is disposed of, and even the treatment of animals.

On the other hand, the social criteria are primarily related to a company’s conduct with its stakeholders and its business relationships. This includes its treatment of the suppliers, the relationship with the surrounding community and the social impact it makes on them, or even the conditions of its employees.

Governance criteria, however, have traditionally been an afterthought. Nevertheless, its true meaning is changing, being relatively pertaining to environmental and social issues. Everything from executive pay to shareholder rights, or internal controls- are all relevant to investors within this criterion.

Contributors to Fintech- investors, consumers, and incumbents believe that the industry plays a central role in finding unique solutions to the challenges posed by ESG. The EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulations were introduced in March of last year. This was followed by a roadmap published by the Treasury in the month of October that outlined new Sustainability Disclosure Requirements.

This is to continue with the development of the frameworks for appropriate regulation and reporting of ESG in financial services. Gartner reported that 85% of investors considered ESG factors in their investments in 2020. This illustrates the rapidly growing importance investors place on ESG issues.

While sharing his concern about the inadequate upgradation measures, Dinis Guarda, founder of intelligenthq, citiesabc, and openbusinesscouncil says for the report by Fintech Talents, “According to an estimate by OECD and World Bank, an investment of 6.9 trillion will be required by 2030 to meet the ESG targets for climate and development. The current spending on infrastructure is no more than USD 3.4 – 4.4 trillion, lagging significantly behind what is required”.  

The year 2022, for Mohamed Moullouze, Chief Innovation Officer at Attijariwafa Bank, will be the year for FS firms to make a progressive effort in bringing ESG products and services within the market. From green loans and mortgages to carbon tracking capabilities, and sustainable account checking- the innovative financial features are much awaited in the markets.

Embedded Finance ensures Bank as a Service (BaaS) experience for the consumer

Embedded finance is a seamless integration of financial services into a platform that has been functioning non-financial traditionally. For example, a ride-hailing app (like Uber) can accept cashless payments being made by its users on its digital platforms like apps and websites.

Adding the FS feature to business, retail, and corporate customers to a point where they would prefer the consumption of services is BaaS. This makes it convenient for the customers to access these services even at third-party interfaces. Now, to remain relevant, the banks must adapt to this evolving trend by collaborating with service providers, distributors, and enablers. To meet the scalability targets, an open API platform-based approach could be implemented.

Almost every vertical of the finance ecosystem has been impacted by embedded financing. From offering insurance for home appliances at the point of purchase to buying parking through Google Maps- everything is possible with the ingression of embedded finance.

Today, there is virtually no part of the finance ecosystem that hasn’t been impacted by embedded finance. Everything from offering insurance at the point of purchase for home appliances to purchasing street parking through apps like Google Maps has been made possible due to the spread of embedded finance in everyday experiences.

Big players like JP Morgan (who is using some of its $12bn of its tech budget over the next year for developing embedded finance), Goldman Sachs (announcing its own BaaS portal for developers), and Barclays (launched Rise Start-Up Academy for fintech entrepreneurs) are coming up with innovative ways to make the most of the upcoming trend.

“I think more specialisation per underserved industries will see new embedded finance collaboration occur in 2022. Aside from just payments and investments, I think the next evolution ventures into the area of royalties and affiliate compensation solutions that leverage the same concepts for creators” Australia Hoover, III, CEO, CDC Federal credit union.

Open banking and embedded finance, combined, could open up numerous gates for an inclusive ecosystem. This means the lenders and borrowers from all financial backgrounds could be allowed to participate equally on common grounds. With an increasing number of use cases for embedded banking, every business can potentially become a Fintech that provides more frictionless and personalised services.

Decentralised Finance (DeFi)

DeFi is the umbrella term for all blockchain-based financial apps. These apps offer (and perform) conventional banking services over a platform that is mostly based on smart contracts. These smart contracts negate the involvement of any middleman or broker for the culmination of financial transactions.

“Decentralisation is the term of the day – everyone is speaking about it,” says Dinis Guarda, Founder of intelligenthq, citiesabc, and openbusinesscouncil. “DeFi is not just a trend; it is clear that an average person is tired of centralised money supply control; the unprecedented growth of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies proves that.”

It is his belief that the advent of a new financial era with the rising DeFi and Web 3.0 trends offers new avenues for the diverse user base to engage interactively with finance. Speaking specifically in the context, Guarda adds “The current financial system is not working for everyone, it is clear. The communities that have been unable to build generational wealth are looking for a meaningful alternative”, for the report by Fintech Talents.

There have been significant barriers to entry with conventional financial systems. Traditional financial institutions consensually required complex infrastructure, well-trained staff, and intricate IT backend systems to ensure regulatory obligations. DeFi simplifies this system overall. Users can engage themselves in frictionless transactions- borrowing, lending, insurance, liquidity, and compound- all on one platform. DeFi is evolving as the innovation advances, though, there are still many challenges that DeFi will need to address.

Platformification

The accelerated digitalisation of products, services, and processes has altered the traction banks followed for over years. The pandemic itself was enough to project the loss of agility in the traditional banking system.

The API-enabled fintech ecosystem dramatically changed the outlook of financial services. This clearly depicts that a platform provides the required flexibility and innovation while imparting the simplicity of transactions in a most cost-effective manner.

Platformification enables financial institutions to offer a wider range of products and services to their customers using a plug-and-play business model. Collaboration and innovation are at the heart of a successful platformification plan. With a product mix, the traditional financial institutions can benefit from the innovations and embrace APIs. As easy as it is said, achieving these goals could be quite challenging for these institutions.

As more and more customers are getting accustomed to taking advantage of countless services at their fingertips, accessing a wide array of financial tools at a single platform is a preferred mode. This is why despite established brand names, banks operating in traditional ways are unable to support the features that users expect.

“The Banking as a Platform model allows FIs to securely expose their platforms to fintech and developers in the cloud via open APIs. Trusted third parties can access and build on top of existing FSI platforms and FIs can augment their services with third-party offerings and make these new services available to customers through their Super Apps or channels. It’s all about becoming part of their customers’ lifestyle rather than simply being a banking app”, says Özkan Erener, CEO of VeriPark.

Platformification establishes an ecosystem that offers the right products for the clients on a single platform like WeChat. This ensures retention and resilience amongst the customers even in an increasingly competitive environment. Specialised services that particularly target the niche audience create fintech sub-sectors like wealthtech and insurtech that could leverage the financial services for a better future.

Financial services are evolving for a sustainable future

The community of innovators is quirky to be able to see what is coming for the future, not just what is happening now and here. They are able to capture and predict the impact new services and products will make on the evolving needs of the customer. What the stakeholders’ demand is more transparency and accountability from FIs. This requires improved financial performance while meeting regulatory compliance. Nevertheless, the most important attribute for a successful financial process is the ability to articulate the unique culture of the society and amalgamate it with the evolving trends.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post How Innovation And Sustainability Carve The Future Of Financial Services appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

SWIFT banking system is used by more than 11,000 financial institutions and companies across over 200 countries worldwide. Why Is SWIFT The Most Dominant Messaging Network To Facilitate Cross-border Payments?

 SWIFT The Most Dominant Messaging Network

• This payment network allows individuals and businesses to take electronic or card payments from a sender who might be a customer of a different bank.

• SWIFT works by assigning each member institution a unique ID code that identifies the bank name, its country, city, and branch.

• The US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and the European Commission announced that they would remove “selected Russian banks” from the SWIFT messaging system, as a consequence of its invasion of Ukraine.

Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (or SWIFT) is an international system of payments that facilitates a rapid and smooth flow of funds across borders. It was created in Belgium in 1973, and currently links 11,000 banks and financial institutions in more than 200 countries.

The SWIFT network was initially designed to facilitate the communication between treasury and correspondent transactions only. However, the robust nature of the message format (and its design) facilitated huge scalability. This expanded the span of its services gradually to avenues like banks, brokerage institutes and trading houses, securities dealers, asset management companies, clearinghouses, depositories, exchanges, corporate business houses, treasury market participants and service providers, foreign exchange and money brokers, etc. 

After the recent invasion of Ukraine by Russia, SWIFT allies agreed to exclude various Russian banks from the system that aims to affect the country’s banking system. According to them, “this ensures that these banks are disconnected from the international financial system and harm their ability to operate globally”.

How would removing a country from SWIFT impact its economy?

Understanding the SWIFT network

Broadly speaking, SWIFT is a messaging network. Financial institutions use it to securely transmit information (and instructions). The network uses a standardised code system for this. 

SWIFT assigns a unique code to each financial organisation. This code is also known as bank identifier code (BIC), SWIFT code, SWIFT Id, or ISO 9362 code. It consists of either eight or eleven characters.

For example, the 8-character SWIFT code for UniCredit Banca (Italian Bank headquartered in Milan) is UNCRITMM.

First four characters are the institute code (UNCR for UniCredit Banca)

Character five and six are the country code (IT for the country Italy)

Characters seven and eight symbolise the location or city code (MM for Milan)

The last three characters for an 11-character code are optional. Organisations use it to assign codes to individual branches.

 SWIFT The Most Dominant Messaging Network

Accomplishing a transaction with SWIFT

Imagine a customer of Bank of America is a client of its New York branch. Suppose he wants to transfer some amount of funds to a friend whose account is in UniCredit Banca (Milan branch). He would need his friend’s account number and UniCredit Banca’s unique SWIFT code.

BoA sends payment transfer SWIFT messages to UniCredit Banca over the secure SWIFT network. On receiving this message, UniCredit Banca will clear and credit the funds to the friend’s account.

That’s it, simple and fast-track payment. SWIFT is simply a messaging network, and holds no funds or securities, or manages client accounts.

SWIFT affecting the national banking system

On a global level, the SWIFT financial system connects a nation to many others, smoothening the entire financial transaction process. This includes improving opportunities to earn profits from exports and making payments while building bureaucratic relations with exclusive imports.

Reportedly, SWIFT recorded an 11% increase of messages per day during 2021 with respect to 2020, with an average of 42 million messages per day.

In 2020, Russia itself accounted for 1.5 per cent of transactions. For the U.S. and its European allies, cutting Russia out of the SWIFT financial system would clearly mean quashing Russia’s economy immediately and in the long term.

The move could cut Russia off from most international financial transactions, including the profits from oil and gas production, which accounts for more than 40% of the country’s revenue. 

When Iran lost its SWIFT access in 2012 as part of sanctions over its nuclear program, Alexandra Vacroux, Executive Director of The Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University, said, “they lost half of their oil export revenues and 30% of their foreign trade”.

The dominance of the SWIFT system of transactions

Even when there are other message services like Ripple and Fedwire that aid in the global processing of transactional messages, SWIFT retains its dominance in the market. Its constant willingness to innovate, like offering some reporting utilities and data for business intelligence, and consistently adding new message codes to transmit financial transactions are some of the reasons that attribute to its success. 

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Why Is SWIFT The Most Dominant Messaging Network To Facilitate Cross-border Payments? appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

This article is written as a guide for those who are trying to learn the basics of how to acquire money to start a business. Here, we will explain the basics of acquiring enough money and some ways to finance your startup. So, if this is something you would like to learn more about, keep reading to find out how to do it.

1. Use a fast cash loan

The first way to finance your business is through a loan. When you receive a loan, it means that another person will give you money now in exchange for the right to be paid back with interest later on. So, basically, you are borrowing money with an agreement that you will pay them back with interest within a certain amount of time (usually 1-10 years). Loans come in several forms. One type of loan is what’s called “secured.” This simply means that whatever they give you as collateral (e.g., car, boat, or home) can be taken away from them if you fail to pay back the loan. They also vary depending on the area you are in. If you live in Singapore, you would search for fast cash loans in Singapore and find out which services are close to you. This allows you to get a loan faster and easier. Also, there are numerous types of loans that you can use to finance your business. One type is called an SBA loan or a “small business administration” loan. These tend to be easier to obtain for those who have less starting capital, but they also tend to come with higher interest rates.

2. Seek out what is called “angel funding”

When you seek out angel funding, you are asking an individual for a loan. They tend to be a risk-averse group, which means that they will lend you less money than a bank would. However, the amount of money you get from them is usually more because it isn’t spread out amongst other people like with a normal loan. Also, angel funding has been around since the late 1700s and early 1800s. In fact, it was Abraham Lincoln who helped start this type of business financing by giving loans to his friend’s businesses in need. Angel funding is one of the oldest types of business financing. This will give you the advantage of having a lower interest than what is seen with personal loans or home equity lines of credit. When trying to find investors to finance your startup, you will be dealing with people who have a lot of money that they are willing to invest. However, keep in mind that you will be giving up a certain percentage of the company as well as voting rights on how it’s run. So, there is a tradeoff when it comes to finding investors and raising money. 

3. Create a business plan for people to invest in you and your idea

A business plan is one of the things that you need to do in order to get accepted into an incubator or accelerator program. This will ensure that you have all the details worked out for your startup. Your business plan should include what you are going to sell, how much it’s going to cost, how much money you think you can make and how long it will take until the company will start making a profit. You also want to give short-term and long-term goals, so people can see where they are investing their money. There are several types of plans right now, which include marketing plans, product development plans, financial projections, and competitive analysis. This will show people how much money they should give you and what to expect in return. 

4. Find a business partner

A business partner is one of the best ways to get money for your startup. This means that you are not looking for just anyone, but someone who has skills and experiences that will be beneficial to the company. A good example would be if your idea is in line with their expertise, or they have connections that can help you sell goods faster than by yourself. Having a business partner doesn’t mean you need to enter into an agreement where both parties own 50% of the company. It’s possible to have more partners than what people actually think about when it comes to startups. One way of doing this without having too many people involved is through something called “ghost equity.” You give everyone shares in the company, which allows them part ownership even though it will be a small percentage. 

As we saw, there are several ways to get the money that you need when starting up a business. You want to be looking for any sort of financing that will work in your favor because it will be much easier than trying to find someone who has thousands of dollars just sitting around. So, follow our steps and look for the right funding, so you can get started.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post A Comprehensive Guide on Acquiring Enough Money to Finance a Business Venture appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Borrowing money from a bank or credit union isn’t easy. Applicants need to have a solid financial history, a low risk level, and the ability to repay the loan on time. If you’re deficient in any of these areas, acquiring startup funds is challenging. Fortunately, you can take personal finance steps to increase your chances of getting approved for funding. Check out these tips below.

Reduce Your Debts

Trying to apply for a small business loan with high debt will likely result in a rejection. That’s because lenders assess your financial obligations to determine whether you can feasibly repay the loan. If you have too many debts, your monthly income is stretched thin, ultimately decreasing the likelihood of timely repayment.

Whether you have a ton of student loans, medical bills, or credit card accounts, you need to get your debt to income ratio and utilization rate down to 30% or less. You’ll find that there are plenty of suggestions on how to pay off credit card debt and other financial obligations. You can refinance, create a repayment plan, or negotiate with creditors, to name a few.

Clean Up Your Credit

Your credit history is reviewed extensively by banks, credit unions, and private lenders to determine your financial responsibility and risk level. If your credit report is riddled with negative marks and your score is low, you should clean things up before applying for a small business loan.

Start by retrieving all three of your credit reports. Review and dispute any inaccuracies in the report. Next, contact creditors to negotiate affordable repayment plans or settlement amounts. Finally, start making timely monthly payments on your accounts. Within a few months, you should see a significant difference in your history and score.

Build A Nest Egg

If you’re trying to borrow money, why do you need to have a nest egg? Some lenders like to see that you have a plan B in the event that you cannot repay your loan with your monthly income. If you have a few hundred or thousand bucks in a savings account, they know that you can still maintain the payment should something go wrong (slow sales, loss of employment, etc.).

Start setting aside a few bucks every pay cycle in a savings account. If you’d like to increase your cushion, you could always get a side gig to bring in extra cash.

Maintain A Solid Income

While you hope to generate revenue in your business sooner rather than later, it can take time. So, you can’t count on this as a means to repay your loan. Lenders want to know that you have a solid income source that enables you to cover your monthly obligation. Therefore, you don’t want to quit your day job just yet. The longer you’ve been at a place of employment, the more reliable you are viewed by lenders.

You can always increase your income sources by taking on a second job or side gig that doesn’t cost anything to get started. The more avenues you have to bring in cash, the less worried lenders become about your ability to repay the loan.

Getting a small business loan is one of the simplest ways to launch your idea without going bankrupt. Unfortunately, lenders aren’t just going to give you money based on a dream. You have to display yourself as a responsible borrower with a solid financial past, present, and future. By taking the personal finance steps listed above, you can increase your chances of getting the small business loan you need to begin your venture.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Personal Finance Steps To Take Before Applying For A Business Loan appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.

Are you struggling to figure out what specialty to choose withing a college of business? At most schools, they use the term major to indicate the sub-category of BBA (bachelor of business administration) degree students can earn. Of course, every institution has its own set of curricula and terminology, but in general, candidates select from four major areas of study. The first step, even before choosing a major, is figuring out how to finance the four years of higher education.

These days, even public universities are costly, so it makes sense to consider all your financing options. Just like choosing a degree category, consider taking the time to examine all the different ways to pay for college. After dealing with costs, your next challenge is to review the four most common fields of study, which include accounting/finance, management, marketing, and entrepreneurship. Before making the final decision, consider the kinds of jobs available to graduates in each area, as well as which kinds of degrees suit you style of learning and personal career goals.

Covering Expenses

Unless you or your family as already created a college fund that pays all the bills, you’ll be in the same boat as many other prospective students when it comes time to figure out how to pay for schooling. There are numerous methods available, but the most cost-efficient, common sense one is to obtain financing from a private lender. No matter your current financial situation, you can apply for a private educational loan online and get a response within a couple of days. Additionally, private lenders offer repayment flexibility for new graduates that makes sense for people of all income levels and in any career field.

Accounting/Finance

If you’re good at math, enjoy working with numbers, like the concept of managing money, and are otherwise a logical thinker, then a career in finance or accounting is an ideal choice. Accountants who go on to earn the CPA (certified public accountant) designation can choose from a virtually endless menu of jobs, including tax auditing, corporate finance, long-term financial planning, and business consulting. Finance majors tend to veer away from taxation, auditing, and balance sheets. Instead, they focus more in investments, profit-making strategies, and stock market trading. The comparable designation to the CPA for these professionals is the CFP, certified financial planner.

Marketing and Management

If you thrive on writing compelling ad copy, planning promotional campaigns, and finding new ways to sell products and services, marketing is the niche that will suit your skills. If you lean more toward the managerial and operations side of the planning field, and are more concerned about how to motivate, hire, and retain the very best employees, then a management specialty will likely be the best choice.

Entrepreneurship

Not all schools offer a specific major for prospective entrepreneurs, but more are adding the category every year. The focus in on a mixture of marketing, management, accounting, finance, and unique skills that come into play when starting a small company from scratch. When you earn a bachelor’s degree with an entrepreneurial emphasis, you’ll be ready to launch a startup business as soon as you graduate.

Hernaldo Turrillo

Hernaldo Turrillo is a writer and author specialised in innovation, AI, DLT, SMEs, trading, investing and new trends in technology and business. He has been working for ztudium group since 2017. He is the editor of openbusinesscouncil.org, tradersdna.com, hedgethink.com, and writes regularly for intelligenthq.com, socialmediacouncil.eu. Hernaldo was born in Spain and finally settled in London, United Kingdom, after a few years of personal growth. Hernaldo finished his Journalism bachelor degree in the University of Seville, Spain, and began working as reporter in the newspaper, Europa Sur, writing about Politics and Society. He also worked as community manager and marketing advisor in Los Barrios, Spain. Innovation, technology, politics and economy are his main interests, with special focus on new trends and ethical projects. He enjoys finding himself getting lost in words, explaining what he understands from the world and helping others. Besides a journalist, he is also a thinker and proactive in digital transformation strategies. Knowledge and ideas have no limits.

The post Business Degrees That Pay for Themselves appeared first on OpenBusinessCouncil Directory.