Category Archives: Money

Money

Bonds, Business, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Investment, Money, Stocks, Trading

TOMEX Announces the Launch of Long-Term Bond Futures for Clients

Tokyo Mercantile Exchange, one of the industry’s biggest and most diverse futures marketplace recently announced the launch of long-term futures beginning this year. These contracts will be part of and subject to the regulations and laws of the industry authorities. It will also be approved pending the board’s ruling.

“The long-term futures has now become part of TOMEX’s product listing as part of our response to overwhelming customer demands and requests for a contract that is similar to this one that we have launched,” said Tokubey Ito, TOMEX Director and Vice President of Consumer Affairs. “This new contract will complement our remaining products and allow us to grow the range of services as well as trading opportunities for industry participants and our clientele.”

Derivatives that are redeemable for the new long-term futures contracts will consist of cash bonds with at least 25 years of remaining term to maturity. By comparing them, redeemable derivatives for the existing bonds contract are bonds with remaining terms to maturity of 15 years or more. There is a rather vast difference between the two that clients will be able to choose depending on what they prefer. The recent policy shift towards greater issuance of long-term bonds has enabled Tokyo Mercantile Exchange to launch this contract targeted at this important part of the yield curve.

In all other aspects the specifications for the bond futures have seen close resemblance with those that are in the existing treasury bond contract. They are similar in terms of their value, low tick size, contract critical dates, and coupon. Initially, TOMEX will list three delivery months in the bond futures, beginning with mid 2012. There will be no notable differences or adjustments to the currently listed treasury bond futures contract specifications and requirements. Additional information about futures, other trading products and TOMEX’s other interests can be found at www.tomex.jp.

Via EPR Network
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Payday Express Supports Make-A-Wish for their 25th Anniversary

Consumer finance provider Payday Express chooses a different charity to support each month, and this December it dedicated efforts to raising money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Make-A-Wish Foundation grants magical wishes to children and young people fighting life-threatening illnesses (make-a-wish.org.uk), and the charity is this year celebrating its 25th anniversary.

Sarah Carroll, operations manager at the fast payday loans company, said: “Staff at Payday Express are always great at pulling together to support good causes and this December has been no exception.”

Throughout December, Payday Express organised a number of different ways for employees to contribute to the charity, including a Christmas party, a programme which allows staff to pay a pound to dress down on Fridays, and collection points for loose change.

Employees at the company, which provides cash loans until payday, contributed £5 towards the Christmas party, which gave them entry to the venue and disco, free food and drink, and chips for the casino tables. Staff were also able to buy additional £5 vouchers for casino chips on the night. All of the money raised on the night – £435 – will be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Caroll added: “The staff were more than happy to link their Christmas party fun with helping to raise money for the fantastic Make-A-Wish charity, to be able to bring some joy to children who need a bit of cheer in their lives.”

Other money raised from dress-down Fridays and collection pots will be collected and donated to the charity at the end of the month.

Payday Express administrator Kristina Winch said: “At Payday Express we are dedicated to helping important causes.

“We aim to involve ourselves as much as possible in areas where we can benefit the less fortunate.”

Via EPR Network
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Payday Express Welcomes New Head Of Collections

Payday loans company Payday Express has appointed Andy Davidson as its new head of collections and both the company and Andy have high hopes for the future.

Andy joined Payday Express’s senior management team on November 9 and brings a wealth of experience, having been head of collections at Cabot Financial for the past three years.

While at Cabot Financial he managed more than 200 staff and achieved year on year collection performance improvements. Before that Andy worked at CitiGroup for more than 20 years, starting as assistant branch manager and leaving the company as senior district manager.

Andy said: “I’m really enthusiastic about joining Payday Express. It’s an exciting time for the company, as the online payday lending industry continues to grow. Joining the already strong leadership team at this time can only be a good thing.”

Payday Express has seen improvements in performance by the collections department in recent months, and Andy aims to achieve continual performance improvements. He will grow the team and help to develop employee talent, as well as oversee the implementation of new technologies to improve efficiency within the department.

Chris Gillard, who worked with Andy at CitiGroup and is now the business development manager at Payday Express, said: “It’s exciting that Andy is joining our management team.

“He is an enthusiastic and dedicated head of collections, whose management skills and experience will be extremely valuable and will help us to sustain business success.”

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Payday Express Staff Rally Round After Cristian’s Bike-Crash Ordeal

Staff at payday loans company Payday Express have shown unprecedented support for well-respected colleague Cristian Brownlee by fundraising after he was seriously injured in a motorbike crash.

Cristian suffered terrible injuries, including broken ribs, a punctured lung and broken sternum, as well as fracturing six vertebrae while riding to work on Friday October 21.

Employees at Payday Express have always been very fundraising-focused. They donate the proceeds of their weekly Dress Down Friday collections to different charities each month and get involved in events such as Children in Need and Movember. This time, with a cause closer to home, they upped the ante to help Cristian and his family during his lengthy hospital recovery.

Led by Adam Kenton and Laura Kent, who arranged bake sales and fancy dress days, as well as asking for donations, staff raised £652. This was matched by the company, bringing the total to £1,304.

As part of the fundraising efforts, employees auctioned some of their possessions, such as a Swarovski necklace, a PS2 slimline and an Only Fools and Horses DVD box set. Lunch dates with staff members, Lauren Pettit and Louise Dixon, were also auctioned.

“I have been telling Cristian all about what’s been going on in the office each time I visit him. I’ve also shown him photos of our dress up day,” said Adam.

“It feels good to be part of such a caring and supportive team.”

Cristian, who has always been a high-achieving Payday Express team member, said:
“Both myself and the nurses cannot believe the amount of support received from my colleagues.

“This has all been a pretty painful experience, both physically and emotionally, but they have really helped to take away the pain. I can’t wait to get out of here and start processing some loans!”

Via EPR Network
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Provident Continues to Maintain a Presence in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes British Airways

Provident is continuing to carve out a reputation as one of the world’s most responsible financial companies by once again being included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes.

The DJSI World tracks the performance of the top 10% of the 2500 largest companies in the Dow Jones Global Total Stock Market Index that lead the field in terms of sustainability, with the DJSI Europe monitoring the sustainability performance of the top 20% of the 600 largest European companies.

For the seventh successive year, Provident has been selected for inclusion in both the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World) and Dow Jones Sustainability Europe Index (DJSI Europe).

The Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes were launched in 1999 as the first global sustainability benchmarks. The Indexes are based on an internationally recognised leading Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) methodology which means that they include only companies that fulfil certain sustainability criteria which is better than the majority of their peers.

Provident’s overall score in the 2011 Indexes was 63% (2010: 59%) – 23% points higher than the average overall score of the other companies in the financial services sector – with ‘best in class’ scores for environmental monitoring and reporting, and scores of over 80% in respect of a range of other CR issues, including anti-crime policy/measures, stakeholder engagement and social reporting.

Rob Lawson, Corporate Responsibility manager at Provident Financial said: “We are delighted to continue to be included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes and remain committed to disclosing information on our corporate responsibility (CR) performance to our stakeholders.”

Rob Lawson concluded: “Our continued inclusion in the Indexes is no mean feat, and is testament to the progress we’ve made over the past seven years in embedding our CR programme throughout our business. It also endorses our approach to CR management and shows that we compare favourably to other global companies.”

Via EPR Network
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Checking & Savings, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Investment, IRA, Money, Personal Finance, Retirement

Standard Life Teams Up With Legacy Asset Systems To Support Asset Migration To Standard Life Wrap

Standard Life, a market leading platform provider, has teamed up with Legacy Asset Systems to support advisers migrating assets to the Standard Life Wrap. With the agreement, preferential terms will be offered to Standard Life Wrap firms signing up to the services offered by Legacy Asset Systems. Legacy Asset Systems offer two services: the Discovery Report, a ‘smart search’ of existing client data, and the Asset Migration Service, a combination of systems and services to successfully complete an asset migration project.

The benefits of the Legacy Asset Systems offering are:
– A cost effective approach and opportunity for adviser firms to create an additional profit centre
– Develops a fully compliant and automated end to end audit trail
– Reduces capacity constraints and frees resource to focus on added value services
– Delivers a robust and scalable process, systems and controls
– Supports a consolidation approach by enabling review of whole portfolio and individual products
– Develops an income stream on assets which have been generating little or no income

Chris Divito, Head of Platform Distribution at Standard Life, said: “Advisers have been telling us that analysing and migrating clients legacy assets is a real challenge, particularly from a compliance and capacity point of view. So we have teamed up with Legacy Asset Systems to provide a solution. They have provided a cost effective solution which not only ‘makes it happen’, but also reduces costs and generates income for the business.”

Kevin Jow, Director at Russell Ulyatt has recently used Legacy Asset Systems to help migrate client business to the Standard Life Wrap. He said: “We were keen to start tackling the next segment of our client bank and we’re focused on completing the collation and analysis of client information as cost effectively as possible. Legacy Asset Systems provided the ideal solution in that they took on all of the manual effort of contacting providers, provided accurate cost comparisons and a complete audit trail. In addition to that, the Discovery Report enabled us to take a very detailed view of our client bank and identified some great opportunities. We’ve been able to significantly increase our speed of client transfer and subsequent income streams.

“Using Legacy Asset Systems has freed up so much of our time, speeded up the whole process and just let me get on with the day job – spending more time with my clients.”

Via EPR Network
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Saxo Bank And ICAP Shipping Involved In World’s First Electronic Container Freight Swap Settled In USD

Saxo Bank, the trading and investment specialist, and ICAP Shipping, the shipping arm of ICAP plc, announced on Thursday that they were involved in the execution of the world’s first electronic, voice-assisted trade of a container freight swap agreement settled in US dollars.

The counterparties to the trade were Saxo Bank in Denmark as the buyer and a Netherlands-based trading house as the seller. ICAP Shipping was the broker of the trade. The container freight swap agreement was executed on ICAP’s Webtrader platform, with manual input from ICAP Shipping brokers and cleared by LCH.Clearnet.

The trade was executed by rugby star Lawrence Dallaglio during ICAP’s 19th annual Charity Day. On ICAP Charity, all ICAP revenues are donated to a selection of 200 charities and celebrity patrons are invited to help close deals. Mr. Dallaglio attended ICAP Charity Day in support of Cancer Research and Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Container freight swap agreements lock in the freight exposure for standard containers transported from Asia to Europe, Mediterranean countries and the United States. Cash flow for this sort of freight exposure has been unpredictable for retailers, importers and logistic companies in the past and the concept of pricing container freight against indices and using swap agreements to manage the risk has attracted many industry participants over the last year. Screen execution with the added surety of voice broker assistance was a key requirement of customers.

Henry Liddell, CEO ICAP Shipping said: “The execution of the world’s first electronic container freight swap agreement is an important milestone in the on-going development of the container swaps market. This youngest segment in the shipping industry has seen a rapid growth over the last decade and will become an even more important risk management tool in the current economic environment. Container swaps are a hedging tool for the container industry to manage the price volatility of the physical market.”

Johan Gade, Freight & OTC Derivatives, Saxo Bank said: “We fully support electronic freight derivatives trading and believe that going forward container swaps will be a valuable addition to the electronic dry bulk and tanker freight derivatives offering we are about to launch.”

Via EPR Network
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Confused.com Find Brits Are A Nation Of DIY Lovers But Pay The Price In Home Insurance Claims

Confused.com has revealed that fifty-three per cent of homeowners are doing their own home improvements due to an increase in living costs. However, many of these projects are ending in disaster, with 11 per cent of those who ‘have a go’ then claiming on their home insurance.

A recent study by the Institute of Fiscal Studies warned that households are looking at a 3.8 per cent fall in earnings with data for the first 11 months of 2010-11, marking the largest fall in disposable income since 1981. As a consequence of this strain on income, homeowners in the UK are turning their hand to DIY.

Aside from money issues, the Confused.com survey also showed that thirty-nine per cent of Brits claim to have undertaken home improvement work after watching DIY programs; their favourite being Grand Designs (22 per cent).

Homeowners in Scotland and the West Midlands are most likely to do their own home improvements, with 23 per cent claiming to do DIY, compared with the North East where only 11 per cent do DIY.

Fifty per cent of homeowners in Northern Ireland also claimed to have done a successful job, compared with 26 per cent of homeowners in Wales who said their inspirational home improvements looked dreadful and out of this 26% of Welsh homeowners, if money were no object, then 67 per cent would pay someone to do their DIY.

Of all those UK homeowners surveyed, 31 per cent of these budding Kevin McClouds admitted to having DIY mishaps, and of these 31% homeowners, most disasters were taking place in households in Scotland (12 per cent) and Wales (12 per cent) resulting in home insurance claims.

Despite tackling DIY to save money, 6 per cent of Scottish homeowners have paid over £1,000 in the past 24 months rectifying their DIY disasters. A further15 per cent of Scottish homeowners have paid £200 or more in the same period, whereas those living in Northern Ireland paid out over £350 in the last two years to fix botched DIY. In Wales, 13 per cent said they have paid out £300 fixing bad DIY jobs in the last two years.

Mark Gabriel, Confused.com Home Insurance spokesman, said: “With the economy so fragile, people’s finances are under more pressure and things aren’t getting any easier particularly with the rise in petrol prices and food prices. Therefore people have turned to ways of saving money and have been inspired by home improvement programs.

“However it is important to remember that television often makes tasks look easier than they are. In fact, some home insurance policies stipulate that only professionally accredited tradesmen should carry out certain work, so it is worth checking that you are not inadvertently rendering your insurance invalid by failing to read the small print.

“It is important to look at your home insurance policy to check that you are fully covered, should things go wrong, and to check their policy details carefully. It is also necessary to take extra safety precautions, as DIY disasters can cause accidents.”

For more information on home insurance, flat insurance and staying safe while DIYing, visit Confused.com.

Via EPR Network
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Saxo Bank Comments On Eurozone Sitation Ahead Of EU Leaders Summit

Saxo Bank has released a new macro view video with Steen Jakobsen, Chief Economist, commenting on the situation for the Eurozone ahead of the EU leaders’ summit and in light of the major global central banks’ intervention to boost liquidity. The concerted central bank action has effectively resulted in the US printing money for Europe seeing as the European Central Bank will not, says Steen, adding that it’s like flying in a jet with one engine only – hardly a safe scenario.

The surprising joint intervention by the world’s largest central banks to make it cheaper for financial institutions outside America to borrow dollars has had a positive effect on risk sentiment, but is not expected to last long. For an extended rally or to just sustain gains something more needs to be put on the table, like better fundamentals, plus structural changes and real commitments to toing the line in Eurozone nations, says Steen. The reason being that the severe solvency issues in Europe and deep rooted growth problems are still very much plaguing outlooks.

One could argue that with the central banks having joined forces the pressure is now more so on European politicians to implement lasting austerity and commit to cleaning up their backyards and follow standard rules. The question is whether EU leaders will be able to set things straight once and for all when they meet for the seventeenth time to solve the issues. Steen remains doubtful.

In the meantime, the central bank action has resulted in the cost of emergency dollar funding being cheaper for European banks than US banks. Therefore there is increased expectation now that the Federal Reserve will lower its discount rate by at least 25 basis points before the new dollar swap rate kicks in on December 5. A deeper cut is also possible, he says but that would mean the Federal Reserve is virtually letting go and committing to printing money forever.

Steen also commented on the global macro situation, in particular China, following the Reserve Requirement Ratio cut amid a slowing growth scenario and in terms of timing in a global context. Meanwhile US data continues to please for now at least but he warns that the better numbers may be petering out.

The full video can be viewed at http://www.tradingfloor.com/blogs/macro-ad-hoc/global-central-bank-action-puts-heat-on-eu-summit-to-deliver-886705704.

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Saxo Bank Releases New Asia Focus Video

Saxo Bank, the online trading specialist, has released a new Asia Focus Video which features Andrew Robinson, Forex Analyst for Saxo Capital Markets in Singapore, analysing the People’s Bank of China’s decision to lower its reserve requirement ratio, whether it’s a taste of more cuts to come and how much it is a clear signal that the world’s second-largest economy is really slowing after all.

The unexpected People’s Bank of China’s announcement that it will lower its reserve requirement ratio on December 5, representing the first cut in three years, initially surprised markets and started a risk-on sentiment, particularly in equities and incited market hunger for more monetary easing.

As such, reserve requirement ratio cuts rarely come in isolation and more are likely soon, probably as early as next month, confirmed Andrew Robinson, FX Analyst, Saxo Capital Markets. He said the timing of this easing has to do with the flow of data of late which has pointed to a slowing in the economy and that it was acknowledgement of this situation. Furthermore it pre-empted the latest purchasing manager index data which confirmed a contraction scenario for the economy.

Commenting on the recent data from China, Andrew said: “Last month’s data was looking particularly soft and the expectations for this month are not particularly encouraging. If we look at the data that’s been coming out recently, it’s certainly suggesting that the market is slowing down.

“I think this is a pre-emptive move by the PBOC and they’re looking to continue it and build the economy.”

The focus in the coming days will now shift to inflation data with more declines in the consumer price index and an even greater drop in the purchasing prices index seen. Combined, this confirmation of a softening in price pressure effectively removes a hurdle the People’s Bank of China was facing in terms of the freedom to continue to ease monetary policy.

The video can be viewed at http://www.tradingfloor.com/blogs/macro-ad-hoc/more-chinese-easing-as-price-pressure-abates-removing-pboc-hurdle-1126984016, with many other forex videos available on the Saxo Bank site.

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PCI-PAL And SecureTrading Pal Up To Enhance Call Centre Payment Security

PCI-PAL, a market leading contact centre solution has entered into a partnership with SecureTrading, the UK’s leading independent payment processor specialist, to allow call centre agents to take card payments safely and securely.

The solution de-scopes the call centre PCI risk by permitting callers to enter sensitive credit card data using their telephone keypad whilst remaining in conversation with the call centre agent at all times. The encrypted card holder data is sent securely to SecureTrading’s PCI-DSS Level 1 infrastructure.

PCI compliance for contact centres is an on-going process. It is time-consuming and costly and if not obtained, it can lead to data security breaches which may result in significant reputation and financial loss for organisations. PCI-PAL allows businesses to overcome this challenging area of compliance by restricting sensitive card data from entering organisations’ premises and networks, which bears significant cost savings for the call centres.

Both PCI-PAL, which is a division of IPPlus PLC Group, and SecureTrading have large client bases which affords a mutually beneficial business relationship. PCI-PAL hopes to add real value by utilising their bulk buying power to allow customers to access SecureTrading’s extremely competitive rates, as well as high levels of customer service.

William Catchpole, CEO at PCI-PAL comments: “We are very excited about the prospect of working with SecureTrading for PCI-PAL. The need for contact centres to achieve PCI compliance is a challenge faced by operations and technical teams across the sectors. Together we can supply a simple customer and agent friendly data gathering service with secure, competitive payment processing.”

Tim Allitt, Head of Sales & Marketing at SecureTrading, comments: “It is always satisfying to work with a business that shares our passion for customer service and technical innovation. We look forward to working with PCI-PAL over the coming months as they seek to enhance their clients’ customer experience through reduced PCI costs and increased customer service.”

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Short-term Finance Solutions Company’s Staff Join Movember Madness

Prolific fund-raisers at the Kent-based financial services company, Payday Express, aren’t ones to turn down a charity challenge– and so, as has become an annual tradition, they’re once again fully embracing this year’s Movember national appeal.

The company’s male staff are putting their money where their mouths – or rather, their top lips – are and changing their own looks, as well as the face of men’s health, by boosting awareness and raising money for research into men’s health, and in particular prostate and testicular cancer.

To those taking part, their moustaches are as much a symbol of their commitment to raising money for charity as the effort put in by anyone who runs or walks for a good cause.

Chris Gillard, Business Development Manager for Payday Express, has set up a Movember Financial team, through which staff can support their colleagues by pledging donations towards research into cancers affecting men.

Chris said “We already have moustaches – or mos – in a wide variety of colours, textures and styles around the office, and our female colleagues are being encouraged to get involved in the fun and support the cause by sporting fakes.”

“The company has also offered a prize for the staff member whose mo raises the most”.

“Movember is a fantastic charity that puts the spotlight on men’s health in a fun and innovative way. This fresh approach to fundraising is always lapped up by our staff – it’s not surprising that this campaign has so much support across the world.”

The Payday Express office walls are adorned with posters publicising the event, so that no visitor is in any doubt about their dedication to the cause – and of course, they are encouraged to make a donation before they leave.

Via EPR Network
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Pensioners Suffering As The Money Runs Out, Says Debt Solutions Company Trust Deed Scotland

A new report reveals that pensioners across the UK are being left penniless as their money disappears every week in a whirlwind of bills, says Debt Solutions Company, Trust Deed Scotland.

An income of £207.15 per week is typical for most pensioned couples, but a report by Standard Life shows it goes straight back out the door as £207.24 is spent on food, fuel, housing and transport.

The report highlights rising inflation as the reason why the average pensioner has difficulties making ends and are being hit hard – many are having issues even affording a new pair of shoes, a holiday or a present for a grandchild.

While the Consumer Price Index remained the same in September at 4.5%, the Retail Price Index was hovering at 5.2% and threatening to rise again. Pensioner have a fixed income that doesn’t change from month to month, and that combined with inflation and large energy rises from utilities companies means turn some have turned towards credit cards to make ends meet.

A spokesperson for Scottish Debt Solutions Company, Trust Deed Scotland, said:
“According to Age UK, British pensioners are the fourth poorest in Europe, with the worst off set to lose up to 22% of their household income because of cuts to local authority services and changes to the tax and benefits system. This report highlights the dire position our parents and grandparents are in. At a time when they should be relaxing after a lifetime of working, they are pinching pennies and worrying about what the future will hold for them.”

The day before Standard Life published its report, the Institute of Fiscal Studies issued a warning about how ‘real’ inflation was hitting pensioners much harder than younger age groups.

“The Insolvency Service reported the fastest rising group of people claiming insolvency is pensioners,” said the spokesperson. “They are six times more likely to go bankrupt or take out a debt solution such as a Scottish Trust Deed or Debt Arrangement Schemethan they were just a decade ago. The number of people entering retirement with unpaid debts has increased, and when combined with increased life expectancy, the recession and limited options to increase income when you retire, it adds up to a lot of older people in real trouble”.

According to the Consumer Credit Counseling Service the average unsecured debt of newly retired pensioners is £21,370 and few have any savings at all. Once all the bills have been covered, there’s just £85 left at the end of the month.

“There are numerous reasons why pensioners are entering retirement in debt,” said the spokesperson. “Previous good house values led to many people remortgaging for home improvements or to loan to children or grand children for house deposits. There’s also the issue of divorce, where one partner will often buy the other out of their share of the property by extending their mortgage. And then some people are marrying and having families much later in life or having second families in their fifties.”

“For many life as a retiree in today’s world is just as expensive as it was when they were working, but now they have less income to live on.”

Via EPR Network
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Confused.com Reveals That Keeping Diabetes A Secret Could Invalidate Life Insurance

New research by Confused.com has revealed that 26 per cent of people only have a vague idea what diabetes is, and worryingly 22 per cent of diabetes sufferers are not comfortable telling people about their condition, potentially putting their health at risk.

Keeping diabetes a secret not only makes diabetics more vulnerable but also means their life insurance could be invalidated.

This Confused.com research is supported by a survey conducted by Diabetes UK which shows that one in three people with diabetes have been keeping their condition a secret.

In light of this, Confused.com is warning against the dangers of keeping a medical condition secret and reminding people that their life insurance could be invalidated if they are not upfront about any condition they have been diagnosed with.

Diabetes is on the increase in the UK with one person diagnosed every three minutes. In fact 31% of people know someone with diabetes and there is an estimated half a million more people in the UK who are likely tohave diabetes but have not been diagnosed.

Diabetes is a more common condition than most people believe with an estimated 4 million people being diagnosed with this condition in 2025.

Matt Lloyd, Head of Life Insurance at Confused.com said: “Having a condition such as diabetes does not always mean you cannot get life insurance quotes. Particularly, if a person with diabetes is controlling their condition as directed by their doctor it is possible that they may be able to get a policy put in place. It is also worth going back to the insurer if you have made a positive change to your lifestyle since you were originally quoted for insurance because you may be entitled to a cheaper policy if you are healthier now than when you took out the policy.”

Via EPR Network
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Atos And Travelex Strengthen Partnership With Major New Contract

Atos, the international IT services company, has announced that it has signed a major five year contract with Travelex, the world’s leading specialist provider of foreign exchange and international payments for consumer and business customers.

Under the five year agreement Travelex and Atos Worldline, which represents Atos’s high-tech transactional services, will collaborate to provide enhanced cross-border card payment capabilities.

The partnership will allow shoppers at over 72,000 point of sale machines in Atos Worldline’s participating merchant network in Europe to pay in their preferred currency. Travelex Currency Select enables acquirers to provide shoppers with transparency, certainty and choice at the point of sale.

Atos Worldline has global experience in providing merchant acquirers with payment solutions. Travelex also effectively operates as an acquirer in its own right with its global ATM network as well as its own “direct-to-market” merchant acquiring business.

Atos believes that this expertise in foreign exchange complements Atos Worldline’s position as a leading commercial acquirer in Europe with a significant merchant portfolio, especially in the Benelux region.

Atos Worldline and Travelex plan to deploy the cross-border card payment functionality solution on card-present (POS) and card-not-present e-Commerce channels to European merchants in 2012.

Commenting on this announcement, Peter Jackson, Chief Executive Officer of Travelex said: “This deal demonstrates our ability to develop and deploy innovative foreign exchange payment solutions in growth market segments that are outside our traditional retail sphere. Atos Worldline is the ideal partner with deep expertise in card acceptance solutions and payments in general. We look forward to growing our joint business together.”

Joe Edwards, Senior Vice President for Sales and Marketing, Atos said: “Through our partnership with Travelex, we can provide them with our specialist expertise in electronic transactions, which is essential to the growth of their business. We already have a very solid relationship with Travelex by supporting their e-commerce strategy, and we are looking forward to cementing this relationship further.”

Earlier this year, Atos and Travelex further extended their relationship via a Systems integration (SI) agreement. Atos has been a key supplier of IT solutions and services to Travelex for some years and continues to provide support and delivery capabilities across the Travelex IT estate.

Via EPR Network
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Prudential Reveals Brits Hiding £4.6 Billion From Their Partners In Secret Saving Stashes

Prudential has revealed that fifteen per cent of Britons over the age of 40 and living with their partner choose to keep some or all of their savings hidden from their other halves.

The survey, which examines couples’ attitudes to financial planning, was conducted among savers over the age of 40 and living with a partner. It found that as many as 4.5 million* Britons could be concealing savings or investments worth an average of£1,037 from their spouse or partner – a secret stash of approximately £4.6 billion.

One in ten (9 per cent) of those choosing to keep their funds hidden do so because they don’t trust their other half’s financial decision making, while a further quarter (23 per cent) admit that this is a security measure, in case they should split up with their partner.

Women are more likely to keep their funds hidden from their partner, with 18 per cent admitting to hiding savings averaging £1,002. This compares with 12 per cent of men, who conceal an average fund of £1,072.

A prudent two in five (42 per cent) secret savers plan to use the money to supplement their retirement income – even though 20 per cent of those surveyed admit to never having discussed financial planning for retirement with their spouse or partner.

Vince Smith-Hughes, head of business development at Prudential, said: “By harbouring secret stashes of money, many couples are failing to plan sufficiently for their joint retirement. While it is understandable that some people in relationships want to be able to spend their own money, it is important for couples to have regular and open discussions about financial planning for the sake of maximising their retirement incomes. Only then can they decide how to make the best possible joint provision for the future.

“Consulting a financial adviser together is an important part of this on-going dialogue and can help couples to secure the income and lifestyle they expect in retirement.”

Prudential’s survey also found that nearly a fifth (17 per cent) of Britons feel uncomfortable about discussing financial matters with their partner. While two thirds (67 per cent) of couples say they have not received professional financial advice together in the past five years, one in 10 people claim that either they or their partner has independently visited an adviser within the past five years.

Via EPR Network
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Short-Term Loans Company’s Strict Controls Help Lock Out Fraudsters

A tough approach to detecting and stopping fraudulent applications, along with a system of thorough verification checks and state of the art screening technology, are helping a leading payday loans company to nip fraud in the bud.

Payday Express, a provider of same day cash loans that people can access to see through a temporarily difficult time with their personal finances, have implemented sophisticated identity and fraud prevention checks on its website, which will detect many illegitimate attempts to obtain an instant cash loan and immediately decline them.

It warns anyone tempted to try to make fraudulent loan applications that it takes fraud very seriously and will do whatever it takes to prosecute anyone who does manage to take out a fraudulent loan and press for the maximum penalty to be imposed.

Once a dubious payday loan application has been detected and intercepted, all the details are investigated by Payday Express’s dedicated fraud prevention team. It sifts through all the details of these applications, aiming to find links between them and existing accounts, to gather as much information as possible to be passed on to the police for investigation.

As well as being passed on to the police, all fraudulent applications are also reported to the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), which carries out its own wide-scale investigations and looks for links between reported cases from its members.

Sam Walsh, of Payday Express’s fraud prevention department, said: “Our department aims to minimise the distress experienced by the victims of fraud, and limit the company’s financial losses.”

And he warned: “We provide the police with as much information as possible to investigate fraud, and will press for the maximum charges to be brought against those responsible, and to recover the funds that were falsely applied for from our company.”

Via EPR Network
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Confused.com Launches Interactive Road Safety Map

Confused.com has launched an informative mapping tool that reveals the dangers of road rage. The interactive road safety map reveals the country’s most dangerous roads and junctions.

Cyclist and motorist rage is in the spotlight this Road Safety Week and, according to Confused.com, both cyclists and car owners have strong feelings about how to handle it.

Both cyclists and motorists are turning to social media to report incidents of road related anger with Confused.com identifying 2,674 tweets mentioning both ‘road rage’ and ‘cyclist’ during the first nine months of this year. In response to this emerging danger, Confused.com created the interactive map so that both cyclists and drivers can pinpoint rage blackspots.

In addition to the cycle safety map, a survey of 1,000 motorists and 1,000 cyclists carried out by Confused.com identified what sends cyclists into a ‘two-wheel tantrum’ and turns car drivers ‘cyclo-pathic.’ Along with the survey and the map, people can learn more about ‘cycle rage’ by watching a cycle issues video about the subject.

The survey found that 72 per cent of drivers have experienced one or more incidents involving a cyclist during the last two years. A quarter of these drivers were keen to see cyclists pay road tax and 14 per cent of drivers wanted to see cyclists displaying number plates on their bikes. Getting cyclists to pass a version of the driving test was a popular idea among 44 per cent of annoyed motorists, while 43 per cent said that they would like to see cyclists take out a form of insurance. Catching those who cycle through red lights was a top solution among 59 per cent of car drivers. Almost one third of motorists said that cycling on the pavement (which the Highway Code states is illegal) should be stopped.

Meanwhile, almost a quarter of the cyclists said they’ve been beeped at or sworn at by a motorist and more than one in eight had been knocked off their bike by a motorist. Additionally, 65 per cent of cyclists told Confused.com that they feel less safe than they did a year ago and 34 per cent say they’ve been a victim of road rage.

Cyclists have some suggestions about ways to improve their journeys. Some suggestions include legalising cycling on pavements (28 per cent), introducing more bike lanes (58 per cent) and increasing the availability of hire bikes (25 per cent).

Gareth Kloet, Head of Car Insurance at Confused.com, said: “Rage on the roads is a big problem for both motorists and cyclists and our research shows that both groups have much to complain about. Whilst both parties can point at differing solutions to help improve road safety, we urge all road users to exercise respect and courtesy as the roads are for everyone and tolerance could save people’s lives.”

Malcolm Shepherd, Chief Executive of Sustrans, the UK charity encouraging people to travel by foot, bike or public transport said: “People need to be more considerate and aware of all other users when making their journeys.”

Via EPR Network
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Saxo Bank Enables Online Islamic Trading

Saxo Bank A/S, the online trading and investment specialist, has enabled its clients to identify and trade Islamic compliant stocks and ETFs on more than 25 exchanges worldwide. The Bank selected IdealRatings Inc., a leading global Islamic compliant fund management service provider, as the most reliable source for identifying Islamic compliant instruments globally.

The compliance reasoning is based on commonly accepted and transparent Islamic guidelines defined by IdealRatings and Shariah Review Bureau with operations in Jeddah, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and Manama. More than 12,000 stocks and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are screened and researched on a monthly basis by IdealRatings.

Jakob Beck Thomsen, Regional head of Middle East and CEO Saxo Bank (Dubai) Ltd., said: “Islamic finance is one of the fastest growing sectors in the world today and we are excited to enable our clients to identify and trade Islamic compliant stocks online. IdealRatings is the industry’s most trusted brand for identifying and researching Islamic compliant stocks and we are confident in offering their data to our clients.”

Mohamed Donia, CEO of IdealRatings, added: “Saxo Bank A/S has always been an innovator and market leader in providing its clients with quality financial services and we are delighted to partner with them to provide this reliable information for their discerning investors.”

Via EPR Network
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The Choice Of His Broker Binary Options

The choice of his broker of binary options can sometimes be very complex, especially if we begin and if we do not still know the world of the on-line investment. The strategie-binaires.com site helps you to make the best choice.

Before beginning to trade by means of the binary options, it will be necessary for you to pass by an indispensable stage, the choice of your broker or on-line broker. Now, the brokers proposing this type of investment being more and more numerous on internet, the choice can sometimes turn out complicated, especially when we begin. It is then to help you to make the best possible choice that the strategy-options.com site decided to help you by explaining to you what are elements important to compare between each of the offers. Know besides that strategy-options.com also realized a comparative degree of the main brokers with for each of them precise explanations regarding their advantages and inconveniences.

In the meantime, here are some rules simple to apply during the choice of your partner broker of binary options:

The general characteristics of the brokers of binary options:

Before interesting us in the technical details, it is essential to have a particular attention on the general characteristics proposed by the broker whom you will choose.

According to your budget, you will also have to look at the conditions of deposits and at the minimum amount asked for each of the proposed options. Useless indeed to ruin you in a single investment there where other brokers will ask you for a less important amount of transaction. Once this detected information, you can also take into account offers of welcome proposed by the quasi-totality of the on-line brokers. These offers can take various forms (bonus of deposit, refund of the losses) and asks an in-depth study to determine which one is the most interesting. For that purpose, consult the present general conditions on the concerned sites. Do not also forget to verify expenses connected to the cash withdrawal and the extensions announced in this direction.

Finally, to guarantee you a legal resort in case of dispute, think of choosing only the brokers being approved by the European authorities in on-line investment and in brokerage.

The technical characteristics to be verified:

Once the general characteristics were studied and the best offers were brought out of the lot, you can proceed to a study of the technical constituents of each of the brokers. For that purpose, you have to know the main platforms of trading proposed on the market or inquire with the broker when this one developed only the technical solution. Among platforms the most spread on the market, we find very qualitative Metatrader who offers possibilities of evolution and very interesting programming for little that we are able of establishing complex strategies.

In every case, opt even there for a platform completely translated or developed in English to guarantee you an optimal use of each of the given tools.

Concerning these tools, their number and their quality also varies from a platform to the other one. To know which one of these platforms will offer you the services which you really need, think of determining in advance a list of indicators which seem to you essential in good investments. Useless indeed to block you of superfluous tools which will finally return your transactions less intuitive and more complex, especially if you are novices in trading. Before choosing a broker of binary options, think of testing systematically their platform thanks to the accounts of demonstration.

To know the main brokers of the market and their advantages and inconveniences, consult our evaluations on www.strategy-options.com.

Via EPR Network
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