News & Views
CASHLESS SOCIETY
MASTERCARD RECENTLY unveiled a new global report titled ‘The Cashless Journey’ that ranks the UAE economy amongst those most rapidly moving away from being a predominantly cash based society. The report explores the evolution of consumer payment patterns in 33 countries from five regions, representing more than 85% of global GDP, taking in both developed and developing nations, using a single methodology. MasterCard Advisors’ research indicates that a country’s readiness to move to a cashless society is determined by factors like the accessibility and affordability of financial services; the scale and market share of retailers; the level of technology that is available; and participation of consumers in the formal economy. With a Trajectory Indicator of 65, the United Arab Emirates is among the faster changing payments ecosystems of those countries studied. Eyad Al Kourdi (pictured), UAE country manager, MasterCard, said: “The United Arab Emirates is indeed progressing at a brisk pace on its cashless journey, which has received a tremendous boost with the implementation of key Government initiatives like the Wage Protection System (WPS) that has vastly increased access to electronic payment methods over a short period of time. These changes suggest that the country’s cashless journey is well underway and gaining momentum.” 6
October 2013
REPUTE BEFORE RETURN ONCE THE sole remit of the marketing and PR departments, reputational risk is now seen as a critical company-wide concern, according to a global survey by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). The survey of UAE finance leaders who hold the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation identified the demand for more transparency, competitor reputational failures and the rise in social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn as key contributing factors to the increased global interest on the topic. Despite this, only 47% of organisations surveyed said that they use feedback from these channels to help them anticipate
and manage risk to their reputation to some degree. Similarly, 47% of those surveyed had no formal processes or models in place for calculating the financial impact of not managing reputational risk. Geetu Ahuja (pictured), Head of GCC – Middle East at CIMA said; “Organisations are increasingly recognising the need to take reputational risks very seriously if potential crises are not to turn into catastrophes.”
STATS FACT:
73%
UAE financial leaders who said their company was prepared to lose profit for the sake of reputation
ANTI-FRAUD EVENT SET FOR NOVEMBER TRAINING PROVIDER OpenThinking is set to host an event for industry professionals, on the crucial issue of AntiFraud mechanisms. The event is slated for November in Dubai and will also take place in the other Emirates of Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah and Abu Dhabi. More than 700 professionals have confirmed their participation.
Iyad Mourtada the director of the event said; “Our main goal is to enhance the understanding of fraud examination and anti-fraud practices in the private and public sectors in the UAE.” The event is sponsored by the IMA Dubai Chapter, ACCA Middle East, ISACA UAE Chapter among other 40 sponsors. To get more information about the event visit: www.openthinking.ae