[Discover Global Network] As fast as technology is changing, so is the impact of today’s young consumers. Generation Z—those folks born since 1996—is reshaping consumer expectations and payment trends in ways that are becoming increasingly apparent. The eventual...
[Forbes, for Bank of the West/BNP Paribas] Cybersecurity is no longer an issue only for the IT department. Today, I believe this must be top of mind for the entire enterprise. Risks are no longer limited to hackers seeking confidential data from large financial...
[Bank of the West/BNP Paribas] Before expanding overseas, tech companies should consider these seven tips. In the app economy, tech companies can go global at the push of a button. Whether they’re seeking additional revenue or a skilled talent pool, it’s no surprise...
[Bank of the West/BNP Paribas] Animal-based protein dominates the global market. But can plant-based alternatives disrupt the status quo? After years of languishing at the bottom of the menu, plant-based veggie burgers are finally hitting the big time—and the protein...
[Bank of the West/BNP Paribas] Prices and consumption are on the rise. But so are non-dairy alternatives. How is the industry coping? The dairy industry, long fighting depressed milk prices and changing consumer tastes, is confronting another uncertain year ahead. On...
[Discover Global Network] Top analysts in the payments industry are expecting a year of big changes ahead with shifts in the international landscape, the impact of new technology and advances in rapid payment methods. The effect of each of these trends is expected to...
[Bank of the West/BNP Paribas] Current uncertainties can create long-term benefits. How can trade wars help you? The shifting sands of international trade have rarely been more precarious. Political and economic forces are changing global business in unforeseeable...
[Originally published in the Spring 2014 issue of Esquire magazine.] I am a banker. No, hold it. I mean, I was a banker. Or rather, I worked at a bank. I did banking. But wait. Maybe that means I’m still a banker. After all, a doctor who drives a taxi is still a...
[Originally published in the November 2013 issue of Elle magazine.] Some time ago, I was ruining my day trying to accomplish something simple at my bank when the manager, a very nice guy, came up to talk to me. As we concluded our conversation, he recommended I open a...
[Originally published in the Summer 2013 issue of Esquire magazine.] It’s not easy to make bankers look good these days. We’re still not finished cleaning up from the global mess they created just a few years ago. But if anyone can make even bankers look good, it’s...
[Originally published March 25, 2013, in Capital,] Years ago, when I worked at a very large bank, I was in a meeting. The CEO was there, the President, the CMO, several vice chairmen, and a few others, including me. The director of advertising was showing us a very...
[Originally published in August 2012 issue of Lafferty Cards & Payments Insights.] There is a traffic circle (or “round-about” if you’re from England) along one of the main roads in Bucharest that is, unfortunately, a perfect metaphor for many of the new products...
[Originally published June 27, 2012, in Capital.] Bankers are funny people. For example, who didn’t have a good laugh recently when Jamie Dimon appeared before the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs in Washington? He’s Chairman and CEO of...
[The Baltimore Sun] This year’s steep drop in interest rates might have borrowers rejoicing, but it has small community bankers scrambling. Friday’s move by the Federal Reserve to reduce the discount rate — the amount banks are charged to borrow money — to 3.5 percent...
[The Baltimore Sun] Top administration officials asked bank and thrift examiners yesterday to extend the benefit of the doubt and use common sense when working with the financial institutions that are essential for fueling an economic recovery. While gently chiding...
[The Baltimore Sun] Everything about it is immense. The numbers. The task. The risk. The financial disasters that gave it birth. It is a nearly $2 billion pile of repossessed properties, scuttled projects, bad loans, empty buildings and abandoned hopes. And everyone —...
For a while, Alan Penniman Hoblitzell Jr. saw the future earlier and clearer than most. As tumultuous changes loomed in the banking industry during the 1980s, he foresaw only two roles for mid-sized banks like his Maryland National. Swallow or be swallowed. Mr....
[The Baltimore Sun] Alfred Lerner can make it sound so easy. Borrow money from depositors at one price. Lend it to others at a higher price. And make a profit from the difference. Nothing tricky, nothing mysterious, said the 57-year-old investor from Cleveland as he...