digitalisation

The Search for Talent in de financiële sector: een groot debat

Vendredi 30/9/2022
Febelfin

Op 29 juni 2022 organiseerde het Belgian Finance Centre (BFC) in samenwerking met Assuralia en Febelfin, een grote debatavond met als focus "The Search for Talent in the Financial Sector". Karel Baert, CEO van Febelfin, was de keynote spreker op het evenement. Dit artikel is een samenvatting van de highlights van het panelgesprek.
Digital meets human in real estate

Vendredi 30/9/2022
Johan Krijgsman

ERA, the Belgian market leader in the residential real estate sector, with 25+ years’ experience in developing consumer-oriented products and services, and 250+ new construction projects has carried out more than 10,000 transactions in 2021, including some 6,500 sales and 3,500 rentals. ERA has a network of 130+ agencies with more than 550 local professionals to make the residential dreams of their customers come true by selling, buying or renting their home. Moreover, our company's growth ambitions will expand the office network even more to 150 agencies by 2025 to be close to our customers. With our extensive knowledge of the local real estate market, we are also an interesting partner for developers and investors to reach the right local customers for their projects.

We share our expertise, among others, in our annual ERA Barometer, which is an analysis of the evolution of the housing market and residential prices, based on our huge database of figures from the past 10 years of the Belgian real estate market. Next to that our CEO Johan Krijgsman shares his knowledge in multiple media interviews. In his recent interview on Trends Talk from Kanaal Z, he elaborated his view on the affordability of housing in the current market.

ERA’s headquarters are situated on the biggest marketplace of Belgium, in Sint-Niklaas, in Huis Myle, a renovated listed historic monument bought and restored by CEO Johan Krijgsman and his partners after almost two decades of vacancy. More information can be found at ERA.BE.
Zorgen economische littekens na pandemie voor gelijkaardige trage groei als na Grote Financiële Crisis?

Lundi 30/5/2022
Koen De Leus

The developed world is almost liberated from covid-19. This does not mean that we will be reliving the roaring 20's, or the very fast growth after the second world war. However, we are also a long way from the dire situation after the Great Financial Crisis that had left major scars in the economy. Economic scars from the pandemic are minor compared to the scars left by the GFC.

If we get it right, the reopening and the recovery of the economy - for which a soon returning peace in Ukraine is a prerequisite - could be the harbinger of great things to come. Possibly we are facing a regime change, a reset of the economy rather than a simple reboot. Comparison with the post-war recovery is popular. After the two world wars, the infrastructure had to be rebuilt. This time it needs to be thoroughly adapted to meet the climate challenge. This will require major public investments and adjustments to corporate production. Although a population explosion and a huge increase in credit are unlikely (two important growth engines during the post-war periods), an increase in investment - for a speedy energy transition - and productivity - increased technology investment by a broader range of companies during the covid period - are possible. The government will have to take on an important role here and lead by example. In this way, we can turn the necessary energy transition into an opportunity to put growth on a faster path compared to before the pandemic.
The impact of Fintech and digitisation on the Belgian banking sector

Mardi 8/2/2022
Pauline Bégasse de Dhaem / Anthony Mention / Frederic Romont

This study by the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) analyses the trends, developments, opportunities, risks, and threats related to digitisation in the Belgian banking sector, to the use of innovative technologies and to the entry into the market of new players and competitors. Following up on the NBB’s 2017 prior study of digitisation and of fintech in the Belgian banking sector, this renewed study provides an updated overview of those trends and developments, and of the initiatives illustrating the digital transformation of Belgian banks. The study concludes with the NBB's observations and recommendations, formulating a number of points for attention with respect to both the organisation and the functioning of Belgian banks, while emphasising the importance of an active dialogue.
Banken in de bres voor onze welvaart: concreet engagement uit de financiële sector voor ondernemingen en particulieren

Mardi 15/6/2021
Karel Baert

Today’s banks are healthier and more solid than they were a decade ago. Sustainability and transparency are top priorities and the focus lies on the traditional core task of converting savings into loans. As a result, the banking sector was able to play its full role in society during the corona crisis. Companies, consumers, and individuals experiencing financial difficulties could count on postponing the repayment of their loans. A state guarantee scheme for enterprise loans totalling €10 billion was developed as well. In addition, regular credit production for companies was maintained. However, this does not mean that the other challenges – such as the increasing digital transformation of society and therefore also of the financial sector – have disappeared. On the contrary, they too remain at the top of the priority list.
Business Investment and Investment Finance in Belgium: Evidence from the EIBIS 2020

Mardi 15/6/2021
Pedro de Lima / Fotios Kalantzis

Since 2016, the European Investment Bank Group (EIB) has conducted an annual survey on Investment and Investment Finance (EIBIS). This includes interviews with some 13,500 firms from the EU27 Member States, the UK and the US, of which around 480 are Belgian in 2020. The survey covers both SMEs and larger corporates in main economic sectors, offering qualitative and quantitative information about their investment activities, financing needs and the difficulties they face.

The EIBIS 2020 was conducted during the spring/early summer of 2020, right after the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of the pandemic on EU firms and elsewhere has been substantial, leading to large revenue losses and changes in investment strategies. Therefore, assessing business needs and setting priorities is crucial for a rapid and solid recovery of the EU.

In this context, the current note analyses and discusses the answers given by Belgian firms on their investment activities, such as objectives, obstacles, drivers, and financing conditions. These answers are compared with the responses of the other surveyed companies in the EU to identify areas for potential improvement and target setting for Belgium.
Waar kleine banken groot in zijn

Mardi 1/12/2020
Leen Van den Neste

Banking thrives in a calm and stable environment. After the global financial crisis of 2008, however, governmental authorities undertook a range of necessary measures that had an enormous impact on the funding and the reporting requirements imposed on financial institutions, systemic and specialized institutions alike. The ongoing COVID-19 crisis has further deepened the negative effects of the low interest rate environment, and forces all banks to think broadly, continue to digitalise their businesses, and seek for more alternative income. Smaller banks face the same challenges as their systemic counterparts but continue to believe in their strength to work close to their customers and find tailor-made solutions for their demands.
Lessen uit de coronacrisis

Jeudi 1/10/2020
Bart Van Craeynest

Like every crisis, covid-19 holds the opportunity to strengthen our economy/society through lessons learned from the crisis. This obviously requires that we take away the correct lessons from the current episode. In the past few months a number of all too easy conclusions have been drawn from the crisis that are not supported by the facts. Flexibility, robustness, digitalization and internationalization are, up to now, the key lessons from this crisis.