Category: Business

Salesforce, the leading CRM and cloud software company, has announced its ambitious vision to achieve artificial general intelligence (AGI) for business, according to its founder, CEO and chairman Marc Benioff. Benioff shared his views on the future of AI and its impact on the enterprise world at the company’s annual Dreamforce conference, which he claimed to be the world’s largest AI event. What is AGI and why does it matter?…

Small businesses in the US are facing a tough time securing loans from big banks as the credit crunch worsens. According to the latest Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index, loan approval percentages at big banks ($10 billion+ in assets) fell from 13.3% in July to 13.2% in August, a nearly two percent drop from August 2022, when approvals were at 15.1%. This is the 15th consecutive month of decline in…

As the banking industry faces increasing challenges from digital disruption, cyberattacks, and regulatory pressures, some customers are looking for alternatives to the traditional banking model. One of these alternatives is community banking, which offers personalized service, local decision-making, and social responsibility. In this article, we explore the benefits and challenges of community banking, and how it is gaining popularity in 2023. What is Community Banking? Community banking is a term…

Banks Expect 30,000 Housing Units to be Completed in 2023 According to a study by the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI), there could be 30,000 housing unit completions in Ireland this year if current building rates are maintained. The study compared the number of housing units completed in the year leading up to the end of the second quarter on a rolling 12-month basis. The BPFI found that some…

High Court upholds the validity of the banking tax Spain’s High Court has rejected appeals by lenders Bankinter, Sabadell and Cajasur to suspend payments of the extraordinary banking tax while it reviews the levy’s validity, El Economista newspaper reported on Monday. The court reasoned that the banks would be able to recover the amount paid plus interest were the tax found to be unlawful, while suspending payments would be illegal…

Bank of America, one of the largest U.S. banks, said on Monday that it expects to do slightly better than the industry average in terms of investment banking fees for the third quarter of 2023. The bank’s chief financial officer, Alastair Borthwick, made the remarks at the Barclays Financial Services Conference. Industry fee pool down 30%-35% year-on-year Borthwick said that the investment banking fee pool for the industry is down…

Nasdaq leads the market rally with a bounce in tech stocks The U.S. stock market traded higher on Monday, September 11, 2023, as technology stocks staged a comeback after a recent slump. The Nasdaq Composite, which is heavily weighted with tech stocks, rallied 1.14% to close at 18,234.65 points, outperforming the other major indexes. The S&P 500 rose 0.67% to 5,321.78 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.25%…

The Cherwell Business Awards 2023, a prestigious annual event that honours the achievements and contributions of businesses in the Cherwell region, was held on Friday, September 8, 2023, at The Chesterton Hotel in Bicester. The event was attended by nearly 250 guests from various sectors and industries, who enjoyed a delightful drink’s reception, a sumptuous three-course dinner, and a captivating musical performance by singing waiters and a talented band. The…

China’s economy, which was recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, is facing a new challenge: a sharp decline in business confidence. According to a survey by World Economics, China’s business confidence fell to its lowest level since January 2013 in the fourth quarter of 2022, reflecting the impact of surging COVID-19 cases and the abrupt lifting of many pandemic control measures. The survey results also hint at a possible recession next…

Intuit, the global financial technology platform that makes TurboTax, Credit Karma, QuickBooks, and Mailchimp, has introduced a new AI-powered assistant called Intuit Assist. This assistant will provide personalized, intelligent recommendations to help consumer and small business customers make smart financial decisions with less work and complete confidence, enabling them to put more money in their pockets. What is Intuit Assist? Intuit Assist is a new generative AI (GenAI)-powered assistant that…