Omnibus accounts to Finnish investors? – An analysis of the costs and benefits that omnibus account structure brings to Finnish account operators and investors

The Finnish Securities Markets are being harmonized to enable better, more reliable and timely settlement of securities. Omnibus accounts are a common practice in the European securities markets. Finland forbids the use of omnibus accounts from its domestic investors. There is a possibility that the omnibus account usage is allowed for Finnish investors in the future. This study aims to build a comprehensive image to Finnish investors and account operators in determining the costs and benefits that the omnibus account structure would have for them. This study uses qualitative research methods. A literature review provides the framework for this study. Different kinds of research articles, regulatory documents, studies performed by European organisations, and Finnish news reportages are used to analyse the costs and benefits of omnibus accounts. The viewpoint is strictly of account operators and investors, and different effects on them are contemplated. The results of the analysis show that there are a number of costs and benefits that investors and account operators must take into consideration regarding omnibus accounts. The costs are related to development of IT-systems so that participants are able to adapt to the new structure and operate according to its needs. Decrease in the holdings’ transparency is a disadvantage of the structure and needs to be assessed precisely to avoid some problems it might bring. Benefits are mostly related to the increased competition in the securities markets as well as to the possible cost reductions of securities settlement. The costs and benefits were analysed according to the study plan of this thesis and as a result, the significance and impact of omnibus accounts to Finnish investors and account operators depends on the competition level and the decisions that all market participants make when determining if the account structure is beneficial for their operations.

Performance improvement in mediterranean operations using risk management analysis : Case study of Containerships Group Ltd

Emerging markets of Northern Africa and Turkey provide growth opportunities for logistics service companies in the middle of low growth environment of European Union. The purpose of this research is to explore and analyze the risk factors in container shipping industry and third party logistics (3PL) services. The research empirically examined the risk factors, which are related within the interaction between these two parties in emerging markets of Mediterranean area. The previous studies have provided a valuable insight into the operational risks faced by container shipping industries. However, most of these studies have focused on one or several operational risk factors from a single point of view, and no studies have inclusively examined the possible operational risks faced in the container shipping industry from dual perspective of 3PL provider and its customers. A questionnaire has been deployed to collect related data; and the impacts of the risks were then be assessed and ranked using the method of risk mapping. Respondents were located in Turkey, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. Research presents the most important risk factors identified, and compares them between 3PL provider and its customers. The research also provide some risk mitigation strategies for the key risk factors, and tried to figure out a common risk picture, which guides the managers in both sides to have a better decisions and as a result, improve the performance of the container shipping operations. Challenge during project execution time was that customers identified vast amount of more risks than what was the case with logistics service operator.

Foreign Divestment Decisions in Banking − Case Nordea in Poland

In the 21st century, the realignment of multinational companies’ business scope has become a major issue globally. A very prominent part of the global realignment process, alongside with mergers, acquisitions and alliances, are foreign divestments. Foreign divestments have become an integral aspect of international business since they are now widely practiced by MNCs from a growing and diverse range of home countries and host economies. The objective of this thesis is to identify the factors that contribute to foreign divestment decisions in the banking sector. This thesis is a qualitative research with a single case study approach. The chosen case of this thesis is the divestment made by the internationally operating Nordic financial service group, Nordea, in Poland in 2013. The empirical findings were obtained by interviewing experts from the case company and the interviews were conducted as theme interviews using the four themes that according to the theoretical framework of this thesis are the contributing factors in foreign divestment decisions: (1) environmental stability, (2) attractiveness of current operations, (3) strategic fit, and (4) governance issues. The empirical findings of this thesis suggest that there were four dominant contributors to the foreign divestment decision of the case company: (1) host government regulations, (2) strategic considerations, (3) economic outlook, and (4) interested buyer. The empirical findings mostly support the accuracy of the selected framework as the first three theme groups were found to be major contributors also in the case company’s foreign divestment. However, the importance of the fourth theme group, ‘governance issues’, is not supported by the findings of this thesis. Furthermore the findings suggest that in addition to the groups presented in the framework, also timing can be an import factor in divestment decisions. Three managerial recommendations can be drawn from the findings of this thesis: (1) If a foreign divestment decision is the best course of action due to strategic reasons, it should not be avoided; (2) The pre-investment due diligence processes should not be ignored since it can help to avoid unwanted divestments; and (3) Companies should concentrate on building good relationships with the host government since it can facilitate business activities in the host country.