Taiwan’s ambitious plans to develop offshore wind power spur a need for project financing. International banks have held a rather limited market share in Taiwan, but one area in which they have a potential competitive edge by virtue of their technical expertise in the financing of major projects. In recent years, such projects have…
As paradigms in the banking industry shift rapidly, the future of banking hedges on innovation, specialization, and mastery of the digital business landscape. In the past year, volatility in global and regional markets—from the plunge in oil prices to post-Brexit uncertainties—has made Taiwan’s banking industry keen to bring stability and growth to the financial liberalization…
Once saddled with a huge volume of non-performing loans, the farming credit system has strengthened under the supervision of a state-backed agricultural bank. Taiwan’s agricultural finance system has evolved considerably since the early 2000s when it was burdened with a large volume of non-performing loans (NPLs). The dire state of Taiwan’s rural finances at that…
In January, outgoing Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) chairman William Ming-chung Tseng (now a member of the Legislative Yuan) highlighted the slow pace of consolidation in the banking sector as a major regret of his FSC tenure. When he was appointed head of the FSC in 2014, Tseng called for consolidation in a bid to streamline…
State coffers are benefiting from a rise in tax revenue, but Taiwan’s tax-to-GDP ratio remains among the lowest in the developed world. Revisions to tax policy are bringing increased revenue into Taiwan’s national treasury, giving a boost to public finances as the government grapples with ballooning debt and anemic economic growth. Analysts and the government…
Rebuffed in its bid to be among the bank’s founders, Taiwan is expected to apply for regular membership. Several hours before the midnight deadline on the evening of March 31, Minister of Finance Chang Sheng-ford sent a fax to the preparatory office for the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Beijing expressing Taiwan’s desire to…
The sector netted record profits in 2014 on the back of burgeoning offshore business, especially in China. The crowded Taiwan banking sector is finding room to breathe at last. Rapid expansion of offshore business amid deregulation and improving asset quality helped banks post a record NT$332.8 billion (US$10.7 billion) in profits in 2014, according to…
INDUSTRY FOCUS: Financial Sector Smoother Sailing for Taiwan’s Banks offshore The Formosa Bond Market Ignites Promoting the Onshore Mutual Fund Business Taiwan’s Payment Plan Taiwan’s offshore RMB bond market is growing rapidly after investment was opened to domestic insurers. Taiwan’s Formosa bond market is surging on the back of deregulation measures that have made…
Regulators are tightening the screws on offshore fund managers in an effort to strengthen the asset-management sector at home. Taiwan punches above its weight in the asset-management sector. The island of 23 million people had over US$167 billion assets under management (AUM) at the end of 2014, according to the Taipei-based consultancy Keystone Intelligence. Offshore…
The introduction of mobile and third-party payment platforms is expected to bolster the nation’s burgeoning e-commerce market. Taiwan’s payments industry is getting a needed shakeup with the adoption of contactless technology to facilitate mobile transactions and the passage new legislation to legalize third-party electronic payment services. Those changes will not fundamentally alter the island’s payments…
