Sanjiv Bhasin: “Geopolitical issues will occupy centre stage and influence capital flows”

Business Magazine featured on this Wednesday’s cover Sanjiv Bhasin, the newly appointed CEO of AfrAsia Bank, who talked about the positioning of Mauritius as a financial centre of choice in this part of the world and on the main threats to global financial stability.

The successful financial centres around the globe, he said, have some common characteristics: political stability, prudent financial jurisdiction, effective legal system, availability of talent and skill sets, connectivity, infrastructure especially telecommunications, ease of doing business and a well-defined hinterland, among others. To assess the parameters in respect of Mauritius, the country is well poised to be a leading financial centre in this part of the word. It has a distinct advantage of having Africa as its hinterland and some favourable tax treaties with Asian countries which give a further advantage. The areas where progress will be seen, he continued, are connectivity and the talent and skills, which have to be increased to accelerate the pace of growth. “Mauritius has to be a financial hub; in fact, it already is and the challenge is to secure its position and accelerate its growth. Surely, the Smart City projects will propel economic and population growth in the future.”

Threats to the global financial stability are many, he thereby pointed out, but preparing for these economic threats in a collective fashion is also visible. Geopolitical issues will occupy centre stage and influence flow of capital to and from jurisdictions. Perception of risks will require a much more dynamic review. Volatility in currency will be both frequent and maybe large. The debt levels of some of the larger advanced economies and the ageing population are a concern. Economic performance of some large economies will be impacted. There will be a new economic order at the global platform. That will drive new opportunities and it is possible that we may have a changed economic order.

This week’s issue is accompanied by not one but two supplements: Men’s style and Immobilier & Construction.