In this day and age, a large number of the population is in possession of a credit card, sometimes even numerous credit cards! Banks and businesses are becoming more and more aware of consumer’s desires for specialised credit cards, and have thus introduced a myriad of credit cards that are joint ventures between banks and businesses. There are credit cards aimed at men, and credit cards aimed at women.
If you’re a sports fan, for instance, then you can’t go past the NASCAR credit card. Or there’s the NFL credit card, the World Series of Poker credit card, the MLB credit card, and the Bass Pro Shops credit card. People who love to travel would be interested in the British Airways credit card, or the World Perks credit card. If you like your cars, then the Subaru credit card, or the Volkswagen credit card is for you.
With the price of gas escalating out of control in the current world climate, gas reward credit cards are in big demand! Two such cards available at the moment are the Speedway SuperAmerica credit card, which lets you earn up to an 8% rebate on all gas and merchandise purchased at Speedway, SuperAmerica, and Rich Oil locations; and the HESS credit card, which lets you earn up to a 10% rebate on all HESS purchases. Read the rest of this entry »
1. Service tax authorities, of late, have been issuing notices to various borrowers of External Commercial Borrowings (ECB’s) from foreign branches of Indian banks and holding them liable to pay Service tax from September 10, 2004 under section 65(12)(a)(ix) of the Finance Act, 1994 which covers ECBs.
According to the borrower, the responsibility of paying service tax is of the service provider which is the foreign branch of the Indian bank and, hence, the Indian bank having a permanent establishment in India, is supposed to pay and not the borrower.
The contention of the service tax authorities is partially correct after coming into effect of section 66A of the Finance Act, 1994 from April 18, 2006.
Until the coming into effect of section 66A, the liability and obligation to pay service tax was that of Indian bank and not that of the borrower. Contrary to the contention of the service tax authorities, even under rule 2(1)(d)(iv) of the said Rules, effective from August 16, 2002 and June 16, 2005 respectively, the borrower cannot be made liable for the payment of service tax. Read the rest of this entry »
We’ve all heard the saying where there’s a will, there’s a way; well, how would you like to discover a bank loophole to buy foreclosed home dirt cheap? I can show you how to make money like big investors do.
There was a time when banks wouldn’t even talk to you if you didn’t have A++ credit and a substantial down payment. Well, things have changed drastically, and you can now purchase property with less than perfect credit, with as little as $100 down.
No, I’m not talking about those infomercials where they promise you the world and deliver information that you can retrieve from your local courthouse. During these tough economic times, nobody has money to throw away and certainly no time to waste, so let’s get right to the important part. Read the rest of this entry »
It is a fact that at one point in time or another nearly all entrepreneurs need a bank business loan, either to start up the enterprise, expend it, or to bridge difficult times when the consumer turns fickle. Of the many lenders and types of loans available, a bank business loan will probably be the best bet for starting the venture. A bank business loan is often the best way to establish and maintain your venture’s credit rating, if it is fastidiously repaid.
But, if you are experiencing financial problems, is a bank business loan a good idea to use to get current on the debts? Just what is a bank business loan and what is the application procedure? A bank business loan is an unsecured loan that does not require collateral of any kind. It is based entirely upon the credit rating of all of the involved partners; the prospectus or the plan that was developed that outlines the venture, including both the financial liabilities and the anticipated income. You will have to provide well-organized and scrupulous detail, together with a good credit rating for this type of loan. A bank business loan is the primary vehicle for starting up an enterprise and gets a venture off to a good start, however it is a poor remedy for existing financial problems. Read the rest of this entry »
DEMOCRACTIC DEFICIT IN AN INDEPENDENT CENTRAL BANK: THE QUEST TO BALANCE THE SCALES by Leonard Nkole Kalinde*
1.0. INTRODUCTION
Central banking is of cardinal importance in any country because of the legal right normally granted to central banks to create money. This money can serve as a means of payment, a unit of account and a store of value. One of the important issues immediately arising after granting this right to a central bank, is whether this function should fall under the ultimate control of the executive branch of government – the cabinet and its administrative departments – or whether parliament should leave this responsibility to be freely executed by an independent, autonomous powerful institution run by unelected people.
The traditional argument in favour of a strong, independent central bank is that the power to spend money should in some way be separated from the power to create money. Numerous episodes in the world’s economic history testify to a government’s potential abuse of its power to create money. However, one potential objection to a completely independent central bank is lack of democratic accountability and transparency. This paper discusses the challenges of ensuring central bank accountability and transparency in an environment where the central Bank is independent. Part two discusses the concept of central bank independence. Part three examines and analyses the need to have democratic accountability and transparency in the operations of a central bank. Part four concludes that proper democratic accountability and transparency in central operations is not a counterweight to the principle of central bank independence. Read the rest of this entry »
