The Aaa-rated governments engulfed in the current financial crisis can successfully act as “anchors in the storm” for ailing financial institutions without risking a sudden massive ballooning in government debt that would endanger the sovereign rating, Moody’s Investors Service said in a new report entitled “Anchors in the Strom: Aaa Governments and Bank Bail-Outs”. Recent

Shari’ah-compliant banking is a recent phenomenon in Africa, discovered by most Muslim Africans only over the past decade. Conservatively assuming that banking entrenchment in Africa represents an average 50% of the total GDP produced by African Muslims, the Islamic finance market on the continent is potentially worth close to USD 235 bln, Moody’s Investors Service

Motorola, Inc. is making it easier for businesses to get a complete, integrated mobile computing solution by making Good Mobile Messaging and Good Mobile Intranet available to more than 10,000 VARs worldwide through its PartnerSelect channel program. Enterprises looking for a unified mobility solution including devices, data service plans, wireless email and other behind-the-firewall applications

SMART Technologies has announced its continued leadership regarding the number of interactive whiteboards installed in education institutions around the world, according to Decision Tree Consulting (DTC), a UK research company that has documented interactive whiteboard sales for eight years. The report also noted that SMART increased its 2007 product category share in the education segment

Dubai eGovernment has announced that Dubai Customs has become the 15th government department to join the AskDubai service, an initiative that facilitates interaction between the government and its public through a single point of contact. Through the AskDubai call centre, the public can enquire about various services offered by Dubai Customs through multiple channels of

Moody’s Investors Service has placed the following ratings of Budapest-based MKB Bank Zrt. (MKB) under review for possible downgrade: i) the Aa3 long-term local currency deposit rating, ii) the Aa3 foreign currency senior debt rating and iii) the A1 foreign currency subordinated debt rating. MKB’s C- bank financial strength rating (BFSR) and the A2 long

Emirates is the first airline in the world to commercially launch an inflight mobile telephone service allowing passengers to stay connected while travelling. The first authorised mobile phone call was made last Thursday at 30,000ft enroute to Casablanca, onboard an Emirates Airbus A340-300, the first in the airline’s fleet to be equipped with the AeroMobile system. The

Merrill Lynch & Co and UBS AG may suffer respective first-quarter write-downs of $6.03 bln and $11.06 bln, according to Oppenheimer & Co analyst Meredith Whitney, who slashed her earnings forecasts for the banking giants as the credit crisis drags on. Whitney issued her outlooks late Wednesday, a day after cutting estimates for Citigroup Inc,