He is an old board member of Asset | Economics, engaged as chairman and as treasurer. He completed two Masters at Tilburg University and nowadays he spends his days at KPMG in Breda. We are talking about Joris van Twist. He was kindly willing to look back at his years at Tilburg University and to give us some insights in his present life.
On Friday November the 20th ABN AMRO Bank made a return on Amsterdam’s stock exchange AEX. After being rescued by the Dutch government seven years ago, the bank is now getting back on its own feet again. Apparently investors were eager to buy a piece of the Dutch bank, because the shares closed at a value of 3.5% above the IPO price. The government and ABN’s CEO responded optimistic to this news. But what is the story behind the largest Dutch bailout during the crisis?
During the 2015 Paris Climate Conference that will be held on 7-8 December, where nations will aim on achieving a universal agreement on climate, one of the things on the agenda is the issue of climate finance. In 2010, when a conference was held in Cancún, Mexico, developed countries agreed on mobilizing up to €25 bln. over the period 2010-2012 to help developing countries in the fight against drought, flooding and other consequences of global warming. In the light of increasing climate funds, the famous French economist Thomas Piketty now proposes a progressive tax system that targets high-polluting individuals rather than countries.
Did you know? On October 31, the world celebrated World Savings Day! Established in 1924, the purpose of this day is to make people aware of the importance of saving. Because you probably didn’t think about this while celebrating Halloween, we consider this event as a good opportunity to evaluate the current savings market. Why is the interest rate which banks offer us for our money so extremely low? Is it possible that this interest rate will become negative? And are there any signs that the interest rate could increase in the near future?
Have you ever been to the Primark? If you believe the advertisement sector who say that true happiness can only be achieved through a constant gain of products, the Primark is Walhalla. The shop offers fashionable clothes in abundance for prices so low you wouldn’t imagine to be possible. Shops like Primark and H&M are the result of a new phenomenon called ‘fast fashion’. The year no longer has four, but fifty-two seasons: every week new clothes arrive in the stores. Clothes are no longer meant to last for a whole season, but to be consumed like a disposable product. You buy a new t-shirt for every occasion and never wear it again. The data are very clear about this trend: a 400% increase in the amount of clothes sold in the past 20 years.
Van Lanschot is the oldest independent private bank of the Netherlands and was founded in 1737. The bank is specialized in private banking and is therefore relatively small but still strongly present with 36 offices in the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland. The bank was participating at the last edition of the Inside the Business Day, organized by Asset | Economics. During that day we spoke with Anniek Braat, recruiter at Van Lanschot, to ask her about career opportunities at Van Lanschot.
Over the past decades we have seen a surge in world globalization; (financial) markets are becoming increasingly integrated. Recognizing the economic benefits of globalization countries have sought ways to reap these benefits, mainly by means of integration. Yet, in the end this also poses them to a so called globalization paradox. Countries cannot fully integrate without given up either on democracy or their national sovereignty.
The European commission blamed the Dutch tax officials for giving illegal tax benefit deals to Starbucks. These tax benefits can be seen as a state aid to Starbucks and it is forbidden by law to subsidize corporations. Starbucks Corp should pay the Dutch government 25 million euros in back taxes. The Netherlands is not going to receive a fine, however the European Antitrust commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that the country should feel ashamed.