Author Archives: Nick Corbishley

Spain’s golden visa program has helped to attract thousands of affluent Latin American politicians and business owners to Madrid, but its days may be numbered, at least in its current form.

“Nigeria must go cashless. It is a global policy, checking insecurity and fighting corruption”: Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Godwin Emefiele

As in neighboring Germany and Austria, cash is still king in Switzerland albeit a much diminished one. But the Swiss will soon have the chance to vote on whether to preserve notes and coins indefinitely.  

“Canada’s influence on mining is felt in Latin America more than in any other region of the world.” And its second most important market is Peru. 

Another G-7 economy, the UK, took a big step toward adopting a central bank digital currency (CBDC). At the same time, the first largish economy to have launched a CBDC, Nigeria, descends further into financial chaos.

In a rare turn up for the books, the head of state of Latin America’s largest economy just accused three of the country’s four richest men of engaging in blatant accounting fraud.

As the price of everything, including debt, continues to soar, life is getting harder and harder for the UK’s heavily indebted businesses.

Mexico is not only dangerously dependent on US growers for its most important staple crop; it is growing more and more dependent each and every year. Mexico’s government wants to reverse this dynamic, but the US has other ideas.

Washington, Kiev and the EU have been furiously lobbying Latin American governments to provide weaponry to Ukraine, but they still want no part of this war.

Ukraine’s wholesale digitization of government services predates the war, but in the eternal spirit of never letting a good crisis go to waste and with the financial support of USAID and the EU, it has been significantly expanded since.

“In a lot of our countries in this region, [the PRC] is the number one trade partner, with the United States number two in most cases.”

AMLO may seem like a curious choice for “Tyrant of the Year,” especially given the fierce competition for the title. But once you see who leads and finances the NGO in question, it all makes a bit more sense. . 

The timing is convenient coming just as Mastercard is piloting a biometric-authenticated payments system in the UK, which will require digital, not physical, wallets.   

“Discovery” of multi-billion dollar “inconsistencies” on Brazilian retail giant’s balance sheet is a timely reminder of the risks posed by supply chain finance, especially in a heavily weakened business environment such as today.

The invasion of the capitol gives Lula the perfect justification for cleaning house, most importantly in the civil service, judiciary and military. It has also, however briefly, united the governments of Latin America against right-wing authoritarianism