State-owned financial institutions (SOFIs) are often associated with poor corporate governance, political interference, crowding out of private sector resources, higher non-performing loans (NPLs…

Gunhild Berg, Mario Guadamillas |

In recent years, Nepal has made the headlines for the wrong reasons. In April 2015, it was shaken by a huge earthquake that claimed thousands of lives and caused country-wide destruction.  In…

Taneem Ahad, Raihana Rabbany |

Global competition to attract foreign and domestic direct investment is so high that nearly all countries offer incentives (such as tax holidays, customs duty exemptions and subsidized loans) to…

Harald Jedlicka, Yassin Sabha |

Also available in: Arabic | French National Bank of Abu Dhabi, UAE. Photo: Wikimedia Commons Gulf banking markets may have entered an important phase of consolidation, with the potential to…

Pietro Calice |

The spectacular recovery of a long-missing painting by Pablo Picasso – a canvas that had been stolen more than a decade ago, in a daring museum theft in Paris – offers a vivid reminder of the…

Christopher Colford |

Private sector development (PSD) plays a crucial role in post-conflict economic development and poverty alleviation. Fragile states, however, face major challenges, such as difficult access to…

Steve Utterwulghe |

  You’d probably be skeptical if I told you that the Western Balkans – a region that has long suffered from social and ethnic fragmentation – now has a strong opportunity to boost shared…

Paulo Correa |

"Project Greenback 2.0 – Remittance Champion Cities" was launched on October 29 in Turin, Italy. A team from the World Bank's service line on Financial Infrastructure, hosting the…

Massimo Cirasino, Marco Nicoli |

I pay through the nose for health insurance for my family, and I’m not happy about it. As a U.S. citizen, I don’t have the luxury of government-backed healthcare. Since I’m technically self-…

David Lawrence |