Search Results (3)

The COVID-19 pandemic and induced economic and social constraints have significantly impacted the confidence of both consumers and businesses. Despite that, comprehensive studies of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the consumer and business sentiment are still lacking. Thus, in our research we aim to identify consumer and business confidence indicators’ reaction to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Eurozone, the United States, and China. For this purpose, we used the method of correlation–regression analysis. We chose the consumer-confidence index, manufacturing purchasing manager’s index, and services purchasing manager’s index as dependent variables; and the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19, the number of deaths caused by COVID-19, and the mortality rate of COVID-19 infections as independent variables. The results showed a relatively rapid and robust effect of COVID-19 in the short period, but longer-term results depended on the region and were not so unambiguous: in the case of the Eurozone, the spread of COVID-19 pandemic did not affect the consumer-confidence index (CCI) or, in the cases of the United States and China, affected this index negatively; the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) in the services sector was significantly negatively affected by the mortality risk of COVID-19 infection; and the impact on the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) in the manufacturing industry appeared to be mixed. Full article

The role of financial technology companies increases every day. From one side this process generates more possibilities for consumers from other side it is related with new risks which arise in banking sector. At the beginning of FinTech era lots of analyst were discussing about disruptive potential in financial services. Later, however, we can see more discussions about cooperation between FinTech companies and banks. The other point which is very important to discuss about is a financial inclusion. The purpose of this study is to analyze the interaction between banking sector and FinTech companies. We use a case study of Lithuania because here FinTech sector is growing very intensively. First of all we try to analyze the scientific literature which analyzes the main aspects of FinTech sector. The second part of the article provides the progress of the FinTech sector and presents the main points of methodology. The research of the FinTech sector in Lithuania was focused on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) and political, economic, social, technological, environmental, legal (PESTEL) analysis and main statistical parameters. We also used a correlation and regression analysis together with qualitative assessments. Our results showed that in order to value the interaction between banking and financial technology better to focus on qualitative assessment because only statistical analysis can give different and wrong results. We identified that both sectors interact with each other and there is no a disruptive effect of FinTech in Lithuania. Full article

At the global level and in particular the European level, challenges related to climate change and the transition to green transactions have created an imperative where identifying or developing innovative financial instruments, appropriate for these priorities, have become our research priorities and objectives. Starting from the analysis of the European Investment Plan for green transactions, as well as the EU Directive 2018/410 of the European Parliament and of the Council, in conjunction with ongoing efforts to identify innovative financing tools, research is presented based on hypotheses using concepts and models of green financing. The paper aims to analyze the main concepts and phenomena that could be considered generative factors for current financial market trends, as well as the inventory of facts and acts that provide a picture of the financial market. Based on these investigations, this paper suggest how we can best analyze the economic environment, processes, and resources in terms of their predictions regarding the sustainability of financial markets in the context of current challenges. Moreover, our paper aims to highlight in our empirical research the above-mentioned aspects, including the analysis of the emergence of new financial instruments at the global level with a direct impact on financial sustainability at the European level, including reflecting certain particularities of financial markets Romania. This research will be both a scientific contribution to the specialized literature and a possible support tool for the practical activities of entrepreneurs in their economic endeavor of developing sustainable businesses. Full article