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E – Banking

    Dunia teknologi informasi pada abad ke 20 ini telah menjadi fokus utama diberbagai aspek kehiduoan khususnya perusahaan, industri perdagangan, pendidikan dan hal lainnya yang menyangkut perkembangan sumber daya manusia ataupun sumber daya industri. Dalam perannya sebagai penunjang berbagai aspek kehidupan, teknologi informasi memiliki banyak kelebihan yang sudah diakui oleh berbagai kalangan manusia, seperti efisiensi kerja dan peningkatan produktfitas dan lainnya.

    Namun seiring dengan peningkatan kemampuan teknologi informasi tersebut, muncul juga berbagai hambatan yang menyerang teknologi informasi itu sendiri dari berbagai sisi khususnya dari sisi yang paling sensitif namun banyak diabaikan, yaitu sisi keamanan. Keamanan sistem informasi sangat erat kaitannya dengan berbagai aspek teknologi. diantaranya penyajian data, pengarsipan, transaksi elektronik dan lain sebagainya.Salah satu hal yang paling sensitif dalam keamanan sistem adalah transaksi elektronik, seperti e-banking. Saat ini banyak orang yang meragukan keamanan bertransaksi lewat internet. Meskipun sebetulnya muncul keraguan akan keamanan transaksi di internet, gerbang pembayaran tersebut sangatdibutuhkan untuk mempermudah transaksi dengan pembeli dari Negara lain. Didalam dunia maya, Indonesia sudah bertahun-tahun terkenal sebagai gudangnyapara carder atau orang-orang yang menggunakan kartu kredit orang lain untukbertransaksi di internet.

     Kita lihat dari susunan katanya saja, e sudah menunjukkan elektronik dan banking. Artinya sangat luas yaitu aktivitas perbankan yang dijalankan melalui media elektronik, seperti ATM juga termasuk didalamnya. Internet banking juga dalam lingkup ini, hanya saja lebih khusus dan diistilahkan internet banking. Sedangkan yang menggunakan device seperti via HP dikenal dengan M-Banking, termasuk ke dalam E-Bangking juga.

Pengertian E-Banking
      E-banking di definiskan sebagai penghantaran otomatis jasa dan produk bank secara langsung kepada nasabah bank, baik individu ataupun bisnis. Untuk mengakses rekening, malekukan transaksi bisnis, atau mendapatkan produk dan jasa bank melalui jaringan pribadi dan publik, termasuk internet. Nasabah dapat mengakses E-Banking melalui piranti pintar elektronik seperti komputer/PC, PDA, ATM, atau telepon.

International Trade in Technology - Licensing of Know-How and Trade Secrets

by Hans Verhulst, Consultant, Centre for Promotion of Imports from Developing Countries (CBI), The Netherlands.

Introduction

One of the effects of globalization is the relocation of production from the technology rich countries towards low labour cost countries. This is a threat for SME suppliers and manufacturers in technology-rich countries, whose customers turn their heads to low labour cost countries. On the other side of the globe, this trend creates opportunities for contract manufacturers and service industries.

From a historical and international perspective, we are witnessing a dramatic shift in the importance of the five main drivers for value adding: technology, production, marketing, logistics and support. From a historical and international perspective, technology –in the form of know how and trade secrets- has emerged as a key factor in this process.

In technology rich countries, there is a vast pool of know how waiting to be untapped. In emerging markets, there is an enormous demand for know how, waiting to be filled. This “trade in technology” could well be one of the answers to a changing world. But we need to improve the matching process for this trade i.e. through licensing. When it comes to transfer of know how and trade secrets which are hardly “patentable” –as is the case with most industrial know how- both parties, licensor and licensee alike, still seem to be reluctant to cross bridges. There is a role for institutions and governments to facilitate this matching process by improving the “climate” of intellectual property rights, particularly in know how and trade secrets.

The Value Model

We buy a product because we think the benefits we derive from the product or service (value) exceed the sacrifices (cost) connected to the same. These benefits are called customer (or market) values; sacrifices are known as cost of ownership. Benefits can be of technical, economic, social, environmental or service nature. Cost of ownership is composed of price, time and conflict. Particularly in trade between different cultures, doing business often creates conflicts as a result of misunderstanding in communication, different habits and business practices.

Changes From a Historical Perspective

From a historical perspective, the importance of technology has increased dramatically. Since the economic recovery after World War II, we distinguish four main trends: price, quality, speed and new, unique products.

• Directly after World War II, the increasing demand for all kind of products triggered producers to look for capacity. Increased competition forced them into cost effective production methods as well. But the quality of products suffered.

• This triggered the trend for quality products. All kind of quality assurance systems, many of them from Japanese origin, left their mark on the way companies were managed. It culminated into the widespread acceptance of the ISO 9000 quality assurance system, both in multinationals and SME’s alike.

• Again from Japan came the “no-stock” philosophy, implemented by JIT (just in time delivery). It was a first warning that separating production sites from their direct markets required sophisticated logistics, better known as supply chain management.

• Once companies had completed the “price, quality, delivery” triple, they used their last resort in their quest for profits: creating demand for new products. “Shelf-life” for all kinds of products decreased, “improved” versions of existing products became the backbone for sales promotion.

Changes From an International Perspective Other factors have influenced the importance of the five value adding activities. From the two statistics2, which give a relative comparison over the period 1900-2000, it is clear that technology and marketing have taken the role of production and support as main value activities3.

 The main drivers for their change in importance can be described as follows:

• Technology: that dramatic increase in importance due to the market demands we described in the previous paragraph was not the only reason. The relocation of production to low labour cost countries has confronted technology rich industries with an additional problem: protection of know how. It is widely accepted that direct foreign investments from industrial countries to developing countries have created a diffusion of technology into the recipient economies. Technology rich industries are mindful of the fact that without the existence of effective intellectual property system in the recipient countries the transferred technology may be used to compete against them thus denying them the opportunity for adequate returns to their investment/technology. Unfortunately, most potential technology recipient countries do not have strong intellectual property systems in place and as a result technology rich industries prefer to keep their R&D departments “close to the chest” and not move them along with their production units. This prevents the flow of technology through licensing.

• Production: at the dawn of industrialization, basic industries required huge investments in land, buildings, machines and labour. It is therefore logical that producers and manufacturers would receive the bulk of the total value added in the supply chain. But the increasing prosperity had its effect on labour costs, which constituted in most sectors between 50-70 % of the cost of production. Combined with the open border/trade liberalization policies of most developing countries this resulted in a wave of relocation of production activities towards low labour cost countries. This was most of all noticeable in the garments and -later on- in the electronics industry. Production as a value adding activity had deflated to a low level and –since it behaves like water- will continue to flow to the lowest point.

• Marketing: “You can buy a T-Ford in any colour you want, as long as it is black;. Henry Ford’s famous quote illustrates the role of marketing in the 20’s. It was a seller’s market and people would buy whatever industries would produce, such was the demand for new products.  After some decades, producers started to understand the need for marketing as a value adding activity. Companies realized the importance of trademarks and industrial designs in marketing strategy e.g. General Motors would position similar cars (Buick, Chevrolet, Pontiac or Oldsmobile) for different market segments and command a different price for each of these brands. It is difficult to explain exactly why we are prepared to pay a premium for Nike⁴ sneakers over other less “marketed” sport shoes. Is it because of superior quality (production), design (technology) or the name/logo (marketing)? Is that same marketing the reason why we pay more for a PC with “Intel inside”? The fact is that the “marketing factor” plays a dominant role in the purchasing process, more than ever before. Seller’s markets have turned into buyer’s markets, competition is global and the battle for markets is influenced more than ever by advertising budgets.

• Logistics: production in the early part of the previous century would typically take place close to markets or close to the availability of raw materials. This reduced the need for sophisticated logistics. Globalization and consequent relocation of production have triggered transport of raw materials, intermediates and finished products. Plastic bags for a supermarket in Germany are made in Bangladesh with materials produced in Korea, which in turn are based on intermediates from South America. Those intermediates are produced with European plasticizers and solvents, based on Russian crude oil.

Technology or Marketing?

Obviously, all industries now search for new added value in the technology and marketing “boxes”. The big money seems to be there. For manufacturers in developing countries, the choices are less obvious. Huge profits upwards in the supply chain -close to consumers and end- users are luring. But adding value through marketing means substantial investments in time and money. Investments in market research, market information, distribution channels, advertising, publicity and/or brand building. Another obstacle -certainly in B2B- is the customer himself. He is close to the end user markets or consumers and certainly does not want his supplier –the contract manufacturer- to compete with him on that same market.

From these perspectives it seems that both parties, - industries with technology and contract manufacturers alike- should opt for the technology route. For contract manufacturers it is the surest way to increase their added value and stay away from the downward spiral that affects all production activities. For technology rich industries, it could be a solution to the ever increasing problems around outsourcing and off-shoring. Cost advantage was and is the main driver for outsourcing, but both parties are having second thoughts about the benefits of outsourcing, particularly in manufacturing. Lack of understanding of the technological needs to manufacture a product in a correct and cost effective way is the main culprit. Furthermore, limited use of intellectual property in facilitating technology transfer and in marketing strategy can be said to contribute to the reluctance of the two sides in “crossing bridges”.

Obstacles to Licensing

Transfer of know how and trade secrets is not restricted to “technical” know how. Know how in each of the value adding activities is “fit for transfer”. Production and logistical know how are the first choices when it comes to contract manufacturing.

Companies that want to increase their share in emerging markets may opt to transfer their marketing secrets and support know how to local companies in those markets in return for a royalty on sales volumes.

Unfortunately, the licensing instrument is underutilized by SMEs. For the bigger part, this is because licensors are afraid of uncertainties about the protection of their intellectual property, including trade secrets.. On the other hand, licensees are reluctant to accept the often severe restrictions that come with license agreements. These in turn are the result of licensors being overcautious to protect their interests. The vicious circle is completed.

Transfer of technology can be a remedy against the problems that proliferation of production and trade has brought along. But then again, a lot of work has to be done to make the licensing of know how and trade secrets more accessible for those who need it most.

Source: http://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/trade_technology.htm

Bank

A bank is a financial institution and a financial intermediary that accepts deposits and channels those deposits into lending activities, either directly by loaning or indirectly through capital markets. A bank is the connection between customers that have capital deficits and customers with capital surpluses.

            Due to their influence within a financial system and an economy, banks are generally highly regulated in most countries. Most banks operate under a system known as fractional reserve banking where they hold only a small reserve of the funds deposited and lend out the rest for profit. They are generally subject tominimum capital requirements which are based on an international set of capital standards, known as the Basel Accords.

The oldest bank still in existence is Monte dei Paschi di Siena, headquartered in Siena, Italy, which has been operating continuously since 1472. It is followed by Berenberg Bank of Hamburg (1590) and Sveriges Riksbank of Sweden (1668).

            Banking in its modern sense evolved in rich cities of Renaissance Italy, such as Florence, Venice and Genoa. In the history of banking, a number of banking dynasties—among them notably Medici, Fugger, Welser, Berenberg, Baring and Rothschild^]—have played a central role over many centuries.

Economic functions

The economic functions of banks include:

1.    Issue of money, in the form of banknotes and current accounts subject to check or payment at the customer's order. These claims on banks can act as money because they are negotiable or repayable on demand, and hence valued at par. They are effectively transferable by mere delivery, in the case of banknotes, or by drawing a check that the payee may bank or cash.

2.    Netting and settlement of payments – banks act as both collection and paying agents for customers, participating in interbank clearing and settlement systems to collect, present, be presented with, and pay payment instruments. This enables banks to economize on reserves held for settlement of payments, since inward and outward payments offset each other. It also enables the offsetting of payment flows between geographical areas, reducing the cost of settlement between them.

3.    Credit intermediation – banks borrow and lend back-to-back on their own account as middle men.

4.    Credit quality improvement – banks lend money to ordinary commercial and personal borrowers (ordinary credit quality), but are high quality borrowers. The improvement comes from diversification of the bank's assets and capital which provides a buffer to absorb losses without defaulting on its obligations. However, banknotes and deposits are generally unsecured; if the bank gets into difficulty and pledges assets as security, to raise the funding it needs to continue to operate, this puts the note holders and depositors in an economically subordinated position.

5.    Asset liability mismatch/Maturity transformation – banks borrow more on demand debt and short term debt, but provide more long term loans. In other words, they borrow short and lend long. With a stronger credit quality than most other borrowers, banks can do this by aggregating issues (e.g. accepting deposits and issuing banknotes) and redemptions (e.g. withdrawals and redemption of banknotes), maintaining reserves of cash, investing in marketable securities that can be readily converted to cash if needed, and raising replacement funding as needed from various sources (e.g. wholesale cash markets and securities markets).

6.    Money creation – whenever a bank gives out a loan in a fractional-reserve banking system, a new sum of virtual money is created.