• Ice blocks frozen solid for thousands of years destabilized
• ‘The climate is now warmer than at any time in last 5,000 years’

Permafrost at outposts in the Canadian Arctic is thawing 70 years earlier than predicted, an expedition has discovered, in the latest sign that the global climate crisis is accelerating even faster than scientists had feared.

A team from the University of Alaska Fairbanks said they were astounded by how quickly a succession of unusually hot summers had destabilised the upper layers of giant subterranean ice blocks that had been frozen solid for millennia.

Voorzitter Johan Schikker stapt op bij Cambuur. Ook Jan Koster en Rudy Douma, beiden lid van de raad van commissarissen stappen op.

The Planning Authority will have certain discretion when it comes to asking for social impact assessments, other than in particular situations when it is obligatory, and this fact raised a few questions during a Parliamentary committee hearing.

MPs forming part of the Environment and Development Planning Committee in Parliament were discussing the Planning Authority's draft policy titled: "Social Impact Assessments as a tool for decision making in special planning."

The Planning Authority had, when announcing this policy, said that it is proposing standard procedures for Social Impact Assessments (SIA) to become a requirement as part of the planning system. "With the practice of SIA in Malta still in its infancy, the Planning Authority, through this document is seeking to introduce a standard procedure for their use and the terms of reference to guide the preparation of future SIAs. To date, SIAs are only obligatory if a proposed project is making use of the tall buildings policy," the PA had said. A social impact assessment (SIA) seeks to identify and manage both the positive and negative social impacts of planned projects or proposed policy-making. SIAs are used to mitigate negative impacts and identify opportunities to enhance benefits for local communities and broader society."

The Planning Authority had said that it is proposing that when plans or policies are being drafted, the Executive Council assesses the need for an SIA on a case-by-case basis. However, when the Strategic Environment Assessment (SEA) screening process identifies the need for an SEA on a plan or policy, this will automatically trigger the need for an SIA to be carried out. "In proposed development applications, an SIA will become a requirement whenever the relevant plan or policy indicates it to be a requirement. All SIA reports shall be published."

During the committee meeting, PN MP Jason Azzopardi  asked what happens after such an assessment is made." If the assessment finds that the impact is negative, what will happen? Will there be clear consequences to this?"

Speaking about future policies, the PA representatives, Michelle Borg and Joe Scalpello said that the Social Impact Assessments for these will not just end with a document. There will be continuous discussions between the planning team preparing policy and planning team preparing the impact.  If the impact finds that, for example, a policy regarding penthouses will result in social revolution, then recommendation needs to be made and that policy should not go through at strategic policy stage.  If impact states that, instead of using 80% of the roof footprint one can mitigate the issue by using 50%, then the impact can be sustainably reduced."

They said that the policy making stage is an evolving process.

On private projects the scenario is different they said.  "Projects come to the PA most often already at a very advanced stage and one must assess this project and what impact on the community it will have and then mitigation measures will come in.  If measures can be integrated then they must be done by the developer and if not then the directorate must take the fact that there will be a residual social impact and then come to holistic conclusion on whether a project is to proceed or not."

Planning Authority representatives Michelle Borg and Joe Scalpello, describing the proposed policy, said that the idea is to bring in something that is standardised, a systematic process, they explained, which will result in more transparency.

The social impact assessment process is not a replacement of other assessments or public consultation on applications, but is just another added layer, they said.

Once such a report is concluded for a project, it will be issued for public consultation along with the general planning application in question, they said.

Asked about what the authority does today based on these studies, the authority representatives said that mitigation measures related to planning will be integrated in the new permit. Asked about enforcement of these measures, they PA representatives said that enforcement would be the responsibility of the agency responsible for that sector

Parliamentary Secretary Roderick Galdes said that such assessments should be considered to be done by the PA when taking long-term policy decisions, such as if it considers raising building heights for an area, etc.

PN MP Jason Azzopardi said that it is a good proposal. He asked, as a result of this policy, which cases will it be mandatory to include a social impact assessment, aside from when tall buildings are involved?

The representatives said that it will be mandatory in cases where Strategic Environment Assessment screening will identify the need for a Social Impact Assessment. "As a general rule, anything else will be on a case-by-case basis, they said, decided upon by the Council when proposed by the Planning Directorate."

Azzopardi said that when one has discretion it allows for abuse or discretion for interpretation.  "Isn't it the case to remove that discretion? How can we fix this or am I worrying for nothing?"

The representatives said that the social impact assessment process is new to Malta. This hybrid approach is there to see which cases need it, they said, and if in x cases y happened, the directorate can go to the council and ask for it to be changed given Y happened. "It's a learning process."

Alex Muscat asked about which experts would be able to conduct such assessments, and they said that according to the proposal, they would not have a register of experts." It's like the EIA in the 1990s,  as time went on people gained expertise in conducting them."

Currently there are not more than 5 or 6 people on the islands capable of conducting them, the representatives said.  

Claire Bonello, representing NGOs, said that they have had some experience with the social impact assessments due to high rise buildings, but said there were issues with them. She said that they generally are seen as a box-ticking exercise, and then the findings would be ignored. She mentioned a case where negative impacts were highlighted, but the permit was still granted.

She said that she would like to avoid the mistakes made in the past. As for when such assessments take place, she argued that at the moment is not clear how Strategic Environment Assessment screening for large projects takes place. "If the screening unit decides that there is no need for an Social Impact Assessment , can it be appealed," she asked? Bonello said that there need to be more ground rules not requiring the council's discretion.

 "When mitigation or compensatory measures are included in Social Impact Assessments sone should see whether they go against other plans or policies and ensure that their effect will be studied."

"If the Social Impact Assessment conclusion finds that the impact will be negative, there must be measures to downsize the project or stop it from happening. There have been cases where the application just kept going through regardless."

Bonello said that a number of mitigation measures are not really enforceable. "For example if include a measure that the developer will discuss with Transport Mata to find alternative transport routes etc. how will this be enforced?  They can go for a discussion and just tick the box. There need to be enforceable conditions. "

The PA representatives said that that the SEA screening process uses a standard methodology, using a standard template. That document is published by the PA, they said, on their website. They said that they were not sure if there is a right to an appeal emerging from the legal notice and would need to check.

They said that they will continue working to improve the document proposal. On mitigation measures, they said they will take the point that mitigation measures be realisable and enforceable, and is a comment that they can include in the revised document. "Again we will learn by experience and the more of such assessments we conduct the more we will improve."

PN MP Azzopardi then asked about a different topic, regarding recent court decisions finding pre-1995 rent laws, bringing them into scrutiny. Azzopardi said that they are being declared to breach human rights. He said that these will end up resulting in problems for housing. He said that he recently spoke to an elderly woman in such rent, and that there are thousands more, and that this situation could lead to a housing crisis. He made clear that he was not criticising the judgements. "Would you as the directorate delve into the housing requirements of the country for the next 10 years keeping in mind the rent laws? Would you keep in mind these developments? These judgements will impact thousands of people. I don't think there is anything more socially important than having a roof over your head."

The PA's representative said that this is not something that was discussed, but the SPED, when speaking about housing supply, does not speak about market segmentation. The forecast we did was total need for housing, and found that we have enough space, that the number of units are enough to accommodate the need for housing. Then there is affordability and social housing, and this type of segmentation we have not done, but if the government direction is that even at planning stage we need to allocate specific areas for specific types of housing obviously we can do it. But at this stage our criteria was to ensure that the global need for housing can be accommodated within the development zone."

In een achttal vragen en stellingen worden beleggingsadviseurs en private bankers die klantcontact hebben gevraagd om mee te doen. Loonen is naast hoogleraar aan de Postgraduate Opleiding Investment Management School of Business & Economics aan de Vrije Universiteit, ook directeur private banking bij InsingerGilissen.

In 2014 kreeg Loonen zijn hoogleraaraanstelling. Bij die gelegenheid verklaarde hij tegenover Fondsnieuws dat hij wilde gaan onderzoeken wat 'al die wetten, regels en leidraden' nou voor een effect hebben en wat de sector, maar vooral ook de consument, ermee opschiet. In dat kader entameerde hij een onderzoek naar de bankierseed. 

'Het is daarbij niet mijn intentie alleen negatief kritisch te zijn', zei Loonen indertijd in zijn toelichting. 'Los van alle emoties, wil ik objectief gaan kijken naar de toegevoegde waarde van bepaalde richtlijnen en wetgeving. Daarbij zie ik het vooral ook als mijn rol aanbevelingen te doen over hoe het eventueel beter kan.'

Loonen had de Mifid II-richtlijn in 2014 al hoog op zijn onderzoeksagenda staan: 'Ik ben heel benieuwd hoe partijen omgaan met de implementatie van deze nieuwe richtlijn en in het bijzonder met het verder borgen van het belang van de cliënt.'

Vul hier de peiling in over het effect van Mifid II op de beleggingsadvisering

Fondsnieuws moedigt zijn lezers aan om mee te doen aan het onderzoek van Loonen, omdat het inderdaad bijdraagt aan meer inzicht in de effectiviteit van wet- en regelgeving, wat na de regelwoede na de crisis van 2008/2009 geen overbodige luxe is.

De onderzoekresultaten worden in het najaar gepubliceerd. Op verzoek kan het uiteindelijke wetenschappelijke artikel aan deelnemers worden toegezonden. Hiertoe dient u als deelnemer zelf het initiatief te nemen, middels het sturen van een mail naar info@financialbridge.nl   

De deelname aan het onderzoek, en de resultaten ervan zijn anoniem. Fondsnieuws heeft er verder geen inhoudelijke bemoeienis mee, los van het feit dat wij in het najaar redactionele aandacht aan de resultaten zullen geven. Ook DSI heeft zijn deelname aan het onderzoek toegezegd. 

De bekendmaking van de deal betekent dat geïnteresseerde partijen als ASR en Aegon samen met het Amerikaanse Blackstone zijn afgevallen. 

Opkoper van levensverzekeringen

De markt vindt het niet verrassend dat NN de schadetak overneemt, maar wel dat de rest van het bedrijf naar het onbekende, op de Bermuda-eilanden gevestigde Athora gaat. Vooralsnog zullen alle merken van Vivat, waaronder Zwitserleven en Reaal, op de Nederlandse markt blijven bestaan. Het hoofdkantoor van Vivat blijft in Amstelveen (foto). 

Inhoudelijk gaat het om bedrijfspensioenen van Zwitserleven, de Zwitserleven PPI, vermogensbeheerder Actiam en de individuele pensioenproducten van Reaal. 

Athora koopt Vivat in zijn geheel van het Chinese Anbang en vervolgens worden de niet-leven activiteiten voor 416 miljoen euro verkocht aan NN. Hoeveel Athora betaalt aan Anbang voor heel Vivat, is onbekend. 

Met de overname door Athora komt er een nieuwe speler op de Nederlandse verzekeringsmarkt. Het is een gespecialiseerde opkoper op verzekeringsgebied. Eerder deed zij al aankopen in Duitsland, België en Ierland. Het bedrijf gaf aan te willen investeren in de Nederlandse leven-activiteiten. 

Impliciete boodschap: levensverzekeraars te koop 

Volgens ABN Amro is de impliciete boodschap van de overname dat levensverzekeraars kennelijk mogen worden overgenomen door private equity huizen, wat de waarde van de levensverzekeringsmarkt verhoogt, aldus analist Cor Kluis. Hij wijst erop dat private equity de verzekeringspremies doorgaans risicovoller belegt, wat de verzekeraar meer winst oplevert. 

Het Financieele Dagblad schrijft dat Athora voornemens is het beleggingsbeleid van Vivat aan te pakken. Anthora, waar achter de Amerikaanse durfinvesteerder Apollo schuilgaat, alsook pensioenfondsen en staatsfondsen, zou risicovoller willen beleggen: uit laagrenderende staatsobligaties in meer risicovolle beleggingen. Daarin zou zowel Apollo als Actiam een rol gaan spelen. 

Uit het jaarverslag van Vivat over 2018 blijkt dat het concern 55,7 miljard euro aan assets had, waarvan 38,7 miljard aan beleggingen. Hiervan bedroegen de beleggingen ten gunste van polishouders 12 miljard.

NN realiseert meer schaalgrootte 

Voor NN is het de tweede grote overname in een paar jaar tijd. In 2017 slokte het concurrent Delta Lloyd al op, inclusief de vermogensbeheeractiviteiten die ondergebracht waren in Delta Lloyd Asset Management. Dit onderdeel is opgegaan in NN Investment Partners. Het beheerde vermogen van Delta Lloyd AM was ongeveer 50 miljard euro groot.

NN hoopt door de overname te kunnen profiteren van meer schaalvoordelen, waarmee de winstgevendheid vergroot kan worden.

NN stelt dat met de overname zijn positie op de Nederlandse markt wordt versterkt. Het is de bedoeling dat de transactie in het eerste kwartaal van 2020 wordt afgerond. De Nederlandsche Bank moet nog een 'verklaring van geen bezwaar' afgeven. 

Anbang was een valse belofte

In 2015 kocht Anbang voor 1 euro de verzekeraar van de Nederlandse staat, die in 2013 genoodzaakt was om het bedrijf te nationaliseren tijdens de nasleep van de kredietcrisis. Recent werd Vivat door Anbang in de etalage gezet omdat het Chinese conglomeraat door veel aankopen een enorme schuldenlast had opgebouwd. De Chinese staat stelde het bedrijf daarop onder curatele. 

De voormalige topman van Anbang, Wu Xiaohui, werd vorig jaar veroordeeld tot een jarenlange celstraf wegens fraude en corruptie. Ook de Belgische dochter, Bank Nagelmackers, staat in de verkoop. ABN Amro zou één van de geïnteresseerden zijn. 

Bank of America doelt op de zogenoemde 'leveraged loans’, waarbij het gaat om bedrijven die veel schulden hebben en mede daarom ook als risicovol te boek staan. Toezichthouders maken zich al langere tijd zorgen over deze ontwikkeling. In de Verenigde Staten zou het gaan om ongeveer 1200 miljard dollar, een markt waarin Bank of America één van de grootste spelers is. 

Door de 'search for yield' zijn verstrekkers van geld bereid tot het geven van leningen waar steeds minder waarborgen tegenover staan. Dat kan een serieus probleem worden als de economie sterk terugvalt zoals nu door veel economen en analisten wordt ingecalculeerd. 

Brian Moynihan van Bank of America is de laatste in de rij van experts die zich zorgen maakt over deze markt. Bank of America heeft daartoe ook reden. Zij heeft dit jaar maar liefst 317 miljard dollar aan de uitgifte van leveraged loans begeleid, aldus persbureau Bloomberg. Vorig jaar was dat nog 688 miljard dollar, maar de bank bouwt haar blootstelling naar zeer risicovolle leningen af. 

Moynihan maakte eerder deze week bij een bijeenkomst in New York een vergelijking met de crisis van tien jaar geleden: 'Heel wat leveraged loans worden verkocht aan vehikels die ze herverpakken en doorverkopen aan beleggers. Dat was ook het geval bij de zogenoemde rommelhypotheken die tot de kredietcrisis van 2007/2008 aanleiding hebben gegeven doordat ze het hele systeem hadden geïnfecteerd.' Daarbij speelden ook ratingbureaus als Moody's een rol, die veel te lichtzinnig waren in het geven van A-ratings voor deze producten. 

Inmiddels maken ook de centrale banken zich zorgen over deze ontwikkeling. De Federal Reserve onderschreef de opvatting dat er een parallel is met de rommelhypotheken. De scheidende hoofdeconoom Peter Praet van de ECB zei tegenover De Tijd: ‘Ik zie een risico in de praktijk om geld te lenen in yen en dat vervolgens te herbeleggen in CLO’s, clusters van hoogrentende Amerikaanse bedrijfsschulden met een lange looptijd. Het is heel simpel en je kan er goed geld mee verdienen, maar het is heel riskant.'

Vanuit Bordeaux, waar een processie van gele vesten op 25 mei bijeenkwam, zei David Poulin, oprichter van het “Gilets jaunes constructifs” (Yellow Vests constructief), dat de demonstranten minder op straat zijn bij de manifestaties vanwege de repressie van de politie. Volgens hem zijn de gele vesten nog steeds actief op de rotondes.

Wat is de invloed van de EU verkiezingsuitslag

Dat de algeheel gehate politicus Emmanuel Macron niet erg populair is bij de gele hesjes moge duidelijk zijn. Sinds de aanvang op 17 november is er nog nooit een manifestatie geweest waar men in koor aandrong op zijn aftreden. In een recente reactie bij RT werd al duidelijk dat de Franse President zich niet terughoudend gaat opstellen na het verlies van Marie Le Pen, iets wat we overal zien in Europa waar de winnaars genegeerd worden. Iets wat alleen maar gaat leiden tot nog meer weerstand bij de kiezers en in dit geval de Gilets Jaunes protesten. We verwachten dan ook een groep die onverzetbaar hun ongenoegen laten blijken komende zaterdag bij Acte 29 overal in den lande.

Dit kopte Ouest France: Europese verkiezingen. Marine Le Pen wil profiteren van de Gele Hesjes crisis om wraak te nemen

Marine Le Pen won haar weddenschap: ze versloeg Emmanuel Macron in de Europese verkiezingen. Maar eigenlijk, wat verandert er? De president verandert niet van koers zoals duidelijk was op voorhand. Bovendien is de score van Marine Le Pen’s bondgenoten in Europa niet genoeg om een krachtige groep in het Europees Parlement te vormen.

De strijd moet dus onverminderd doorgaan

Het handelsconflict tussen de Verenigde Staten en China kan uitdraaien op een competitieve devaluatiegolf in de hele wereld. Daarvoor waarschuwt

The post Oud-gouverneur Chinese centrale bank waarschuwt voor valutaoorlog appeared first on Marketupdate.

De rente op Europese staatsobligaties is de laatste dagen naar een nieuw dieptepunt gezakt. Door een oplaaiende handelsoorlog, toegenomen geopolitieke

The post Rente Europese staatsobligaties naar nieuw dieptepunt appeared first on Marketupdate.

Venezuela gaat nieuwe biljetten uitbrengen om het tekort aan geld te verlichten, zo lezen we op de website van de

The post Venezuela brengt nieuwe bankbiljetten uit appeared first on Marketupdate.

De Mexicaanse peso was vorige week de grote winnaar op de valutamarkt. Dat was geen verrassing, want na vage toezeggingen

The post Trump trekt dreigement aan Mexico in, dollar en peso herstellen appeared first on Marketupdate.

De verwachting van de financiële markten ten aanzien van het rentebeleid van de Amerikaanse Federale Reserve is de afgelopen maanden

The post Overenthousiaste markt kan door ‘hawkish’ Fed verrast worden appeared first on Marketupdate.

Europa en Rusland hebben opnieuw een stap gezet richting het gebruik van de euro voor internationale handel. De Russische minister

The post Europa en Rusland dichter bij handel in euro’s appeared first on Marketupdate.

Een gedetineerde van een gevangenis in het westen van Frankrijk heeft gisteravond twee bewakers gegijzeld. Hij sloeg met een zelfgemaakt wapen toe tijdens het avondeten.

Volgens persbureau AFP is de gijzeling inmiddels beëindigd. De gedetineerde heeft de twee vrijgelaten.

Psychische problemen

Volgens de autoriteiten hield de gevangene een bewaker en een stagiair vast. Het Franse ministerie van Justitie stelde vanwege de gijzeling een crisisteam in. Defensie stuurde militairen naar de gevangenis. Ook was er een elite-eenheid van de Franse nationale politie aanwezig, die gespecialiseerd is in gijzelingen.

De dader heeft psychische problemen en zou bekendstaan als 'de kampioen van de gijzelingen in de gevangenis'. Hij zou er al minstens vijf op zijn conto hebben staan.

De gedetineerde zit in de gevangenis van Condé-sur-Sarthe. Daar zitten vooral gevaarlijke, geradicaliseerde of moeilijk te handhaven gevangenen.

Onlangs is de beveiliging in die gevangenis nog aangescherpt. In maart verwondde een gevangene twee bewakers met een zelfgemaakt wapen.

Schulden van eurolanden die te ruim begroten, moeten worden teruggedrongen. Landen die dat niet doen zouden harder moeten worden aangepakt. Dat valt op te maken uit een advies van de Raad van State aan de Tweede Kamer. Ook voor Nederland staat er een advies in: kijk nog eens of de schuldenlast van particulieren, zoals hypotheekschulden, verder omlaag moet.

De Kamer heeft begin dit jaar om het advies gevraagd, omdat ze zich zorgen maakt over wat er gebeurt als landen binnen de zone zich niet aan afspraken houden. Dat was onlangs bijvoorbeeld nog het geval met Italië, dat voor dit jaar een begroting indiende die niet aan de regels voldeed. Daarnaast is de vraag wat er gedaan kan worden als meerdere landen en bankenstelsels tegelijk in de problemen komen.

Nederland profiteert als handelsland relatief veel van het feit dat het deel uitmaakt van de eurozone, maar is daardoor ook kwetsbaar als het misgaat in de andere eurolanden. Deze maand bepaalt de Europese Raad voor de komende vijf jaar een plan van aanpak voor de nieuw aantredende Europese Commissie.

Ook Nederland mag zich daar in mengen en zeggen wat er moet gebeuren om risico's in de eurozone te verkleinen. Het advies dat de Raad van State vandaag aan de Kamer presenteert is dus belangrijk, omdat het kan bijdragen aan de bepaling van het Nederlandse standpunt.

Hoe staan we ervoor?

Sinds het vorige advies van de Raad van State in 2017 is de economie van de eurozone erop vooruitgegaan. Volgens de Raad, het hoogste adviesorgaan van de regering, staan de begrotingen er over het algemeen beter voor. Ook de banken laten betere cijfers zien, onder meer doordat ze voor een deel van hun probleemleningen zijn verlost.

De steunprogramma's voor probleemlanden zoals Griekenland, Ierland en Spanje zijn succesvol. Nadat de eurolanden door de crisis flink op de proef waren gesteld, zijn er maatregelen getroffen om het financiële stelsel weerbaarder te maken. Bijvoorbeeld door het invoeren van het Europees Stabiliteitsmechanisme, een noodfonds dat kan bijspringen als landen in de problemen raken. Daar waren ook hervormingen aan verbonden.

Maar in landen die geen steun uit dat fonds ontvingen, blijven de nodige hervormingen nog achter. Het gebrek aan dit soort hervormingen zit de groei van de economie in de eurozone in de weg. De mogelijke groei zal de komende tijd naar verwachting blijven hangen rond de 1,25 procent. Sommige landen hebben aanhoudend een hoge overheidsschuld.

Ook Nederland

Ook in Nederland blijven de nodige hervormingen achter, concludeert de Raad. Nederland zou meer kunnen doen aan het risico dat onze economie loopt door de relatief hoge schulden van huishoudens in Nederland. Dat komt omdat veel Nederlanders een eigen huis en dus een hypotheek hebben.

Zorgpunten zijn de aanhoudend lage rente van de ECB, die goedkoop lenen mogelijk maakt, en de snelgroeiende huizenprijzen. Ook zal de vergrijzing voor steeds hogere kosten zorgen.

Risico's

De vraag is of de eurolanden voldoende buffer hebben om tegenvallers straks op te vangen. Elf van de negentien hebben een hogere staatsschuld dan de vastgestelde norm (maximaal 60 procent van het bruto binnenlands product). Volgens de regels zouden die landen hun schulden in een 'bevredigend tempo' moeten terugdringen, en dat gebeurt te weinig. Het niet navolgen van die regels wordt bovendien niet genoeg gehandhaafd, omdat er te weinig wordt afgestraft met bijvoorbeeld financiële sancties.

Als er een nieuwe recessie komt of de rentes omhoog gaan, kan dat voor problemen zorgen. En als er dan problemen zijn, dan is de kans nog te groot dat belastingbetalers daarvoor opdraaien.

Banken en overheden zijn namelijk nog te sterk aan elkaar verbonden, constateert de Raad. Banken hebben nog steeds leningen en obligaties van overheden op hun balans staan. Volgens internationale regels mogen die als risicoloos gezien worden, waardoor banken er geen kapitaal voor hoeven aan te houden als zekerheid.

Maar niet alle landen zijn even kredietwaardig. Neem bijvoorbeeld Italië. Daar nam de hoeveelheid overheidsschuld op de balans van banken afgelopen tijd juist weer toe. Dan kunnen landen en banken tegelijk in de problemen komen, wat de gevolgen flink versterkt.

De Tweede Kamer zal zich nu in aanloop naar het Europees overleg over het advies van de Raad van State buigen. Morgenavond is er een debat.

Staatssecretaris Snel van Financiën komt verder in het nauw door de problemen met de ten onrechte gestopte kinderopvangtoeslag, melden Trouw en RTL Nieuws. Vijf jaar geleden werd die toeslag voor honderden ouders stopgezet en teruggevorderd, waardoor veel gezinnen en sommige opvangorganisaties in de problemen kwamen. Een oplossing is er nog altijd niet.

De Belastingdienst heeft ouders tijdens de Pinksterdagen benaderd voor "persoonlijke gesprekken", zonder dat daarbij de advocaat van de ouders is geraadpleegd, schrijven Trouw en RTL. Die advocaat is al jaren bezig met een proces vanwege de onrechtmatige stopzetting van de toeslagen.

Het CDA, de SP en GroenLinks hebben spoedvragen aan Snel gesteld over de gang van zaken en willen antwoord nog voordat de staatssecretaris met de ouders praat. Ze willen dat de ouders alsnog met de advocaat mogen komen, en willen bovendien weten of het klopt dat de Belastingdienst de ouders wel een schadevergoeding wil bieden, maar alleen onder de voorwaarde dat ze een zwijgcontract tekenen. Morgen praat de staatssecretaris met de ouders.

'Advocaat welkom'

Het ministerie van Financiën liet maandagavond laat in een reactie weten dat de advocaat welkom is bij het gesprek dat de ouders hebben met de staatssecretaris. Volgens een woordvoerder van het ministerie zijn de ouders tijdens een informatieavond van de Belastingdienst over de fouten rond de kinderopvangtoeslag gevraagd of ze prijs zouden stellen op een gesprek met de staatssecretaris.

Ook ontkent de woordvoerder dat er morgen tijdens het gesprek schadevergoedingen worden aangeboden. Er zouden geen documenten of een zwijgcontract ter ondertekening op tafel komen.

Crisisteam

Op het ministerie van Financiën is volgens Trouw en RTL Nieuws een crisisteam ingesteld om de schade zoveel mogelijk te beperken. CDA, GroenLinks en de SP willen niet alleen antwoord op de spoedvragen, maar ook antwoord op de vijftig Kamervragen die ruim zes weken geleden al over de kwestie zijn gesteld. Uit de antwoorden daarop moet blijken of de staatssecretaris de Tweede Kamer wel goed heeft geïnformeerd.

Er wordt volgens RTL zowel binnen de coalitie als de oppositie betwijfeld of Snel de juiste persoon is om de problemen bij de fiscus op te lossen.

Nepbewijs

De laatste maanden komen RTL en Trouw vaker met onthullingen affaire rond de kinderopvangtoeslag. Zo bleek twee weken geleden dat de dienst nepbewijs gebruikte om een gastouderbureau in Eindhoven en honderden ouders hard aan te pakken.

Ook bleek dat de Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens onderzoekt of de dienst zich in dezelfde zaak schuldig heeft gemaakt aan etnisch profileren. Naar verwachting is nog voor het zomerreces een debat met Snel over het functioneren van de Belastingdienst.

Na de onopgeloste tankerincidenten aan de Golf van Oman nemen de spanningen tussen Washington en Teheran toe. Hoewel de Amerikaanse president Donald Trump verklaarde dat hij geen oorlog met Iran wil. Maar hij zou sneller kunnen komen dan hij zou willen. Een mislukte Iraanse oorlog zou de herverkiezing van de Trump kosten en grote economische, […]

Het bericht Crisis tussen Iran en de VS: Volgende valse vlagoperatie zou de grote oorlog in gang kunnen zetten verscheen eerst op Stop de Bankiers.

Daar gaan we weer, de banken, regeringen en bestuurders maken er weer een zooitje van. Na de grote kredietcrisis van 2008 dachten we dat ze weel een lesje geleerd hadden, maar ze hebben op zijn Hollands gezegd schijt aan de burgers, ze vullen de zakken, voeren oorlogje en achteraf mag de burger er voor op […]

Het bericht Daar gaan we weer GROTE KREDIETCRISIS OP KOMST verscheen eerst op Stop de Bankiers.

Met verbijstering aanschouwen velen de aanpak van de aardbevingsproblematiek in Groningen. Een slepende kwestie met duizenden gedupeerden. Het gestuntel van Minister Wiebes en zijn voorgangers leidt slechts tot een juridisch steekspel, stroperigheid en ergernis, maar niet tot oplossingen. Hoe is het toch mogelijk dat deze tragedie zich sluimerend voltrekt en hoe lang duurt het nog

Alleen crisisaanpak en een generaal pardon kunnen Groningen nog redden

B2B marketers are a special breed: We’re relentlessly self-improving.

We look to our industry peers and thought leaders for wisdom. We scour data for opportunities and insight. We keep tabs on rising trends and emerging tools. We tirelessly strive to adapt our strategies to the evolving needs of our customers and prospects.

Without a doubt, we’re ambitious. But despite that ambition, we’re only human. Fear can easily creep in� which can become a helpful tool or a crippling bad habit.

Fear Itself

Fear is the most natural human emotion in my opinion. The presence of fear in our marketing minds not only signals self- and spatial-awareness, but also benevolence. We deeply care about what we do and who (i.e. our brands, co-workers, and buyers) we serve, and we want to do our absolute best to drive results and offer solutions.

With the right focus, fear can be an unexpected ally. But the problem is that fear lurks everywhere.

A recent survey by Workfront and MarTech Today specifically asked marketing operations leaders about their top fears. The largest percentage (nearly a quarter of respondents) said having someone publically point out in a discrepancy in a report as a top fear. Coming in second with 20% of the vote was fear of not being able to prove their own or their team’s value.

I'd wager that an expanded survey would likely reveal other terrifying scenarios such as discussing poor results, getting budget or strategic buy-in, trying and potentially failing at a new content type� and the list goes on.

Now, while the report overall aimed to provide insight into the workplace challenges marketers face as data and technology drive change, this particular section provides a glimpse into how fear can manifest on both grand and granular scales within our psyches.

Of course, in addition to being the most natural human emotion, fear is perhaps the most powerful, too. So, how do you wield your fears for good?

Looking Within

Some of the best advice I’ve ever received on this front came from comedian and seasoned B2B marketer, Tim Washer.

“[Marketers need to stop] letting fear have too much influence over their decisions� and dropping this habit certainly requires some deep personal reflection,” he told me.

Truth. So, where do you start? With the first step.

“Ask yourself how does fear hold me back in my job? Is it a risk-averse boss? Is it fear of failure?”

And here’s the kicker:

“You need to figure out how fear is impacting you right now, in this very moment. Then you can start to find solutions to work around it.”

[bctt tweet="You need to figure out how fear is impacting you right now, in this very moment. Then you can start to find solutions to work around it. @timwasher" username="toprank"]

From my perspective, mastering this in-the-moment-recognition can be the difference maker on whether you can use fear as a driver rather than a deterrent.

Becoming the Master of Your Fears

Marketers: Whatever it is that keeps you up at night, remember that fear comes with the territory.

We all have our dark and stormy moments. Not only do we face an increasingly challenging and complex industry landscape, but we also face increasing pressure from our companies, buyers, and ourselves to be the best.

When we recognize and embrace our fears, we can do amazing things. When harnessed for good, our fear help us see innovation possibilities. It can encourage us to place smart bets or take on a risk or two. It can strengthen our resolve and ambition.

But when fear takes over as the primary decision-making factor� or leads to indecision� that’s when problems arise. We get restless. We lose confidence. We lose our luster for innovation. And honestly, we fear and worry more, and fear becomes a crippling habit.

So, for anyone out there who needs to hear this right now: You got this.

Are you afraid to go bold with your B2B content marketing efforts? Learn why it's time to break free of boring B2B with insights from marketing industry leaders ... and Laser Bear.

The post Ally or Adversary? How Our Marketing Fears Can Be Wielded for Good appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®.

Bij Europese bankiers breekt het koude angstzweet uit, nu een eurosceptische regering schuld als pakketjes bankbiljetten, mini-BOT, in omloop wil brengen. Is dat terecht, of moeten de Italianen juist lof toegezwaaid krijgen voor hun oplossing van de schuldencrisis?

Het bericht Mini-BOT: is de Italiaanse oplossing voor schulden het ei van Columbus? verscheen eerst op Visionair.

#NEWCAPITALISM Terwijl de wereldeconomie zoetjesaan een beetje in begint te zakken, zijn de vragen van de vorige crisis nog nauwelijks beantwoord. Ondertussen maakt ongebreidelde groei de aarde kapot, neemt ongelijkheid wereldwijd toe en blijven de lonen nog altijd verontrustend laag. Is het tijd voor een ander systeem? Of is kapitalisme het beste dat we hebben? En […]

Het bericht Hoe technologische vooruitgang het kapitalisme op de knieën zal krijgen verscheen eerst op Vrij Nederland.

• A new study shows how the United States' Military is the largest institutional emitter of greenhouse gasses in the world.
• These emissions come from both combat and non-combat operations.
• The use of some of the fossil fuels the military burns to protect the supply of oil creates an interesting paradox.

None

Unless you've been living under a rock, you probably know that climate change is the greatest threat facing the world today. The security risks posed by global warming are well known, and the United States' Department of Defense has been evaluating the dangers it poses for the past couple of decades. Even if we act soon enough to avert total climate catastrophe, the resultant droughts, food shortages, and natural disasters will be giving world leaders headaches for the next century.

However, according to a new study out of Brown University by Professor Neta C. Crawford, the United States military is the world's largest institutional greenhouse gas emitter, meaning that they are preparing to deal with problems caused in part by their fossil fuel use.

Fueling the war machine

As you might imagine, it takes a lot of fuel to keep the United States military going. What many people don't quite realize is how much that adds up to.

Since 2001, when the U.S. invaded Afghanistan in response to the 9/11 attacks, the military has emitted 1,212 million metric tons of greenhouse gasses. This includes 400 million tons of directly war-related emissions in the war zones of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, and Syria. In 2017, the last year for which data is available, the Department of Defense (DOD) emitted 58.4 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent. This is more than the total emitted by the nations of Sweden or Denmark and is a substantial amount that significantly contributes to climate change.

Where does this all come from?

There are many parts of the war machine that burn fossil fuels. They can be broken down into two parts.

The first half is infrastructure. The DOD reports that 30% of its energy use is for physical installations. This is mostly for the electricity needed to power more than 560,000 buildings at about 500 sites around the globe. These locations are vital to the operations of the American military, as the Pentagon explains, "In many ways, installation energy supports warfighter requirements through secure and resilient sources of commercial electrical energy, and where applicable, energy generation and storage, to support mission loads, power projection platforms, remotely piloted aircraft operations, intelligence support, and cyber operations."

Then, of course, is the actual fighting and the energy that takes. This remaining 70% of DOD energy use is termed "operational" and refers to the actual use of planes, ships, and vehicles. Most of these aren't made to be fuel efficient, and some aircraft require multiple gallons of jet fuel to move a single nautical mile.

To these numbers you should also add the emissions created by the manufacture of war materials; if we presume that military industry has the same share of emissions as its share of the manufacturing sector as a whole – which is 15% of all manufacturing jobs in the United States – then from 2001 to 2017, 2,600 million megatons of CO2 equivalent greenhouse gas emissions were attributable to military industry.

The ironic trap this creates

One of the stated goals of the United States military over the last few decades has been keeping the world oil supply stable. This has been achieved through a series of wars, constant patrolling of international shipping lanes, and a substantial show of force in troubled areas of the world that produce petroleum.

And no, this isn't a conspiracy theory dreamed up by some tree hugging hippie. In 1990, the Bush administration issued National Security Directive 45 stating that "U.S. interests in the Persian Gulf are vital to the national security. These interests include access to oil and the security and stability of key friendly states in the region." The second Bush administration expressed a similar sentiment, one which is shared by many experts on national security.

This means that the United States military is using more oil than anybody else, in part to make sure that the supply of oil remains secure. The irony of this isn't lost on the study author, Professor Crawford, who frames the problem as such:

"The U.S. has an important public policy decision to make. Do we continue to orient our foreign policy and military force posture toward ensuring access to fossil fuels? Or do we dramatically reduce the use of fossil fuels, including the military's own dependency, and thus reduce the perceived need to preserve access to oil resources?"

Crawford suggests that a reduction of fossil fuel use by the military would have "enormous positive implications for the climate," save a fortune, help prevent climate change-related threats, and reduce the need for American soldiers to be in the Middle East at all.

The seriousness of the problem isn't lost on the brass. Dozens of military installations are already dealing with climate change-induced drought, flooding, wildfires, and desertification and are being equipped to do so. The navy is working on how to deal with rising sea levels and what effect that might have on current installations. The need for so much fuel also creates supply issues and convoys which are vulnerable to attack, so programs to cut down on fuel use have been enacted.

Several programs exist to cut down on greenhouse emissions in each branch of the military, which has successfully reduced the amount of energy used per year over the last few years. The use of hybrid and electric vehicles has been introduced where possible, and the percentage of energy derived from alternative sources, such as renewables or nuclear power, continues to increase. Room for improvement still exists, however.

Big picture: What can we do?

Several ideas to escape this ironic trap are suggested in the paper. Chief among them is a critical analysis of how important the mission of protecting oil access really is.

U.S. oil demand peaked in 2005, and dependence on Middle Eastern oil has been in decline since 2006. With it, the need for a steady oil supply from that part of the world has also continued to decline. Even if some crisis did affect the flow of oil, the argument goes, nothing prevents the United States from intervening after the fact. The article also points out that China is more vulnerable to such a shock than the United States is.

The United States military is the greatest war machine ever built. The economic and environmental costs of keeping that machine running are astronomical. The question of if it is a bill we want to continue to pay is one we must repeatedly ask ourselves as security threats evolve and the cost of ecological inaction climb ever higher.

• On Tuesday, Gentry Underwood wrote a blog post about his new startup Navigator, which will create an AI-powered team assistant to help with meetings.
• Previously, Underwood founded a mobile email app Mailbox, which he sold to Dropbox in 2013.
• The same team behind Mailbox has spent the past few years working on Navigator, and they plan for it to handle tasks like organizing agendas, gathering feedback, and taking notes at meetings.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Meetings are an overwhelming, and often dreaded, part of many jobs. But if Gentry Underwood has his way that will soon change thanks to AI and his new startup, Navigator.

Underwood isn't new to starting a company. Back in 2013, he sold his startup Mailbox, a mobile email app, to Dropbox for a reported $100 million. The app was only 37 days old, and over half a million people were still waiting in line to try out the app, when it was acquired.

On Tuesday, he wrote a blog post about Navigator, a teamwork assistant powered by artificial intelligence. It's supposed to help people work together and handle menial tasks like putting together agendas, suggesting questions to ask in a meeting, or gathering feedback. It was created by the same team behind Mailbox.

"Following the wind-down, some of us from the team would go on long walks to debrief and reminisce," Gentry wrote in a Medium blog post. "And as we talked, we realized that we still had the same itch — we still believed that software was ripe with potential for transforming teamwork well beyond anything humanity had yet seen. And so we decided to try again."

Read more:528,000 People Are Still Waiting In Line For Mailbox, The 37-Day-Old App Dropbox Just Acquired

Gentry wrote that in the past few years, his team had been working with over 50 teams and experimenting with various ways to make workplace collaboration more effective. Currently, Navigator is free while it's in beta. It will roll out a paid version later this year.

With Navigator, the team plans to create an assistant that can facilitate team and 1-on-1 meetings by reaching out to attendees, gathering discussion topics, organizing an agenda, taking notes, and following up with attendees after the meeting.

Although Navigator is currently focusing on team and 1-on-1 meetings, it plans to eventually support other types of meetings and to incorporate advanced capabilities for making decisions, gathering feedback, and solving problems.

"It might feel far-fetched to imagine working alongside a 'robot', but in many ways it makes the perfect teammate," Gentry wrote. "It's always available. It can have multiple conversations simultaneously. And it's proficient at running repeatable processes in consistent, reliable ways."

Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at rmchan@businessinsider.com, Telegram at @rosaliechan, or Twitter DM at @rosaliechan17. (PR pitches by email only, please.) Other types of secure messaging available upon request. You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.

SEE ALSO: Everything you need to know about React, a project started at Facebook that now helps Twitter, Pinterest, and Asana keep their apps looking good and working great

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: WATCH: The legendary economist who predicted the housing crisis says the US will win the trade war

• More than a million ordinary Hong Kongers thronged the streets of the city and shut the government down in stiffer-than-expected resistance to the growing power of China's Communist Party.
• It's a stinging blow to Chinese President Xi Jinping, who enjoys absolute power on the mainland, but not in China's more far-flung provinces.
• Hong Kong showed that Xi isn't all powerful, and it has already emboldened Taiwan, another island Xi wishes to control.
• People will not soon forget how Hong Kong stood up to Xi, and how China's power is limited to what it can use technology, money, and military coercion to control. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

More than a million ordinary Hong Kongers thronged the streets of the city and shut the government down in a stiffer-than-expected resistance to the growing power of China's Communist Party, and delivered a stinging blow to Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

The Hong Kongers, mostly young with a deep preference for democracy and elections over communism, showed nearly 30 years to the day after the Chinese massacre of students at Tiananmen Square that people can defeat the all powerful party.

While their massive protests have so far only delayed indefinitely the feared extradition bill, which Hong Kongers fear would extend the grip of China to their home city, Ho-Fung Hung, a professor at John Hopkins University, told Business Insider it's still a win. 

Read more: Hong Kong uses low-tech street smarts to smash China's techno-authoritarianism 

"I think it is a kind of a victory," he said. "The one million people on the streets on Sunday caught people by surprise. The scale of the protest and the militancy of some of the protesters... nobody expected one week or two ago."

And, according to Hung, that victory for ordinary Hong Kongers, translates to a loss for Xi, who counts on having total control of the government, military, and press to implement his policies and quiet any dissent. 

"Beijing cannot, dare not push it too hard," he said. Instead, Hung said, China is "worried that bigger turmoil will invoke international backlash they don't want to bear," so it will probably back off the bill.

That the Hong Kong protests remained completely leaderless also means it won't be easy for Beijing to target any key figures, and must instead rehabilitate its image on the island through slower, more traditional means. 

Xi's loss of face in Hong Kong may have exposed the weakness of his authoritarian regime outside the mainland, and that's unlikely to go away.

Hong Kong's fire spreads to Taiwan?

Recent reports from Taiwan, another breakaway province of China, indicates that even the country's pro-China party has taken notice and come down on Hong Kong's side of things. Taiwan's current president, Tsai Ing-Wen, supports a more independent Taiwan, while her opposition has traditionally supported reconciliation with the mainland.

But following the Hong Kong protests, all of Taiwan seemed united against Beijing. 

Asked if he would accept Taiwan getting closer to China by accepting the "one country, two systems" arrangement seen in Hong Kong, Han Kuo-yu, Tsai's opposition, said "over my dead body."

Additionally, many Hong Kongers have moved to Taiwan over the years, with the pace accelerating after 2014 anti-China protests in Hong Kong.

But for the Chinese still living under the Communist party rule on the mainland, Hung said they're unlikely to stand up to Xi.

Read more: The US just quietly challenged China on something Beijing promised to go to war over

If Chinese on the mainland ever protested like they did in Hong Kong, "the government can crack down more harshly like in Xinjiang," he said, referencing China's far western province where reports indicate some one million ethnic and religious minorities have been imprisoned in reeducation camps, completely inaccessible to human rights investigators and the world. 

"There's no limit to how harsh they can go," against the Chinese living on the mainland, Hung said.

But for the average youths in Hong Kong, they have dealt perhaps the world's most powerful man a devastating slap in the face that will ring throughout the region for some time. 

SEE ALSO: Hong Kong has been devoured by a 'sea of black' amid protests over extradition plans with China: How the intense blowback inspired a historic apology

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 'Blue's Clues' is making a comeback with a new look and new host. Here's what the original host, Steve Burns, did after he quit the show.

• State Street's $2.6 billion purchase of Charles River last year thrust it into direct competition with Bloomberg and BlackRock for control of trading desktops across hundreds of asset managers.  
• The man charged with overseeing the strategy is CEO Ronald O'Hanley, a 20-year veteran of the investment management industry who assumed his role January 1. 
• O'Hanley's building a one-stop shop to handle anything an investor might need, from pretrade analytics all the way through to post trade reporting and reconciliation.
• The stakes are high. State Street's stock price is down 40% since the Charles River deal.
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Ronald O'Hanley doesn't immediately come across as a fierce competitor. 

The State Street CEO speaks in a low voice free of the bravado that other leaders often exhibit. He doesn't stand on ceremony. And he runs State Street, a leader in asset custody, what many consider to be a sleepy corner of banking.  

But O'Hanley now finds himself competing against some of Wall Street's most formidable foes. With last year's purchase of trading software provider Charles River Development for $2.6 billion, State Street has thrust itself into a dog fight against the likes of Bloomberg LP and BlackRock for control of the computer screen used by thousands of buy-side traders.

The three are now battling over a fractured market that promises to deliver attractive revenue opportunities as Wall Street seizes on the data revolution. As data and information becomes more commonplace, traders are looking for technology to provide more insight. And as investment styles migrate to passive strategies from active ones, they're looking for any edge they can get.  

For State Street, it's an ambitious bet that will take time to play out and may help it weather structural changes impacting its asset management clients. The bank's stock is down more than a third since the Charles River deal was announced, reflecting investor concerns around the firm's ability to execute on the strategy and the larger trends buffeting its customer base. 

See also:Wall Street's massive tech spend has reached an 'inflection point' as billions in investments are starting to pay off

O'Hanley, CEO since January 1, doesn't like to paint the task in such stark terms, but posits that State Street's history of providing middle and back office support will give it a leg up. The idea is that by combing those elements with Charles River's front office technology, State Street will be be able to offer a truly front to back solution, lowering costs and offering cutting edge insights with data and analytics. 

"We had a lot of the traditional front office providers coming by and putting the proverbial arm around the shoulder and saying why don't we partner, recognizing that they were the front office and we were the middle and back," he said in an interview of the sidelines of this year's Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, declining to name names. "But we realized that if you were going to solve the cost problem and the data problem then we really needed to be front to back."

If clients want to use another platform, that's OK  too. State Street is developing its solution so that it can work with Bloomberg, BlackRock, or the hundreds of other vendors that sell to Wall Street. Earlier this year, the firm partnered with Axioma to makes its risk and portfolio management, and regulatory reporting tools available to clients. 

O'Hanley can talk the talk. The 20-year veteran of the investment management industry joined State Street in 2015 after stints at Fidelity Investments, Bank of New York Mellon, and McKinsey, and his comments make it clear that he understands how and why clients turn to State Street. He ran the Boston-based lender's asset-management arm before being named president and chief operating officer and heir apparent to ex-CEO Jay Hooley in November 2017. 

At some point, the execs realized that while State Street was the biggest in the world at the middle and back office work of reconciling accounts, that work would become "table stakes," O'Hanley said. Left unsaid is that it wouldn't be as lucrative to provide those services in the future. 

See also: Wall Street is chasing a data gold rush. Here's our deep dive on its efforts to crack the code.

At first look, State Street need not worry. The bank's revenue of $12 billion in 2018 climbed 6.8% that year, itself an improvement over 2016.

But investors aren't impressed. After sending the stock price to a more than 20-year high in January 2018, investors got cold feet, pushing the stock down almost 18% through mid-July. When the deal with Charles River was announced, the stock price dropped 7.4%. Since then, it's fallen another 36%. 

State Street's asset management arm, State Street Global Advisors, is facing many of the same challenges as the clients of its custody business. The bank suffered $22.6 billion in outflows last month, according to Morningstar data. The S&P 500 ETF that it manages, the hugely popular SPDR, lost almost $17 billion, which Morningstar attributed to higher fees and tracking error. 

See also: 'The next frontier for us': Inside State Street's multibillion-dollar bet on financial data

Those struggles mirror the broader trends leading asset managers to hunt for lower cost technology options. In fact, it was only after SSGA's search for a vendor led it to choose Charles River that the bank's top execs realized it could help the other side of the firm to shift its broader strategy, O'Hanley said. 

Asset managers are battling a tidal wave that's seen trillions of dollars in funds move from higher-paying active accounts to lower-fee passive accounts. Retail brokerages and other distributors of mutual funds are demanding more money, and a hodge podge of systems built up over years of acquisitions have begun to break down or require a greater share of technology costs, the CEO said. 

State Street's plan is that it can address all of that by offering a one-stop shop, front to back solution that can offer pre-trade analytics and insight all the way to post trade reporting and account reconciliation. Having all that data under one roof should allow the bank to provide better analytics as well, he said. 

"The fee structure has come under intense pressure and put these organizations in a position where they need to rethink their tech infrastructure," said Larry Tabb, founder of the eponymous Wall Street consulting group. "Partnering with a group like State Street makes a lot of sense because State Street can not only manage an increasingly larger portion of their tech, but the funds can outsource their operations, and thus consolidate their operations with fewer players. And that should bring some efficiencies."

It's a fractured market: Less than 10% of clients currently rely on one of the three providers for front to back functionality, O'Hanley estimates. Charles River, which serves more than 25,000 clients across the globe, is installed on roughly the same number of desktops as BlackRock's Aladdin software. Bloomberg has more than 300,000 desktop terminals. 

One challenge, according to Tabb, will be to instill a stronger culture of partnership and collaboration across the combined enterprise. Charles River has not been known historically for being open to partnering with outside vendors, or competitors, he said. It's a point that O'Hanley is eager to refute.

See also: BlackRock's latest $1.3 billion tech deal shows it wants to be more than an asset manager

Even if BlackRock, Bloomberg or others consume a bigger slice of the market, State Street will be ready with a platform that's open architecture and able to interact with third-party vendors or service providers, O'Hanley said. 

"If you think about the great technology platforms in the world, what has set them apart is not that they own everything but that it's a platform that creates a network that everyone wants to be a part of," he said.  

While its early days, the bank has already found success in selling its end to end solution. State Street announced June 11 that it had entered into a letter of intent with Lazard Asset Management to provide its inclusive servicing capabilities. The bank's salespeople were in talks about 110 clients interested in purchasing those capabilities, O'Hanley said in April.

"It won't be a slam dunk," said Tabb. "But they have a tremendous opportunity to play into a market that is really searching for more integrated solutions."

SEE ALSO: A leaked memo shows Bloomberg reached $10 billion in annual revenue last year, and some insiders will receive a special bonus

SEE ALSO: BlackRock says its Aladdin Wealth unit's helping it 'be part of the infrastructure,' and it could drive even more money to the world's largest asset manager

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: WATCH: The legendary economist who predicted the housing crisis says the US will win the trade war