DECEMBERASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK9NEWSROOMBOJ'S LATEST MONETARY POLICY TRIGGERS JPY13T IN LOSSESAccording to a report by Affinidi in partnership with IDC, only 10 percent of businesses in key Asian markets are prepared to transition into experience-orchestrated organizations, a model that enables seamless, personalized engagement across multiple business channels. The report highlights that data collection and management are significant challenges for companies, with 56 percent of businesses citing a growing reluctance among customers to share their data, primarily due to escalating cyber threats.For businesses to succeed in becoming experience-orchestrated, they must address issues such as data fragmentation, evolving privacy regulations, and the need to build customer trust. Achieving a unified, comprehensive view of customers is crucial to delivering fully personalized experiences, which have become a critical competitive differentiator. The report predicts that by 2025, half of all customers will evaluate companies based on the transparency of their privacy policies, urging businesses to adopt user-friendly, permission-based data practices.Ian Mutter, CEO of Affinidi, emphasized the urgency for businesses to balance privacy and personalization, noting that "Turning X-O will be pivotal for businesses to stay competitive in today's digital landscape. It is no longer about just acquiring data, but also knowing how best to utilize it to cater to customers' needs and preferences."Looking ahead, the report anticipates that by 2025, 45 percent of Chief Information Officers (CIOs) will prioritize strategic data management to build a data-centric culture, while 40 percent of CIOs will collaborate with Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) to create unified strategies aimed at eliminating data silos for better customer engagement.Currently, businesses in Asian markets, particularly in Singapore and India, are focusing more on profitable growth rather than hyper-personalization. However, this focus is expected to shift in the coming years, with hyper-personalization becoming essential for customer acquisition and retention. The transition towards an experience-orchestrated business will require overcoming barriers like data fragmentation and the complexities introduced by differing privacy laws. Glenn Gore emphasized the importance of employing a holistic identity framework to manage customer data securely across platforms while ensuring privacy protection. The Bank of Japan (BOJ) has recently experienced significant financial losses due to its shift in monetary policy. In the first half of the fiscal year, the central bank incurred a record 13.66 trillion yen in valuation losses on its government bond holdings. This is primarily attributed to the rise in bond yields, a consequence of the BOJ's decision to raise interest rates.Historically, central banks tend to face declining bond values when they implement rate hikes, as it leads to a decrease in bond prices. The BOJ's substantial holdings of long-term government bonds, which have now decreased for the first time in 16 years, have contributed to these losses.While the BOJ's ETF holdings generated paper profits, they were lower than in the previous period. The central bank's decision to abandon its ultra-loose monetary policy, including negative interest rates and ETF purchases, has marked a significant departure from its decade-long stimulus program.The BOJ's recent actions, such as raising short-term interest rates and tapering its bond-buying, aim to normalize its monetary policy and reduce its bloated balance sheet. However, these measures have resulted in increased interest payments on excess reserves held by financial institutions.Despite these challenges, the BOJ's dividend income from its ETF holdings has partially offset the losses incurred. The central bank remains committed to its gradual policy normalization while closely monitoring the impact on the economy and financial markets. EMERGING CYBER THREATS MAKING DATA SECURITY CHALLENGING FOR ASIAN COMPANIES
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