Product Description The Economics of Money, Banking, and Financial Markets set the standard for money and banking courses when it published in its first edition, and it continues to be the worldwide market leader. The historic economic events and financial crises of late 2008 have changed the entire landscape of money and banking. Having just served as Governor of the Federal Reserve, only Mishkin has the unique insider’s perspective needed to present the current state o… More >>
It’s hard to believe that not all that long ago – in the distant past – there was no such thing as e-commerce. There was no place to sell goods to an international audience via the World Wide Web. All the consumer goods that are marketed and sold online today could only be purchased through a catalog, strictly to local consumers, or perhaps not at all.
But advances in technology changed all that. Electronic commerce, or e-commerce, emerged through the technology of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), which enabled businesses to send commercial documents, such as invoices or purchase orders, electronically. With the growth in the use of telephone banking, credit cards and ATMs, e-commerce began to evolve in the 1990s.
Commerce Takes on the World
It was during this decade that the Internet went worldwide, although it took the rest of the decade to create secure connections, as well as a digital subscriber line (DSL), allowing people to access the Web 24/7. By the new millennium, companies in the United States and Europe developed a presence on the Internet, offering their services or goods to an international audience. As a result, the term e-commerce has come to define the capability to purchase goods securely on the Internet via an electronic payment.
Business on the Internet has also given way to virtual commerce, or that which is conducted exclusively electronically for items deemed virtual. For instance, consumers might pay for access to what is considered premium information on a website. The concept of e-commerce has also opened the door to additional electronic terminology such as e-tailers which are online retailers, or e-tail, indicating retail sold online.
The act of companies who conduct business to business transactions via electronic commerce is termed Business-to-Business, or B2B. B2B transactions may involve a commodity exchange for any interested party, or a private electronic market (PEM), which connects a limited group of buyers or sellers in one market.
The Consumer and Business Advantage
This ability to conduct business to a worldwide audience has provided individuals with a whole new method of shopping. For the first time ever, customers could shop 24/7 from the comfort of their home. Instead of driving from one business to another in order to compare prices, it could be done online. And orders could be customized in a way specified by the buyer.
E-commerce also represented a revolutionary way for companies to conduct businesses – opening the door to a global marketplace. The system makes good sense for businesses on so many levels. For instance, the costs associated with processing orders and customer service is less through an automated process. Automated tools make it possible to communicate with online customers via e-mail regarding the status of their orders with virtually no additional cost to the business. And who can imagine an international online vendor squeezing their million-item inventory into one single catalog? Thanks to the Internet, companies can now create online catalogs that would never fit in an ordinary mailbox.
Other advantages of e-commerce have been realized, for instance, in staffing differences. Without having to pay the high cost for staffing the order processing department, businesses have been able to pass the savings onto their customers. Once a business website is established effectively, the costs for order taking fall to nearly nothing.
E-commerce has also grown the way financial institutions do business. For example, online banking allows customers to shop for the best interest rates, mortgages, and customer amenities from their home computers. Managing finances can be handled from nearly anywhere in the world – monthly payments can be made, monies can be transferred, and payroll deposits can be made without ever setting foot in a brick-and-mortar bank.
Product Description Modern Blood Banking and Transfusion Practices continues to set the standard for teaching and learning modern blood banking. Thorough, yet concise, the fifth edition begins with a review of basic science, plus the history of blood preservation, and continues to provide students with a working knowledge of modern blood banking as it focuses on the how and why of transfusion practice, presenting a perfect “crossmatch” of theory and practice…. More >>
These days the mjority of our transactions seem to be carried out by debit or credit card. Ever since the arrival of Chip and PIN even the smallest purchases at the supermarket or local shop often involve inserting the card as opposed to hunting for cash. A few numbers keyed in and the push of a green button and the transaction is made, end of story. No longer is there any need to carry large stacks of cash around that can be lost or stolen, your money remains safe and sound in the bank.
A facility that was once only offered by the larger outlets is now available at much more humble points of purchase. The local takeaway or off-licence will nearly always have a handheld terminal at which the cardowner can make a purchase. It sometimes at times as though cash is being phased out entirely.
To meet this increased demand from the smaller business operator it has become completely necessary for the company providing the facility to process credit and debit cards to become more competitive. Restrictive charges or unreasonably high minimum usage requirements would prevent the industry from expanding into these new areas. The market today naturally demands that the means of processing credit or debit cards be brought within the reach of small and medium businesses.
Provision of the familiar portable terminal will sometimes also be delivered alongside the means to process payments online. The majority of businesses today will have their own websites, and it is at this point that the customer is often persuaded to make a payment. Quite apart from all the mental and physical work that is entailed in writing a cheque, addressing an envelope and putting it into the post, the provider of the service will be wary of the opportunities that such a scenario provides to the customer to change his mind, or even simply to forget or not get around to sending off the payment. A situation which, for an often struggling business, needs to be avoided at all costs.
Whichever way one looks at it, the means to accept debit or credit card payments is a vital business need today, and the supplier who can give small and medium businesses the equipment to provide it at a reasonable cost and with the least amount of fuss involved is going to generate a lot of custom.
Product Description Written by James Fackler of the University of Kentucky, the Study Guide contains a wealth of review and tutorial resources, including multiple choice questions, detailed descriptions of key chapter topics and terminology, review essays, and problems. Written with an easy, friendly tone, this Guide is a must for students…. More >>
Product Description In the constantly evolving world of finance, a solid technical foundation is an essential tool for success. Due to the fast-paced nature of this world, however, no one has been able to take the time to properly codify the lifeblood of the corporate financier’s work—namely, valuation. Rosenbaum and Pearl have responded to this need by writing the book that they wish had existed when they were trying to break into Wall Street. Investment Banking: Valuation,… More >>
Product Description The Economics of Money, Banking, and Financial Markets set the standard for money and banking courses when it published in its first edition, and it continues to be the worldwide market leader. The historic economic events and financial crises of late 2008 have changed the entire landscape of money and banking. Having just served as Governor of the Federal Reserve, only Mishkin has the unique insider’s perspective needed to present the current state o… More >>
Chase online banking is a small business’s most useful financial resource. Most small businesses start with a great idea. The person behind the idea feels confident that the idea is sound and that there’s a demand. He or she then sets out to turn the idea into the latest must-have craze. What many small business owners don’t know a lot about is how to handle the company’s finances. That’s where Chase online banking can help.
Small business owners who enroll in Chase online banking have access to a number of useful features to help them better manage their businesses. The biggest benefit is the ability to log in to any account that is linked to the business (even personal and investment accounts!) at any time, day or night, seven days a week. While certainly useful, managing account balances is just one of many things small business owners can do while online.
They can also view transactions as far back as 90 days or check to see which checks have cleared and which have not. They can pay bills online which is faster and less expensive than manual methods. Knowing that online checks and deposit slips can be printed anytime they’re needed removes one of the fears that people have about Chase online banking.
Small business owners can request to be notified via email, voice mail and even by text message anytime a change takes place in any of the accounts being monitored. They can order checks, wire money, and transfer funds and so much more.
Chase online banking also enables small business owners to download monthly statements straight into the popular small business accounting software packages, which makes the daunting tasks associated with accounting much easier to handle. They can use Chase online banking to set up direct deposit for themselves and their employees and that’s a nice benefit to offer when trying to attract valuable employees. There’s even more and it’s all explained on the online banking demo so take a look today!
The Internet banking model was originally built with a view to merely replace identified brick-&-mortar services and provide an online means of reaching out to the bank. This model was not mature enough for the market as these Internet banking solutions served as mere aggregating mechanisms. Slowly new features like inter-bank local payments, international remittances, communication through secure e-mail with dedicated relationship managers from the bank and exposure of account relationships through online channels were added. Banks then started to use the model as a ‘differentiating’ factor.
Today, the banking business is driven by one mantra – virtually all types and kinds of banking services to be made extendable across channels, including the Internet. With the growth of Internet banking being driven even harder by the retail boom, banks can increasingly rely on new-generation electronic banking solutions built on open architecture, with robust security features, that provide true relationship banking functionality as well as be scalable and flexible to meet the changing demands of the retail customer.
A good example is Singapore which has one of the highest Internet penetration rates worldwide. All major Singaporean banks provide Internet banking platforms and many also provide host-tohost capabilities to link up to companies’ backoffice operations for file transfers. The authorities in Singapore have been proactive in recognizing the role of the Internet as a delivery channel and have strongly promoted Internet banking.
This paper looks at what Internet banking has been so far and delves into what the future ahead could be like. It also highlights the importance of having solution vendors who move in sync with the market, focusing on building beyond their core competencies.
