Alternative Investment Awards - Winners List (2017)

Retirement Planning And Financial Protection: Senior Couple Receiving Professional Advice From Advisor On Laptop For Long-Term Security

One in Six Employers Has Never Reviewed the Workplace Pension Scheme They Offer

One in six employers say they have never reviewed the workplace pension scheme they offer to ensure it offers value for money, according to the latest research1 from the pensions experts at Everywhen. With 11% of employers responding to state categorically tha

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Sage Unveils Period Review to Help Accountants and Bookkeepers Manage Growing Mtd Workload

New Sage for Accountants capability brings client transactions from different supported experiences into one workflow, helping practices review and prepare records more efficiently Sage the leader in accounting, financial, HR and payroll technology for small a

Software solutions integrate core business processes

How Integrated Financial Services Can Help Agencies Build a More Loyal Workforce

By Philipp Buschmann, co-founder and CEO of AAZZUR For staffing and recruitment agencies, loyalty is an increasingly expensive thing to lose. A worker who leaves does not just create another vacancy. The agency loses the investment made in sourcing and onboard

Is AI Really Expanding Margins in Finance? Tomi Popoola on What Investors Should Watch

This exclusive interview with Tomi Popoola was conducted by Tabish Ali of the Motivational Speakers Agency. Tomi Popoola sits at the intersection of finance, cloud infrastructure and artificial intelligence, where the investment case for AI is increasingly bei

The New Asset Class Sailing into European Portfolios

The diversity inherent in today’s financial landscape means that wealth management has become essential for investors looking for long-term growth, security, and effective legacy planning. Modern investors seek varied and strategic opportunities to protect a

happy group and investors with investment goal

What the UK’s Bond Market Can Teach Global Fixed Income Investors

By Nigel Jenkins, Managing Director, Payden & Rygel As developed economies grapple with higher debt burdens and elevated interest rates, the UK's gilt market offers important lessons for investors evaluating sovereign bonds around the world. Highlights The

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The Trouble With Security Deposits: How Deposit-Free Models Are Reducing Payment Friction

Few things sour a customer experience faster than an unexpected hold on their card. You book a rental car, arrive at the counter excited for a trip, and then discover that several hundred dollars of your available credit is about to be frozen as a security dep

Building a Reliable Medical Billing Operation for Growing Healthcare Organisations

Growth is supposed to be a good problem to have, but it definitely doesn't feel that way when your billing team is drowning in it. More patients means more claims, expanding into new specialties or locations means new payer relationships to navigate, and sudde

Why SaaS Platforms Add Embedded Payments

A platform that processes customer transactions earns more from each account than one that only sells seats. Subscription revenue grows with headcount, while payments revenue grows with the customer’s sales volume. That is why embedded payments have beco

Maximising the Management of Memberships

Members rarely quit in anger. They drift.Someone joins on a Tuesday, and nobody welcomes them. A regular poster goes quiet for three weeks and nobody notices.A renewal date passes with no reminder sent. By the time you see the churn number, the relationship en

How Marketing Has Changed for Fintech Companies

Fintech marketing has moved far beyond sleek app screenshots, referral codes, and promises of “better banking.” Today, fintech companies need to earn trust, explain complex products clearly, meet rising compliance expectations, and show up consistently acr

How Much Revenue Could Your Business Be Losing From Missed Calls

A missed call can appear to be a minor inconvenience. Someone rings while your team is busy, leaves no message and disappears from view. But that caller may have been ready to make a purchase, book an appointment or request a quote. If they cannot reach you, t

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Standard Chartered Just Became the First Global Bank to Offer Spot Crypto Trading

Standard Chartered has become the first global systemically important bank to offer institutional clients direct spot trading in Bitcoin and Ethereum. It’s a huge milestone in the convergence of traditional banking and crypto finance. The launch will allow e

Best Stablecoin-Friendly Banks for Businesses in 2026

Stablecoins have moved from a niche crypto tool to a practical settlement option for cross-border B2B payments. The GENIUS Act, enacted in the US in July 2025, gave payment stablecoins a federal regulatory framework for the first time, and banks and fintechs h

How Online Short-Term Lending Is Evolving in Today’s Financial Market

Online short-term lending has moved far beyond the basic payday loan model. Digital platforms now process applications faster and use broader financial data. Banks and credit unions have also expanded their small-dollar lending options. Speed still matters, bu

How Local Banks Are Competing in Wealth Management and Trust Services

For decades, large national banks and financial institutions have dominated the wealth management industry through scale and resources. Today, local banks are challenging the traditional banking model by leveraging their strengths in relationship-centered serv

Why Workflow Automation Has Become a Competitive Advantage for Accounting Firms

Picture this: it's the third week of tax season, your best senior accountant is spending two hours a day chasing clients for missing documents, and three engagements are stalled because someone forgot to send a follow-up email. Nobody dropped the ball on purpo

Best Merchant Cash Advance Providers

What Is a Merchant Cash Advance? A merchant cash advance (MCA) is an alternate business loan in which a provider purchases a part of your anticipated sales at a discounted charge in exchange for rapid cash. Whereas with fixed monthly loan payments, re-payment

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Best Liberate Alternatives in 2026: What to Look at When You Want Product, Not Consulting

Every enterprise voice AI shortlist for insurance in the last two years opens with Liberate. Fair enough, it earned the spot. What happens next is the interesting part. Around month four of the rollout, the ops lead running the deployment looks at the implemen

Leaving the Military? 5 Financial Decisions to Make Before Starting Your Civilian Career

Leaving military service after years or decades of building a career can create an unusual financial moment. Senior officers and other experienced military leaders may move directly into executive roles, consulting positions or other highly compensated civilia

One in Six Employers Has Never Reviewed the Workplace Pension Scheme They Offer

Sage Unveils Period Review to Help Accountants and Bookkeepers Manage Growing Mtd Workload

How to Evaluate Graduate Student Loans and Pre-Approved Credit Card Offers

Planning graduate school funding for 2026-27 means checking which federal borrowing rules apply to you. Changes taking effect July 1, 2026 restrict access to Grad PLUS and introduce new borrowing limits. Your program, enrollment status, and borrowing history c

Amazon Relay for Beginners: A Complete Guide

If you've hauled for brokers on DAT or Truckstop and wondered whether Amazon's freight program is worth the setup work, the short answer is yes — but only if you understand what you're signing up for. Relay is a closed, first-party platform with its own rule

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The Five Warning Signs Your Business is Becoming Reliant on Short-Term Borrowing

Insights by Stuart Wilkie, Head of Commercial Finance at Anglo Scottish Finance Borrowing is a normal and often necessary part of running a business. Used well, finance gives businesses the means to invest, grow and bridge temporary gaps in cash flow. The prob

The 2026 Lending Outlook: Balancing Scale with Loan Origination Automation

The lending industry in 2026 is operating under significantly different market conditions than it was only a few years ago. Higher interest rates, increased regulatory scrutiny, and growing institutional expectations are forcing lenders to rethink how they sca

Young Professional Managing Cloud-Based ERP Software On Laptop

What Are the Best Financial Systems for Improving Cash Flow?

The best financial systems for improving cash flow in 2026 are those that integrate advanced forecasting tools, automation and real-time reporting into a unified environment. Leading financial management systems, like BDO, and guidance from accounting firms en

Can Part-Time Workers Apply for Small Loans in Singapore?

Many part-time workers in Singapore wonder if they can qualify for small loans to manage short-term expenses or build financial stability. Yes, part-time workers can apply for small loans in Singapore, but approval depends on income level, job consistency, and

Evaluating 5 Top Outsourced CCO Services for Hedge Funds

For hedge funds, regulatory compliance is crucial to operational success, investor trust and legal safety. Maintaining rigorous compliance programs is often the task of a chief compliance officer (CCO). However, while necessary, this position is often expensiv

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UK Government Commences Crackdown on Late Payment Crisis, Amid Half of Supplier Invoices Being Paid Late

As the Prime Minister announces a crackdown on persistent late payers, a study highlights that half of all supplier invoices are paid late, costing the UK economy £11bn annually and contributing to the closure of 38 businesses every day. Sir Keir Starmer’s

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How to Choose the Right Futures Prop Firm for Your Trading Style

Around 40% of day traders stop after their first month. Poor risk management and emotional trading are common reasons, but trading rules can also make the learning curve harder. Drawdowns, overnight holding, news trading, contract limits, and payout rules vary

Is Selling Future Payments a Wise Funding Strategy

When you need capital quickly, your future income can look like an untapped resource. Instead of applying for a loan or giving up ownership in your business, you may consider selling future payments from an annuity, structured settlement, royalty stream, or si

Financial advisor 0r Financial Planner are prepare a financial plan for the client.

Brexit at 10: The Reality for Financial Services

This June marks ten years since the results of the Brexit referendum reverberated around the world. Britain’s decision to leave the European Union (EU), guided by a desire to retain sovereignty and control immigration more directly, was controversial. In the

Cross-Border Estate Planning for HNW Households

High-net-worth households with assets across two or more countries face an estate-planning conversation that domestic-only advisors rarely handle well. Property in multiple jurisdictions, business interests held through cross-border structures, beneficiaries l

5 Best White Label Prop Trading Firm Providers

Launching a prop trading firm quickly becomes complex once you factor in dashboards, risk systems, payouts, CRM integration, challenge models, liquidity setup, scaling tools, and trader analytics. Building this internally can take months and requires specialis

Who Are the Best Instant Funding Prop Firms in the USA?

Instant funding is a prop firm model that gives traders access to funded accounts immediately instead of requiring them to pass multi-step evaluation challenges first. After purchasing an account, traders can begin trading funded capital while still following

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How to Choose a Forex Broker That Fits Your Trading Needs?

Most traders spend plenty of time thinking about strategies, charts, and market direction, but the broker behind every trade deserves just as much attention. Wide spreads, slow withdrawals, poor execution, or an unreliable platform can make an otherwise sound

How a Probate Advance Differs From a Traditional Loan

An estate may hold property, investments, or cash, yet heirs often cannot touch any of it until probate is complete. Bills and unexpected costs do not wait for the court. Heirs looking for early access to funds usually come across terms like inheritance loan,

One in Six Employers Has Never Reviewed the Workplace Pension Scheme They Offer

HELOC vs. Home Equity: Choosing the Right Tool for Strategic Debt Consolidation

Home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) and home equity loans are useful for paying off other debts. Both options use the equity built in a residence as security, thereby reducing the lender's risk and helping to minimize overall interest costs. Members 1st Feder

The Quality-of-Life Dividend: Why American Families Are Moving to Portugal

Paul Stannard, Chairman and Founder of Portugal Pathways. Increasing numbers of US citizens are moving to Portugal in search of a better quality of life. AIMA, the country's immigration agency, confirmed almost 21,000 had secured legal residency by 2025, repre

Is Staying in One Career for 20 Years Still Financially Smart?

Is Staying in One Career for 20 Years Still Financially Smart?For decades, sticking with a single employer for twenty years was seen as the gold standard for job security, steady promotions, and a solid pension. Today, that linear path is becoming increasingly

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Filing a Tax Extension When You Are Missing Tax Documents

April 15 arrives, but a brokerage statement is still preliminary, a partnership has not sent its K-1, or a former employer has not provided a W-2. The return cannot be finished, yet payment is still due. An extension gives you time to collect the paperwork, bu

The Quality-of-Life Dividend: Why American Families Are Moving to Portugal

Are Business Gifts Tax Deductible in Canada and the US?

Over 500,000 tax audits are carried out each year in the US alone, and many are triggered because business gifts are improperly categorised, making compliance a critical operational priority. Determining whether client gifts, employee awards, and promotional i

Understanding Your Options When You Owe More Tax Than You Can Pay

Have you ever looked at your tax bill and thought, ‘There's no way I can pay all of this?’ Don’t be too alarmed, you are not the only one. Every year, millions of people owe taxes that they cannot afford to pay in a single go. Owing money to

How to Plan for Taxes Before They Become a Problem

Image via Dreamstime.com Taxes are easy to ignore when business is moving fast. There are customers to serve, invoices to send, products to ship, employees to manage, and roughly 900 tiny fires wearing little bookkeeping hats. But waiting until tax season to t

Why Better Financial Records Matter More in a Data-Matched Tax World

Tax Authorities Are No Longer Working BlindThere was a time when tax reporting relied heavily on what individuals and businesses chose to declare. That world has changed. Today, tax authorities can compare what appears on a return against data from banks, empl

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Missed Calls, Missed Bids: How Contractors Can Protect Quote Revenue and Win More Work

For contractors, missed enquiries are not just small admin issues. They can quickly turn into lost quotes, weaker cash flow, and lower returns from marketing spend. Whether your business handles renovations, repairs, trade services, building work, maintenance,

Meta Just Paid $17 Billion for How Its Algorithm Worked. Hassan Taher on What That Means for AI.

On August 26, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers approved a settlement in the Northern District of California that ends a trial the technology industry had been watching for three years. Meta agreed to pay 29 states approximately $12.2 billion over a decade, rising

The Hidden Operational Costs That Can Quietly Hurt Business Profitability

There are thousands of dollars, hundreds of them slipping through operational cracks every day in average-sized companies. Revenue metrics might look healthy on paper, but silent overhead leaks steadily hollow out net margins.Leaders often focus on major line

How Phaedra Solutions Builds AI-Enabled Web & Mobile Apps That Are Ready to Scale

Building a web or mobile app requires the right decisions across architecture, budget, timelines, and user experience. While many agencies still rely on slower traditional processes, Phaedra Solutions uses AI-first methods from planning through delivery. This

Automating Compliance: KYC and AML Verification Platforms for Financial Institutions in 2026

Financial institutions are under increasing pressure to modernise Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) workflows while maintaining smooth digital onboarding experiences. Manual reviews and fragmented verification systems can create complian

The Top MDR Providers in 2026: Best Managed Detection and Response Services Compared

Most organisations can no longer detect and stop modern attacks on their own. Threats move in minutes, skilled security staff is scarce and expensive, and running a 24/7 security operations center in-house is out of reach for many teams. Managed detection and

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Alternative Investment Awards 2017 Winners List