Iraq’s government is trying to persuade western banks and companies to put billions into the country’s battered economy. The opportunities are great, but so are the risks, reports Julian Evans.

Lebanon has faced four years of violence, civil strife, assassinations and war. And yet its economy and banking sector grow stronger each year, reports Julian Evans from Beirut.

Lebanon’s destiny has often been closely interwoven with that of its larger neighbour, Syria. Indeed, for 15 years, from the end of the civil war until 2005, the Syrian government would simply hand over to the Lebanese prime minister a list of which ministers it wanted in the Lebanese government, according to some reports. 
 

Foreign banks have pledged their faith in the economies of Southeastern Europe. However, lending is down and political pressure is growing on them to open their purses, writes Eva-Luise Schwarz.

In August 2008, the Saudi Arabian stock market finally opened up to foreign investors. After a slow start, volumes are now tripling monthly, and investment banks are racing into the country to position themselves in the new market.

While corporate and retail lending in Poland are declining, Polish banks are buoyed by the prospect of €68bn in EU funds over the next seven years, writes Liz Salecka.

The Madoff pyramid scheme may have begun in New York and Florida, but in its final phase, it spread out to emerging markets, and investors from the Middle East and Russia have lost billions.

Tomas Fiala grew up fighting the Komsomol during Czechozlovakia’s Velvet Revolution. Now he is the majority owner of Dragon Capital, Ukraine’s most successful investment bank, but he’s still fighting for investors’ rights, writes Benjamin Seeder in Kiev.

With a landmark Eurobond tucked under its belt, an accelerating stock market and first oil production just two years away, Ghana is well positioned to tap the new capital required for its banking sector, writes Kevin Godier.

Kazakhstan’s beleaguered banking sector is getting back on its feet, thanks to increased activity by state banks, and growing levels of FDI, report Shayla Walmsley and Julian Evans.

Egypt’s reformist government is grappling with the dilemma of fighting inflation while cutting a growing deficit. However, in the capital markets, Egyptian companies are expanding and becoming MENA regional champions. Julian Evans reports from Cairo.

As Dubai, Bahrain and Qatar compete to become centres of finance, London is steadily establishing itself as an alternative, writes
Julian Evans.