The global economic environment remains volatile, and international equity indices which used to exhibit increasing correlation appear increasingly independent. The strong growth in US equity markets experienced in 2014 contrasts with weaker outlooks in Europe and emerging markets, and these differences have been further impacted by pronounced currency volatility in the first quarter of 2015, and depressed oil and commodity prices. In Kazakhstan, monetary policy and exchange rates remain high on the CEO agenda, with businesses closely monitoring how the National Bank will respond to the effects of the strong dollar and the volatile rouble. This edition of Frontiers in Finance includes an article set against this increasing volatility, and considers how integrated information systems could help a bank effectively respond to shocks in the market, using the significant appreciation of the Swiss franc earlier this year as an example. The article also suggests the potential competitive advantage that properly integrated reporting systems could provide to a bank. A key global trend in the financial services market is the effect of technology, and in particular data analytics, on the competitive landscape. This has brought new sales and distribution models and has the potential to further disrupt the traditional financial services market. Our publication includes articles which consider several aspects of how technological developments continue to shape the financial services sector, including topics around data analytics and the use of social media. KPMG continues to be committed to assisting the development of the financial services market in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. We hope that you find this publication informative, and If you would like to discuss any of these articles with us, we would be very pleased to hear from you.