Coronavirus Crisis Impacts on Financial Business & Academia: The Czech Case

冠状病毒危机对金融业务和学术界的影响：捷克案例

Dr. Ladislav Zemánek, junior financial advisor, Stone & belter (Prague, Czech Republic); analyst, China-CEE Institute (Budapest, Hungary)

拉迪斯拉夫·泽马内克(Ladislav Zemánek)博士， Stone & belter（捷克共和国布拉格）初级金融顾问；中国—中东欧研究院（匈牙利布达佩斯）分析师

The crisis provoked by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease has affected both fields in which I have worked – finance and academia. Although these branches are very different from each other in many respects, impacts of the current unexpected and serious situation have had much in common in both cases.

新型冠状病毒爆发所造成的危机已经影响到了我从事的两个领域-金融和学术界。尽管这两个领域在很多方面各不相同，但是，当前超乎想象的严峻形势对这两个领域的影响却有很多共同点。

I work as a junior advisor in a Czech financial advisory company. We aim at providing our clients with knowledge-based and unbiased consultancy as well as finance and property management. Our services cover insurance, investment or credits including mortgages, nevertheless, these are only partial tools for gradual building of financial independence based on a complex, long-term and rational financial care and management, which is unthinkable without establishment and cultivation of mutual trust-based relationship between clients and advisors. Such a relationship can barely be established without personal, face-to-face contact and communication. Therefore, the current crisis has hindered acquisition of new clients. Electronic forms of communication help in many cases but especially the initial phase of cooperation with clients is characterised by intensive face-to-face communication which is necessary for effective and thorough analysis of the client′s financial and property situation, needs and future goals, as well as for establishment of mutual trust and forms of cooperation. It is thus not surprising that under current circumstances, increases in number of new clients have been very low.

我在一家捷克金融顾问公司担任初级顾问。我们致力于为客户提供以知识为本、不偏不倚的咨询以及金融和财产管理服务。我们的服务涵盖保险、投资或信贷（包括抵押），然而，这些都只不过是用于根据复杂、长期、合理的财务管理逐步建立财务独立性的部分工具。如果客户和顾问之间没有建立和培养互信关系，这是难以想象的。如果没有面对面的接触和沟通，这种关系几乎无法建立。因此，当前危机导致我们无法获得新客户。虽然在许多情况下电子形式的沟通也能产生效果，但是，在与客户合作的最初阶段，必须进行密集的面对面沟通，才能有效地、全面地分析客户的财务和财产状况、需求和未来目标，才能建立互信，确立合作的形式。因此，在当前的形势下新客户增长量非常低，这不足为怪。

Furthermore, since March, when the epidemic situation started to deteriorate significantly in our country, the number of new deals has decreased arising from a drop in demand from clients who have been afraid of the ongoing epidemic development and influenced by strong uncertainty in terms of their financial incomes and possible abrupt needs to be solved. From the point of view of individual branches mentioned in the previous paragraph, decrease can be observed primarily in the field of insurance. On the other hand, however, the coronavirus crisis, which has also affected financial markets and economy as a whole, has created good opportunities for investment. A steep decline in financial markets in the last months enabled to invest both into bonds and stocks at very advantageous prices. We have therefore been communicating with our clients having ready money at their disposal as to purchases of financial instruments in order to expand their financial portfolios. These bargains are likely to generate profits in a more or less distant future.

此外，自3月份以来，我们国家的疫情开始严重恶化。自那时起，由于客户担心疫情持续发展，并且受财务收入方面的重大不确定性以及潜在的突发事件影响，需求一直下滑，从而导致新交易数量减少。从上述个别领域的角度来看，交易量下降主要发生在保险领域。然而，从另一方面来说，这场冠状病毒危机影响到了金融市场和经济的发展，但也为投资创造了良机。。在过去几个月里，金融市场急剧衰退，使得债券和股票的投资价格非常具有优势。因此，我们一直与那些手头上有可用资金的客户进行沟通，来购买金融工具以扩大其金融投资组合。这些交易有可能在不久的就能产生利润。

Besides a more intensive focus on investment, a considerable part of demands from and consultations with clients have regarded credits in general and mortgages in particular. The reason are decreases in interest rates as a result of decisions made by the central bank with the aim to stimulate economic activities and money circulation. Very low interest rates accompanied by loosening of credit rules are to encourage people to take out a mortgage. In addition, many expect that the current crisis will bring about a decrease in real estates prices, which have been soaring for many years until now. These changes and speculations lead solvent clients to consider purchase of a new flat. We are doing our best to choose the most appropriate solution. Even though the number of mortgages has fallen over the last months, rise is expected due to abovementioned shifts on both the mortgage and real estate market.

除了更注重投资外，在客户提出的要求和咨询中，相当一部分人还是比较注重信贷，但是更注重抵押。原因是中央银行以刺激经济活动和货币流通为目的的决策导致利率下降。随着信贷规则的放宽，利率变得非常低，鼓励人们进行抵押贷款。此外，许多人预期当前危机会导致房地产价格下跌。到目前为止，房地产价格一直在飙升。这些变化和猜测使得有偿付能力的客户考虑购买新房。我们尽最大努力选择最合理的解决方案。尽管在过去数月中，抵押贷款数量一直下降，但是由于上述抵押贷款和房地产市场的变动，抵押贷款数量会上升。

Notwithstanding the very problems arising from the crisis and related restrictive measures introduced by the Czech government, new conditions have produced new forms of work and doing business. The most substantial change is expansion of electronic devices, e-communication tools and on-line platforms. An advisor has became able to consult with more clients in case of use of e-tools. At the same time, insurance companies, banks, investment companies and other financial institutions have been forced to digitalise a wide array of processes and steps in order to maintain businesses. In a sense, the crisis has prompted these to a more pro-client policy. An increasing number of deals and operations including investment one has became fully electronic, which makes the advisor′s work with clients more effective and smooth.

尽管危机造成了诸多问题，捷克政府也实施了相关限制政策，但新的形势造就了新的工作形式和新的经商方式。最大变化是电子设备、电子通信工具和网络平台的扩张。在使用电子工具的情况下，顾问已经能够与更多客户进行咨询。与此同时，保险公司、银行、投资公司以及其他金融机构不得不对一系列流程和步骤进行数字化以维持业务。在某种意义上，这场危机促使他们采取了更加亲客户的政策。越来越多的交易和运营（包括投资在内）实现了全电子化，从而使顾问与客户之间的合作变得更高效畅顺。

Similar hindrances have occurred in the academic life. I work as an external research fellow at the Centre of Global Studies at the Czech Academy of Sciences and, simultaneously, as an analyst at the China-CEE Institute, established by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Budapest. In response to the restrictive measures, the academics were to work and carry out research from home. A great deal of conferences, seminars and other activities have been cancelled or suspended. Nevertheless, the academic and research life has not stopped as many institutions have provided open access to their sources. Moreover, social isolation and the need for discussion and opinion and knowledge exchanges have led to the intensification of mutual, bilateral as well as multilateral communication by means of e-tools and on-line platforms such as Zoom or WeChat. I myself have been engaged in a WeChat seminar organised in cooperation with colleagues from Zhejiang Financial College and dedicated to the novel coronavirus crisis in China and Central Europe.

学术生活中也出现了同样的问题。我在捷克科学院全球研究中心担任外部研究员，同时在中国社会科学院在布达佩斯设立的中国—中东欧研究院兼任分析师。为应对限制性措施，科研人员需要在家工作并展开研究。许多会议、研讨会以及其他活动被取消或暂停。尽管如此，许多机构还是向公众开放资源，因而学术和研究生活并未停止。此外，由于社交隔离，以及对讨论、意见和知识交流的需求，使得利用电子工具或网络平台（如Zoom或微信）进行相互、双边以及多边的沟通得到了强化。我本人参加过与浙江金融职业学院合作组织的微信研讨会，专门讨论中国和中欧的新型冠状病毒危机。

Undoubtedly, these difficult times may change formats of scientific collaboration existing so far. Thanks to the more intensive e-interactions, blending of different styles and genres together with weakening of formal elements in favour of the informal ones can be observed. These emerging forms are typical of naturalness, liveliness and mixed character. It seems to me that if grasped properly, they can show to be more fruitful, strengthening intercultural understanding and good knowledge and practices transfer. The coronavirus crisis can thus contribute to deepening ties as well as awareness of global responsibility and community, sharing common destiny and common future.

毫无疑问，这些艰难时期可能会改变目前的科学协作方式。得益于更密集的线上互动，我们可以看到不同的风格和类型混合一起，正式元素正在被弱化，非正式元素得以重视。这些新兴的形式具有自然，活泼和混合性的典型特征。在我看来，如果把握得当，它们可以呈现出更加富有成效的水平，加强跨文化的理解和良好的知识和实践的传递。因此，新型冠状病毒危机有助于加深联系，提高人们对全球责任和社区的认知，分担共同的命运，分享共同的未来。