The meeting on 25 September with Laurenz Melchers in the chair was attended by 80 members and invited guests. Executive Director Jim Dwyer announced BCM's Renewal dinner for 31 October. The evening will feature food, drinks and entertainment as well as awards to outstanding businesses, government organizations, and working groups.  Membership now stands at 193 members from 162 members one year ago. Those recently joined are:
1. Global Minespec LLC is a Mongolian-Australian joint venture welding and safety equipment supplier to operations in Mongolia. It provides to the mining and fabrication industries in Mongolia a much needed supply of high quality items. Established in 2010, Global Minespec has worked with companies such as Major Drilling and Boroo Gold.
2. Mongolia Growth Group is a financial group focused on acquiring investments in real estate and building the country's insurance industry. Its goal is to leverage the tremendous growth currently found in Mongolia. Attracted to Mongolia for its rich mineral wealth, on-going development of world class mines, high gross domestic product (GDP) growth, and ambitious society; the group wishes to capitalize on the development opportunities available. Planning to focus its energies on real estate, insurance, and asset management, the group plans to help direct policy and development.
3. Standard Chartered was first formed in 1969 after the merger of The Standard Bank of British South Africa (founded in 1863) and the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (founded in 1853). The bank aims to be the world's best international bank; leading the way in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. It focuses on attractive, growing markets where it can leverage its relationships and expertise, promising competitive position, and management discipline. Its brand promise is “here for good.”
4. Falcon Drilling is an international diamond drilling service supplier with world wide experience in providing drilling services to the local and international geological exploration community. The company was established in 1986 and has operated in Mongolia since February 2006. Its specially manufactured drills are designed and manufactured in Canada to suit a variety of different objectives. Local manufacturing and quality control ensures maximum reliability and minimum down time.
5. Citigroup (Citi) has years of experience meeting the world's toughest challenges and seizing its greatest opportunities. The group aims to serve its clients with financial solutions that are simple, creative, and responsible. Citi is an institution connecting 1,000 cities, 160 countries, 200 million clients and millions of people.
The evening began with a presentation by General George D. Miller, chairman of the board at Rolph Jensen Agency. His group aims to deliver the best fire protection strategies as a non-government agency. It works to develop consensus codes with help from interested parties, such as experts in the hotel industry. He warned that since Mongolia is developing very quickly, fire safety management should be implemented correctly and quickly. He gave examples such as at MGM Hotel in Las Vegas where a fire accident ruined tourism. The group has significant experience, including advisory for the Disney Concert Hall, Beijing Film Museum, and China Pavilion for the Shanghai Expo 2010; in addition to numerous corporate and residential high-rise buildings. His agency can help ensure necessary codes are put in place and properly administered.
B. Lambolgor, BD Sec market analyst, gave a presentation on the history and future of the Mongolian Stock Market (MSE). Currently the market is worth a total MNT 2 trillion. Current activity on the market includes the initial public offerings (IPO) of Silkrat and Sharyn Gol, and the corporate bond issuance of Just Agro LLC worth MNT 30 million. Reform on the market includes competition laws, stock market laws, and investment fund laws. Working with the London Stock Exchange (LSE) the MSE will improve using the Millennium IT software for electronic trading. Currently 15,000 companies are paying taxes to the Mongolian government, but just 2.2 percent are listed on the MSE; and only 13 of the Mongolian Top-100 can be found there as well.
Economist, blogger, and TV talk show host D. Jargalsaikhan introduced the government spending watchdog group ‘Fair Taxes, Wise Spending’. As the only legitimate critique of tax laws and protector of tax payer rights, the group observes government spending and fights for greater transparency in government. Jargalsaikhan identified three risks to Mongolia: dependence on China; unpredictable and non-transparent government; and rising inflation. The group works to raise the status of tax payers and shine a light on wasteful spending. Too much money is handed out to people, giving no incentive for work and the middle class is not seeing the growth that Mongolia's richest are benefiting from, he said. Mongolia needs a predictable tax system that accounts for every tugrug spent.
Naranbaatar, Managing Director of Glogex, discussed the upcoming Metals Mongolia 2011 metal development economic forum organized by his company. The forum will be held from 3 to 4 November to discuss the various metal commodities in Mongolia, and how the ore mining sector can be better developed. Currently MNT 2.5 billion worth of exports are shipped from Mongolia, MNT 1.2 billion of which are metals; including iron copper, and uranium. The government wants to supply a fully processed product, but the skills and infrastructure available to Mongolia are not enough. The conference's goal is to attract investment to deposits and consider policy recommendations. The five session topics are the metal industry and its outlook; practices and methods for mining and processing; world metals and a market outlook; mining and metal projects available to Mongolia and future prospects; and international cooperation in the mining sector.