Purpose This study aims to address the timely question of whether Bitcoin exhibited a safe haven property against the major Australian stock indices during the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia and whether such property is similar or different in one year time from the first wave of the COVID-19. Design/methodology/approach The authors used the bivariate Dynamic Conditional Correlation, Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity model, on the five-day returns of Bitcoin and Australian stock indices for the sample period between 23 April, 2011 and 19 April, 2021. Findings The results show that Bitcoin offered weak safe haven and hedging benefits when combined in a portfolio with S&P/ASX 200 Financials index, S&P/ASX 200 Banks index or S&P/ASX 300 Banks index. In regard to the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold index, the authors found Bitcoin a risky candidate with inconsistent safe haven and hedging benefits. Against S&P/ASX 50 index, S&P/ASX 200 index and S&P/ASX 300 index, Bitcoin was nothing more than a diversifier. The outset of the second COVID-19 wave, which was comparatively more severe than the first, is also reflected in the results with considerably higher correlations. Originality/value There is a lack of in-depth empirical evidence on the safe haven capabilities of Bitcoins for various Australian stock indices during the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study bridges this void in research.

The study aims to address issues related to valuing women entrepreneurship in the informal economy in Bangladesh. To achieve the above objective, both qualitative and quantitative methods have been used. The author reviewed several articles, research reports, and included face to face in-depth interviews of fifteen entrepreneurs. Moreover, the applied five-point Likert scale questionnaire responded 100 random entrepreneurs from the rural areas of Bangladesh to recognize the barriers in accessing financial institutions and figure out how financial inclusions can contribute more in the informal economy. The results of this study suggest that complicated loans process, high-interest rates, absence of a life skills program, lack of financial freedom for women and property rights, entrepreneurial paradox, absence of collaterals, financial institutions negligence, mismanagement of loans, lack of interactions with local successful entrepreneur and imbalance of family and professional promise are the major barriers in accessing financial institutions in Bangladesh. In addition, financial inclusions are required to bring about changes in their lives. The results of the study will help Bangladesh and other developing countries break down the barriers for women entrepreneurs and develop the business opportunities created by women. In this regard, future research will anticipate both urban and rural areas, with a larger sample and quantitative studies will be conducted.

The Covid-19 pandemic has ushered in a new age in the world. We are still grappling with the implications in various areas of our everyday lives. The impulsive buying habits of consumers, the supply chain, and the whole industry are not exceptions. Consumers and supply chains were both unprepared during the early stages of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The procurement of utilitarian products was referred to as panic buying. The study examined using exploratory studies on several individuals in the eight selected Islamic countries who have been panic buying in coronavirus-affected areas and have faced regional constraints. The data apply on exploratory factor analysis (EFA) in eight selected Islamic countries, three hundred sample finally selected, and a good number of volunteers supported in this study. The results have shown that a drastic financial effect on the economy where purchasing power and remittance inflow declined, inflation goes up and precaution for lockdown, whereas impulsive buying goods tendency increased due to misinformation, and panic buying immensely impact in the economy. The decision-making process has shifted, preventing financial burdening, rising saving patterns, and unwelcoming unhealthy consumption. Moreover, visible psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. These studies concluded with a policy recommendation providing the results.

Due to some of the limitations of monetary measures, various non-monetary approaches for assessing household wealth have been developed as alternative tools for classifying household socio-economic status. Among them, wealth indices based on household durable assets are being used. The literature revealed that two basic methods of constructing wealth indices are employed: an unweighted method, where assets are weighted equally; and a weighted method, where specific weights are assigned to assets. In the case of using the weighted method, weighting can be assigned using various techniques. The overall objective of the study is to compare the wealth indices constructed by using weighted and unweighted methods for assessing the socio-economic status of households in rural Bangladesh. Firstly, the study attempts to construct wealth indices based on durable assets using the unweighted method and two techniques of the weighted method: weighted index using the inverse of proportion, and weighted index using principal component analysis (PCA). Following this, the study compares some distributional characteristics of these indices as well as monetary indicators. At the same time, the study evaluates and examines some attractive properties of these indices such as the extent of clumping and truncation, consistency with traditional monetary measures. Comparative analysis revealed that the unweighted asset index, as well as weighted asset index using PCA, can be treated as an efficient alternative to the monetary measures to evaluate the living standard of the households in the present study. However, due to some advantage's asset index using PCA can be considered to be somewhat better than the unweighted index. But, as the unweighted asset index is not very different from the weighted asset index using PCA, it can also be used as an alternative to the monetary measures without the need to use weighting.