It's rather remarkable that a 12-year-old girl has taken it upon herself to lay a verbal beating on the state of Canadian banking but that's exactly what Victoria Grant has done and in a most convincing fashion.

If you haven't seen it yet, the Cambridge, Ont., youth's address at the Public Banking in America conference in Philadelphia last month has become an online hit, with a YouTube video posted by her father. The video has already generated close to 75,000 hits.

In short, the young lass calls into question the state of the Canadian banking industry, "Have you ever wondered why the bankers from the largest private banks are becoming wealthier and the rest of us are not," she asks.

She doesn't hold back as she champions a greater role for the Bank of Canada while openly criticizing the federal government for being in leagues with Canada's private banks to keep us all in debt. Frankly, she makes a compelling case for significant change.

"The banks and the government have colluded to

With Greece's departure from the Eurozone edging closer to reality, global markets took a tumble on Wednesday.

The political stalemate in Greece continues with new national elections expected for June, escalating the risk of a Greek run on banks. Adding to the Eurozone woes, the spread between Spanish and Germany bond yields has hit a record. Italy's 10-year bond yields have also jumped.

The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 Index was recently 1.4 per cent lower at 242.43. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 fell 1.4 per cent to 5359.18, Germany's DAX was down 1.5 per cent at 6306.09 and France's CAC 40 fell 1.2 per cent to 3002.04. The euro currency is presently fetching US$1.2688.

Asian bourses also took a fall as investor worries about Greece and debt contagion risks boil over. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index hit a two-month low, dropping to 4165.50, a 2.4 per cent fall; and Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell below 8800 for the first time since Feb. 1, finishing the day at 8801.17, 1.1 per cent down.

2012 may go down in history as the year of the shareholder in light of the number of public companies that are being forced to kowtow to investor demands for greater accountability. But there's a potential unwelcome side effect that comes with the territory: a squelched long-term view on innovation and profitability.

One needn't look far for recent examples of this newfound activism among investors. Last week, U.K.-based insurance firm Aviva saw its CEO resign after investors balked at giving him a pay increase despite a slump in the company's stock price. The Aviva shareholder revolt follows similar movements at the likes of Barclays and Citigroup, in-turn suggesting corporate democracy isn't an oxymoron.

"Shareholder activism has been around for quite some time but it's increasing," says Prof. Eric Kirzner, John H. Watson chair in value investing, Joseph L. Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. "These activists aren't necessarily do-gooders that are trying to

Better-than-expected German and European Union gross domestic product figures are giving global stocks a boost on Tuesday, but concern over Greece's potential withdrawal from the Eurozone continues to weigh on investors.

The German economy, Europe's largest, grew by 0.5 per cent in the first three months of the year despite the ongoing Eurozone debt crisis. That in-turn has managed to help the 17 nations using the euro avoid recession. The European Union posted zero growth in the first quarter after a 0.3-per cent contraction in the last quarter of 2011.

Meanwhile, and beyond the political uncertainty in Greece that threatens the global economy, Spain and Italy continue to loom large.

The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was up 0.6 per cent at 249.00. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index was 0.6 per cent higher at 5500.55, Germany's DAX was up 0.7 per cent at 6501.00 and France's CAC 40 was up 1.2 per cent at 3093.85. The euro currency is presently fetching US$1.2866.

Asian bourses are also

Better-than-expected German and European Union gross domestic product figures are giving global stocks a boost on Tuesday, but concern over Greece's potential withdrawal from the Eurozone continues to weigh on investors.

The German economy, Europe's largest, grew by 0.5 per cent in the first three months of the year despite the ongoing Eurozone debt crisis. That in-turn has managed to help the 17 nations using the euro avoid recession. The European Union posted zero growth in the first quarter after a 0.3-per cent contraction in the last quarter of 2011.

Meanwhile, and beyond the political uncertainty in Greece that threatens the global economy, Spain and Italy continue to loom large.

The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was up 0.6 per cent at 249.00. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index was 0.6 per cent higher at 5500.55, Germany's DAX was up 0.7 per cent at 6501.00 and France's CAC 40 was up 1.2 per cent at 3093.85. The euro currency is presently fetching US$1.2866.

Asian bourses are also