Trade Finance Talks: Recent Episodes
Trade Finance Global
The latest trends, technology and insights in the world of international trade, supply chain and receivables finance from Trade Finance Global. Tune in for updates on https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com.
Any conference, interview, or conversation on the future of trade will inevitably discuss the inefficiencies which need to be addressed before that future arrives.
Although artificial intelligence (AI) is, by now, ubiquitous, a redefinition of value, risk, and information transmission can be solved by tokenisation. But what do digital assets actually offer in the current context of global trade? And how ready is the present regulatory and cultural climate?
For the final episode of Trade Finance Global (TFG) and Standard Chartered’s five-episode podcast series, Future of Trade, TFG’s Mark Abrams was joined by Standard Chartered’s Kevin Chang, Head of Trade and Working Capital for Hong Kong and GCNA and Group Head of Trade Digital Assets, and Emily Chan, Director, Trade Product Manager, Digital Assets, to discuss the future of digital assets in trade.
In an increasingly complex and fast-paced global economy, trade finance is undergoing a fundamental transformation, with digitalisation moving from a theoretical goal to an operational necessity.
As digital technologies become a defining feature of the field, industry leaders are increasingly reassessing what success looks like - a shift driven by a rapidly evolving landscape where traditional benchmarks seem to no longer be sufficient.
The discussion, hosted by Trade Finance Global (TFG), was convened by Souleïma Baddi, CEO of Komgo, Gregory Lambillon, CEO & Country Manager of ING Switzerland, and Jean-Marc Thijs, COO of ING Switzerland, to reflect on how this transformation is unfolding in practical terms.
In an increasingly complex and fast-paced global economy, trade finance is undergoing a fundamental transformation, with digitalisation moving from a theoretical goal to an operational necessity.
As digital technologies become a defining feature of the field, industry leaders are increasingly reassessing what success looks like - a shift driven by a rapidly evolving landscape where traditional benchmarks seem to no longer be sufficient.
The discussion, hosted by Trade Finance Global (TFG), was convened by Souleïma Baddi, CEO of Komgo, Gregory Lambillon, CEO & Country Manager of ING Switzerland, and Jean-Marc Thijs, COO of ING Switzerland, to reflect on how this transformation is unfolding in practical terms.
At the BAFT’s (Bankers Association for Finance and Trade) Global Annual Meeting, held in Orlando, Florida, in May 2026, these themes were front and centre. BAFT’s flagship conference brought together transaction bankers from across the trade and payments industry in a ‘mini-SIBOS’ where attendees combined bilateral business meetings with sessions exploring the sector’s latest developments.
For the second episode of Trade Finance Global (TFG) and BAFT’s podcast series, Banking on the Future, Mahika Ravi Shankar, Deputy Editor at TFG, spoke with Tod Burwell, BAFT’s President and CEO, to get an insider view on the conference and delve into its hottest topics.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) forms a single market of over 1.4 billion people, making up the largest free trade zone in the world. Rooted in the philosophy of pan-Africanism, the AfCFTA unites the African Union member states as a means to build regional value chains and bolster the continent’s industrial development.
- End-user needs are driving innovation in transaction banking, with banks focusing on integrated workflows rather than standalone financial products.
- Digitalisation, AI and high-quality data are helping businesses improve liquidity management, automate treasury processes, and enhance operational efficiency.
- Banks must embed services into clients' existing systems and workflows to provide flexible, data-driven solutions that adapt to changing market conditions.
In 2026, prices of oil, gold, wheat, beef, and other commodities hit all-time highs, fueled by the inflationary effects of the Iran war. But one global good has plummeted - cocoa.
In the last year, prices have fallen 70%. An industry riddled by moral and social challenges, including child labour exploitation, carbon footprint, and deforestation, is now also under economic threat.
The future of West African cocoa, in particular, being subject to smuggling, storage constraints, financing challenges, and global regulatory hurdles, is falling into question.
Trade Finance Global (TFG) sat down with Dr Tedd George, CEO of Kleos Advisory and a regional and industry expert, to discuss the regulatory, financial, and ecological frameworks needed to make West African cocoa sustainable.
In the new normal of continuous geopolitical disruption and economic uncertainty, supply chain finance (SCF) is moving beyond its traditional remit.
SCF encompasses a set of financing solutions designed to optimise working capital and improve cash flow for both buyers and suppliers. These solutions range from buyer-led programmes such as approved payables finance (allowing buyers to pay later) to seller-led instruments such as receivables discounting, inventory finance, or distributor finance (which let sellers be paid on time). In essence, these solutions are designed to unlock liquidity across a trade cycle.
Sweeping geopolitical disruption is making credit and political risk insurance (CPRI) ever more crucial.
CPRI is moving away from being a reactive product, evolving into a structural, balance sheet tool that corporates need to embed into their capital relief, portfolio management, and liquidity strategies.
When corporate treasurers survey the global economic landscape for areas of future growth, one region comes up again and again: South-East Asia. The region enjoys some of the world’s fastest-growing, increasingly sophisticated export industries and an ever-wealthier population - 70% of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) population will be middle-class by 2030.
As supply chain difficulties and volatile commodity flows once again make headlines around the world, commodity trade finance (CTF) remains the backbone of global commodity transactions. The commodities sector has undergone an impressive evolution in the past decades, driven by macro trends and short-term shocks, and is now facing some of its biggest challenges yet. However, CTF providers are supporting the industry to improve its resilience and innovation.
In the third episode of Trade Finance Global (TFG) and Standard Chartered’s five-episode podcast series, Future of Trade, TFG’s Mark Abrams spoke to Clemence Avril, Global Head of Commodity Trade Finance at Standard Chartered, to delve into the sector’s shifting landscape and unpack how this change is sparking opportunities.
Fully transparent, programmable, secure digital money that maintains a stable value: 20 years ago, stablecoins sounded about as realistic as flying cars and holograms. But recent technological advancements and regulatory innovation have made this once-distant dream a reality, turning it into one of banking’s hottest topics.
Allianz Trade’s 2026 Risk Barometer identifies the 10 most pressing concerns faced by corporates for the year ahead, encompassing the views of 3,338 risk management experts, spanning 97 countries and territories. Doğa Usanmaz, Reporter at TFG, sat down with Sarah Murrow, President and CEO of Allianz Trade Americas, to discuss these changes. AI’s jump from eighth to second place in the Barometer rankings in just one year draws attention to the possibility of dark horses when it comes to risk. For Murrow, concentration is one of these dark horses.
The exclusion of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) from finance isn’t driven by mere moral neglect, but by systemic infrastructural constraints - amplified by incomplete data.
In a recent episode of Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) podcast series, Trade Finance Talks, Silvia Andreoletti, Senior Reporter at TFG, sat down with Adel Meer, Manager of SME Finance, Solutions & Impact, at the World Bank Group (WBG).
The growth of AI in document forgery, the lethargic response of legislation, and the complexity of international commodity transactions all pose significant challenges to combating financial crime.
Russia has rapidly expanded its “shadow fleet” of ageing, poorly regulated tankers to bypass Western sanctions, now accounting for a significant share of global seaborne oil trade.
Tensions have been high at this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) held in Davos, Switzerland. The tone was set from Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s proclamation on Tuesday, 20 January, that “the rules-based order is fading”, for which he received a standing ovation.
When Russian tanks rolled into the Donbas, Sumy, Kherson and other regions of Ukraine in the early morning of 22 February 2022, the world watched in horror as the familiar story - a small state bullied into submission by a global superpower - repeated once again. Since then, the role of financial institutions both as providers of financing and pillars of the community has grown more firmly entrenched in Ukraine.
As sudden swings, geopolitical shifts, and the erosion of dollar-dominance reshape the market, foreign exchange (FX) — the global market for trading currencies — has become a central concern for businesses trading across borders.
In the second episode of Future of Trade, Trade Finance Global and Standard Chartered explore why digital trade adoption continues to lag behind innovation.
TFG’s Mark Abrams speaks with Samuel Mathew, Managing Director and Global Head of Documentary Trade at Standard Chartered, on the difference between digitisation and true digitalisation, the interoperability challenges holding paperless trade back, and the role of legacy infrastructure.
The episode also examines the foundations needed for AI in trade finance, the growing relevance of digital assets and tokenisation, and why regulatory progress remains necessary but insufficient for digital trade to scale.
Alternative lenders - non-bank entities that provide financing outside traditional banking channels - are no longer peripheral to the trade finance ecosystem. Their increased presence reflects a structural failure: banks' declining ability to lend to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
As the environmental cost of global supply chains – responsible for over 60% of global yearly emissions – becomes impossible to ignore, the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment (CBAM) is emerging as a central tool for aligning trade with climate objectives.
On January 1, 2026, CBAM will move from a reporting framework and become a real financial liability for importers: those who haven’t secured authorised CBAM declarant status will face penalties, higher costs, and operational disruption.
Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) Charles Osborne spoke with Adam Hearne, CEO and Co-founder of CarbonChain, about what this transition means in practice.
Resilience in global trade has moved beyond a defensive strategy. In an era defined by tariffs, technological developments, and shifting patterns of economic growth, it is now integral to sustainable expansion and long-term competitiveness across global supply chains.
In the debut episode of Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) new five-part podcast series, Future of Trade with Standard Chartered, TFG’s Mark Abrams sat down with Sofia Hammoucha, Global Head of Trade and Working Capital at Standard Chartered.
Factoring, a financial practice where businesses sell unpaid invoices for immediate cash, underpins trillions in global commerce, with global volumes nearing €3.8 trillion in 2023
At the 2025 Sibos conference in Frankfurt, Germany, Silvia Andreoletti, Senior Reporter at Trade Finance Global (TFG), had the opportunity to speak with Ximena Alemán, Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Prometeo, a Latin American payments network.
Over the last decade, a new world order has been trying to emerge from the cracks of enduring systems. When Nick Szabo proposed the idea of “bit gold” in 1998, he opened the portal to inventions that changed how humans thought and dealt with money forever.
The global trade finance gap persists at around $2.5 trillion, leaving businesses - especially small-and-medium commodity traders - struggling to pay suppliers, ship goods, and keep cash flowing while they wait for buyers to pay invoices.
From soaring price volatility and shifting geopolitical tensions to the urgent need to decarbonise, companies across the energy sector are facing risks on multiple fronts. Energy trading contracts can stretch for years, while market shocks can happen overnight.
In a grocery store in Cape Town, Korean instant noodles and ice cups sit alongside local biltong. “The younger generation is observing on social media, and has now created a demand for, these items,” observed Zaynab Hoosen, Senior Africa Analyst at Pangea Risk, of her home town. It’s a retail revolution spurred by cultural curiosity, and it stands as a microcosm of newfound Asian investment strategies in Africa. From aid-driven investment during the mid-twentieth century to construction and development projects in the 2000s and 2010s, it appears that capital is now being deployed with the vast African consumer market and manufacturing capabilities in mind. And, with benefactors beyond China and their notorious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Since US President Donald Trump came to office in January 2025, not a day goes by without some mention of ‘tariffs’ in the news. International markets have reacted to landmark shifts initiated by US President Donald Trump’s new tariff policies. Tariffs have evolved from a more specialised economic tool to one gaining political and ideological ramifications, generating renewed and expanded interest in them.
At the 51st Annual International Trade and Forfaiting Association’s (ITFA) Conference in Singapore, Mahika Ravi Shankar, Deputy Editor at Trade Finance Global (TFG), sat down with Craig Weeks, Senior Vice President for Trade at BAFT (Bankers Association for Finance and Trade), to discuss the impact of tariffs from a banking and trade finance perspective.
The energy transition appears to have been a constant back and forth between opportunities and complex regulatory and ESG challenges, and nowhere is this more pertinent than in commodity finance. Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Christine Dirringer, Global Head of Trade and Commodity Finance at Rabobank, about how the industry is evolving to meet these demands.
Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke to Patrik Zekkar, CEO of Enigio, and Steven Zhou, Executive Director of TradeGo, to learn more about the Europe-China digital trade corridor and the potential of digitalising trade documents.
Read Here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-opening-doors-of-opportunity-along-the-europe-china-digital-trade-corridor/
At the annual Women in Trade, Treasury, and Payments Conference on 27 February, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke to Sanda Blanco, Head of Structured Credit, Political Risks and International Bonding at Howden, about the most important political risks of our time and how bespoke insurance can help businesses thrive in face of them.
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-thriving-amidst-turbulence-the-role-of-bespoke-insurance/
To discuss these dualities and gain insight into how to strike a balance, Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) Carter Hoffman spoke with Emmanuelle Ganne, Chief of Digital Trade and Frontier Technologies at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-will-ai-help-or-hinder-international-trade/
“For individually issued receivables, there is still no reliable legal structure in place”, said Melih Esmer, a legal researcher at EBS University who specialises in electronic negotiable instruments. In Germany, the problem runs deeper than simple modernisation, and into the fundamentals of bills of exchange: should Germany update its century-old bill of exchange law or create entirely new legislation for the digital era?
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-approaches-to-mletr-adoption-in-germany/
A red wave swept over the USA on 5 November 2024 as the Republican Party under former president Donald Trump won the presidential race and claimed a majority in both houses of Congress.
If Trump’s campaign rhetoric is to be believed, then his return to the White House will bring with it a renewed commitment to protectionism, an upheaval of trade norms, and significant implications for economies worldwide.
To discuss these potential implications and explore how a second Trump presidency will reshape global trade, finance, and geopolitical dynamics, Trade Finance Global spoke with Rebecca Harding, Economist at Rebeccanomics; Robert Besseling, CEO at Pangea Risk; Alisa DiCaprio, former Chief Economist at R3; and Simon Everett, Trade Policy Expert on the day the results were announced.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e29-tariffs-trade-wars-transformation-next-4-yrs-trump/
At the International Trade Forfaiting Association’s (ITFA) 2024 Christmas party, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Sean Edwards, Chairman of ITFA, and Dhiresh Dave, Chief Legal Officer and Managing Director - Legal, Compliance and Governance at Falcon Group, to discuss a financing tool that might come in handy for Saint Nicholas: inventory finance.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e28-inventory-finance-a-stocking-filler-for-2024/
As global supply chain disruptions and geopolitical tensions continue to impact trade routes, boardroom discussions are also changing. Corporate insolvencies are yet to return to pre-pandemic rates in the UK and other major economies, and inflation remaining high. Meanwhile, businesses are starting to redefine success beyond just financial performance.
How will the future workforce navigate the evolving trade and credit landscape? Beyond shareholder value, how can large financial institutions, credit insurers, and multilaterals address their social responsibilities? How do we manage systemic risks while supporting the communities involved in global trade?
As part of our C-Suite Leadership Series, Deepesh Patel, Editorial Director at Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Angela Duca, Global Specialty Head, Credit Specialties at Marsh, to help answer some of these and other pressing questions.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e27-c-suite-speaks-in-poly-crisis-lies-poly-opportunities/
At the 2024 Trade Finance Investor Day (TFDI) conference in London, TFG’s editor Deepesh Patel spoke with Nick Stainthorpe, Partner at Reed Smith, on ways to unlock capital investment into the trade finance and receivables world.
As banks’ distribution capabilities plateau, the trade and receivables finance industry is constantly on the lookout for alternative sources of investment capital but often faces challenges due to its perceived complexity compared to traditional asset classes.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e26-securitising-trade-finance-unlocking-hidden-potential/
TFG spoke to Federico Avellán Borgmeyer, Chief Partner Officer at efcom, at the FCI Conference in Prague to learn more about this year’s developments in factoring and receivables and what’s in store for 2025.
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-factoring-and-receivables-whats-in-store-for-2025/
Trade Finance Global’s Assistant Editor Mahika Ravi Shankar sat down with TFG Researcher Carter Hoffman to discuss his research paper entitled ‘The unseen side of trade digitisation: Data inequality and the global economic divide’. It focused on the sustainability and equitable growth of digital trade in a disparate global market.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e25-bridging-divide-digitalisation-trade-emerging-markets/
As we get ready for 2025, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Eleanor Hill to explore the biggest trends in the world of treasury: technology, ESG, DEI, and the power of people.
Read more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-tfgs-treasury-treasure-trove/
To help answer these questions and more, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Sarah Green at the Law Commission, Susan Ashworth, Senior Trade Finance Specialist at Matalan, and Surath Sengupta, Head of Trade And Working Capital Product at Lloyds.
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-unpacking-the-impact-of-the-etda/
To learn more about TBML and the fight against it, Mahika Ravi Shankar, Assistant Editor at Trade Finance Global (TFG), spoke with Catherine Estrada from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Sumera Baloch from Pakistan’s Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU).
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-adb-works-with-unodc-and-financial-intelligence-units-to-shine-light-in-the-shadows-of-tbml/
In our new CEO interview series, Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) Deepesh Patel sat down with James Daly, CEO of Allianz Trade - Americas, to learn more about how the trade credit insurance industry is changing to meet these complex challenges, especially within the United States.
With the US elections just hours away, grappling with new economic uncertainty and volatility, the trade credit insurance industry is in a transformative phase.
🇺🇸 The US market presents unique opportunities and obstacles. With its vast economy yet relatively low adoption of trade credit insurance, it remains a largely untapped yet potentially troublesome market wrought with economic fluctuations, sophisticated fraud schemes, and changing regulations.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e21-csuite-speaks-how-trade-credit-insurance-adapting-us-market-anticipation/
Trade Finance Global (TFG), spoke to Surecomp’s Head of Global Solution Consulting Suchi Guharoy, to discuss digitisation in supply chains and how AI can be implemented to resolve bottlenecks and improve resilience.
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-digital-lifelines-how-ai-is-strengthening-global-supply-chains/
To learn more about ITFA’s role in this evolving environment, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with the association’s newest board members: Sian Aspinall, Group CEO, BPL and Chair of the ITFA Insurance Committee, and N L N Swaroop, Global Product Head for Sustainable Trade Finance, Innovation, Financial Institutions, Capital Management and Asset Distribution at HSBC and Board Member for ITFA Trade Finance Investment Ecosystem (ITFIE).
Read the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-itfas-new-board-members-push-for-diversification-and-capacity-growth-in-trade-finance/
From innovations in financial instruments, risk mitigation techniques, digitalisation, and regulatory changes, trade finance - a critical enabler of global trade - has been experiencing a significant transformation.
Read the full article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-back-to-the-basics-with-itfas-trade-finance-educational-seminar/
To discuss the growing prominence of CPRI, Harry McIndoe and Sean Austin, Directors at BPL, joined Brian Canup in Trade Finance Talks to break down the market and discuss its utilisation by development finance institutions (DFIs) and multilateral development banks (MDBs).
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e19-bpl-role-dfis-cpri-across-emerging-markets/
At the 56th Annual FCI Meeting in Seoul, Deepesh Patel, Editorial Director at Trade Finance Global, was joined on Trade Finance Talks by Steven Beck, Head of Trade and Supply Chain Finance, Asian Development Bank to discuss the role of MDBs in the facilitation of trade and supply chain finance.
Read the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e18-steven-beck-on-the-development-and-role-of-mdbs-in-global-trade/
Pour parler des défis et des opportunités des initiatives de numérisation à l'échelle de l'industrie, André Casterman, fondateur de Casterman Advisory et président du comité Fintech de l'ITFA, a discuté avec Youssef Ahouzi, PDG de Portnet, Mohammed Kabbaj, directeur général de MSC Maroc et Shona Tatchell, directrice et responsable du programme de facilitation du commerce de la BERD, lors de la conférence de la BERD sur la numérisation du commerce international au Maroc.
To talk about the challenges and opportunities of industry-wide digitalisation initiatives, André Casterman, Founder, Casterman Advisory and Chair Fintech Committee, ITFA spoke to Youssef Ahouzi, CEO, Portnet, Mohammed Kabbaj, Managing Director MSC Morocco and Shona Tatchell, Director, Head of Trade Facilitation Programme, EBRD at EBRD’s Conference on the Digitalisation of International Trade in Morocco.
Read the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e17-the-role-of-innovative-technologies-in-transforming-moroccan-trade/
At the 56th Annual FCI Meeting in Seoul, Betül Kurtulus, Regional Director, FCI, was joined by Basel Al-Hussien, Senior Manager – Advisory, ITFC, to discuss the growth of Islamic international factoring and ITFC’s development of Islamic factoring solutions in collaboration with FCI.
Read the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e16-betul-kurtulus-and-basel-al-hussien-on-the-development-of-islamic-factoring
To discuss the paper and better understand how DTSCF can promote financial stability, risk management, and sustainability, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Tod Burwell, President and CEO of BAFT.
Read the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e15-using-deep-tier-supply-chain-financings-potential-to-unlock-capital/
To learn more about risks and risk management, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Peter Milne and Alex Gray, Director of Trade and Transaction Banking at the London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF).
Read the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e14-podcast-risk-management-in-trade-finance-how-a-citr-certification-can-help
International trade can be intimidating for many companies trying to break into the industry. With extensive regulation and documentary processes, it can seem overwhelming, especially when operating in unfamiliar regions.
Article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e13-ebrd-tfp-and-itfas-role-in-boosting-competitiveness-in-trade-and-development/
To hear about developments in the factoring and supply chain finance world, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Çağatay Baydar, Chairman at FCI and Irina Tyan, Principal Banker, TFP at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
Read the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e12-adapting-to-change-the-future-of-factoring-and-supply-chain-finance/
This finding, from the IFC’s whitepaper “Banking on Women Who Trade Across Borders”, speaks to the gender disparity that still exists in the international trade space, particularly in emerging markets.
To learn more about the challenges that women entrepreneurs face when trading across borders and some of the initiatives in place to offer support, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Makiko Toyoda, Global Head of the Global Trade Finance and Global Supply Chain Finance Programs at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Tacko Baro Fall, Waemu Head Financial Institutions And International Organizations at Ecobank.
Read the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e11-empowerment-through-trade-ifc-ecobank-tackling-gender-disparity-global-trade/
Discover the role of commodity finance in shaping the global economy. From historical events to current trends, understand the dynamics of this vital financial sector.
📖 https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e10-txfs-jonathan-bell-reflecting-10-years-commodity-finance-industry/
To understand more about how trade finance assets can fit into a broader investment strategy and learn more about future trends that could shape this investment class, Deepesh Patel spoke with Bertrand de Comminges, Managing Director and Global Head of Trade Finance Investments at Santander Alternative Investments at the ITFA and BCR: Trade & Investment Forum.
Read the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e9-diversifying-investment-portfolios-with-trade-finance-are-we-there-yet
To uncover more about how digital innovation is poised to revolutionise this vital field and enhance transparency, security, and inclusivity in global trade, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Steven Beck, Head of the Trade Finance Private Sector Operations Department at the Asian Development Bank and Neil Shonhard, CEO of MonetaGo.
Read the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e8-it-takes-a-village-adb-and-monetago-on-digital-trade-and-partnerships/
Mexico’s $1.4 trillion economy makes it the second largest market in Latin America, and its geographical location provides it with a prime position for supply chain and trade advantages.
To learn more about Mexico’s potentially prosperous position in international trade, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Gerardo Gutierrez-Olvera Cabrales, Chairman of the Banking Commission at ICC Mexico and Executive Director, Head of Trade Finance and International Business at Banorte.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e7-unlocking-mexicos-trade-potential-banorte-and-icc-mexicos-gerardo-gutierrez-olvera-discusses-strategies-future/
Digitalising trade has been a prominent feature of industry conversations for several years. With the passage of the Electronic Trade Documents Act (ETDA) in the UK, as well as the progression of similar bills in countries including the US, Germany, France, and Bahrain.
Conversations have progressed from simple questions of “how to digitalise trade”, to focusing on what the concrete next steps should be.
TFG’s Brian Canup was joined by Patrik Zekkar, CEO of Enigio, to break down the complex next steps of digitalising trade.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e6-beyond-basics-breaking-down-digitalisation-enigio/
To better understand the principles of financial inclusion, equitable regulation, and sustainable growth in the factoring industry, Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) Deepesh Patel spoke with new FCI Secretary General, Neal Harm.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e5-fci-neal-harm-kicking-off-inclusive-growth-factoring-industry/
Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) annual Women in Trade, Treasury, and Payments campaign in 2024 focused on Inspiring Inclusion around the globe. Different regions face different challenges when it comes to gender inclusion, and it is vital to understand perspectives from across the globe.
To learn more about the challenges that women face in the trade, treasury, and payments space across the African continent, and some of the programmes in place to help balance the scales, TFG spoke with Gwen Mwaba, Director and Global Head of Trade Finance at Afreximbank.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e4-africa-focus-afreximbank-empowering-women-in-trade-treasury-payments/
As the world of international trade finance adapts to the changing macroeconomic environment and the ever-increasing trade finance gap, there has been a clear shift to the originate-to-distribute model.
To help break down this fresh approach, TFG’s Brian Canup spoke with Oladapo Adeigbe, Head of Financial Institutions Trade Sales - (Africa) at Absa and Boitumelo Thoka, Head of Pan Africa Trade Working Capital Distribution, Syndication and Insurance Product at Absa.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e3-absa-trade-finance-distribution-revolution-closing-2-5tn-gap/
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, Brian Canup, Assistant Editor at TFG spoke with Claire Ehmann, Acting Associate Administrator at the SBA, and Dan Pische, National Director of Trade Finance at the SBA.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s2-e2-empowering-the-american-dream-sbas-trade-finance-solutions-for-u-s-exporters/
In anticipation of the BAFT International Trade and Payments Conference from 27-29 February 2024, in Washington, DC, TFG’s Deepesh Patel sat down with Tom Zschach, Chief Innovation Officer at Swift.
At ICC United Kingdom’s annual conference, International Trade and Prosperity Week, TFG’s Deepesh Patel was joined by Chris Southworth, Secretary General at ICC United Kingdom, to discuss the importance for the business of limiting global temperature increase to 1.5° C and what the ICC is doing to support the sustainable transition.
Follow the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e129-cop28-and-beyond-icc-united-kingdoms-views-on-climate-action/
In a recent episode of the CII podcasts, Mark Abrams, MD, and Global Head of Trade & Receivables Finance at Trade Finance Global (TFG), engaged in a thought-provoking conversation with Jayant Sriram, an ex-journalist. The episode discusses crucial aspects of international trade and finance, shedding light on challenges and innovative solutions shaping the industry.
Read the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/b20-india-strengthening-global-value-chains/
To help understand how the UK government is staying ahead of these changes, Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) Brian Canup spoke with Minister Nigel Huddleston, Minister of State at the Department for Business and Trade
To read the full article, go to https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e128-brexit-and-beyond-minister-nigel-huddleston-on-uks-trade-adaptations
At the International Trade Forfaiting Association (ITFA) 49th Annual Trade and Forfaiting Conference in Abu Dhabi, TFG’s Deepesh Patel spoke to Silja Calac, Board Member, and head of the ITFA Insurance Committee to learn more about credit risk insurance and its importance for trade, as well as specific aspects of the implementation of the Basel 3.1 Regulation.
To read the full article, go to https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e127-itfa-the-tale-of-article-506-and-the-transition-period
At the ITFA annual conference in Abu Dhabi, TFG’s Mark Abrams spoke with Nishit Kumar, Senior Director, Head of Loan Syndications and Distribution at Mashreq Bank, and Kamola Burikhodjaeva, Executive Director, Head of Americas Distribution at J.P. Morgan, looking at the role of trade finance risk distribution against the backdrop of prevailing market conditions.
How are banks dealing with changing regulations? What are the impacts of new capital requirements?
Follow along with Mark, Nishit and Kamola as they dive into the topic of trade finance as an asset class and the general market environment!
Read the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e126-short-term-self-liquidating-trade-finance-asset-class-up
At the EBRD TFP Trade Finance Forum, TFG’s Deepesh Patel spoke with Aurel Bernat, Executive Director, Financial Institutions and Investor Relations at Banca Transilvania, Oleksandr Shchur, Member of the Management Board at JSC Ukreximbank Ukraine and Ženja Radanović, Head of Documentary, Business Department at Eurobank Direktna a.d. Beograd, Serbia.
Read here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e125-eastern-europes-strategic-edge-trade-finance/
In this episode, Mark Abrams, Global Head of Trade Receivables Finance at Trade Finance Global was joined by Salman Khan Galindo, Portfolio Manager - Alternative Investments at Santander AM and Matt Taylor, Head of Alternative Debt at Legal and General Investment Management (LGM). Together, they shed light on the allure of trade finance for investors, the evolving investor landscape, and the pivotal factors influencing the risk-reward paradigm within this asset class.
📖 Read the article here ➡️
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e124-unlocking-opportunities-trade-finance-lucrative-asset-class-investors/
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, TFG’s Deepesh Patel was joined by Ben Ellis, SVP and Global Head of Visa B2B Connect, in Toronto to get answers to these questions on cross-border payments.
Access the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e123-bridging-borders-the-role-of-b2b-cross-border-payments-in-the-global-economy/
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, TFG’s Deepesh Patel partnered with Allen & Overy, Asian Development Bank, JP Morgan, Lloyds Bank, Visa.
Hear from industry experts:
- Natasha Condon, Global Head of Trade Sales, JP Morgan
- Alan Koenigsberg, SVP Visa Commercial Solutions
- Catherine Lang-Anderson, Partner, Allen & Overy
- Roberto Leva, Trade & Supply Chain Finance Relationship Manager, Asian Development Bank
- Rogier Van Lammeren, Managing Director, Head of Trade & Working Capital Products, Lloyds Bank
Catch up here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/tradecast/t9-lgtbq-in-trade-treasury-payments/
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, TFG’s Deepesh Patel was joined by Shirish Wadivkar, Global Head - Wholesale Payments & Trade Strategy at Swift, to uncover the conference’s core themes, the latest Swift initiatives, and strategies to prepare for Sibos 2023.
Access the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e121-how-to-prepare-for-sibos-2023-trade-payments-updates-from-swift
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, TFG’s Deepesh Patel was joined by Francesca Beomonte, Head of Structured Trade & Export Finance at UniCredit, to learn more about the role of ECAs in international trade.
Access the article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e120-unicredit-driving-export-finance-mitigating-risk-public-private-partnership/
The trade finance industry has long strived for inclusivity. It recognises the importance of embracing an overarching vision that fundamentally reimagines its practices. To fully realise this vision, it is imperative to actively engage African voices in trade finance discussions.
Read here:
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, Brian Canup, assistant editor at TFG, was joined by Channing Mavrellis, director of the Illicit Trade Program at Global Financial Integrity, to delve into the world of TBML. Together, they explored the latest developments and insights surrounding trade-based money laundering (TBML) practices.
Read here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e118-cloaked-in-trade-unmasking-the-underworld-of-trade-based-money-laundering/
During the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) 32nd Annual Meeting and Business Forum in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Trade Finance Global spoke with several industry leaders to learn more about the particulars of a first-of-its-kind transaction.
Access here:
tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e117-first-cross-border-factoring-facility-between-armenia-georgia-ebrd/
Factoring: An important finance product that is gaining popularity in recent years. While factoring is becoming more well-known, it is important to take proper steps to understand the legal framework that governs these transactions. Factoring laws play a critical role in determining the rights and responsibilities of the parties involved in a factoring arrangement, as well as the powers of financial institutions to provide various factoring products.
Of particular interest, the UAE recently passed a new factoring law, which marks a significant milestone for the trade and supply chain finance community. To break down the intricacies of factoring and to provide an overview of the UAE law, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke to Marek Dubovec, director at the International Law Institute and professor at the University of Arizona.
In this episode of Trade Finance Talks, Deepesh Patel, editor at TFG was joined by Chris Southworth, co-chair of Legal Reform Advisory Board at ICC Digital Standards Initiative, and Nick Davies, director of the Centre for Digital Trade and Innovation.
The trio explored the next steps, key actions, and ways to drive the adoption of digital trade.
Southworth and Davies emphasized the importance of collaboration and working together to modernize the global trading system for the digital economy.
The podcast touched upon several significant themes, including electronic negotiable instruments such as ePU, eBLs, and eBoE transactions going digital.
In 2023, there are over 68,000 vessels sailing around the oceans, carrying the goods that we all rely on.
Simply put, the world’s oceans and maritime trade flow are massive.
The oceans' vastness presents a particular challenge to monitor and regulate ocean vessels for the maritime transport industry. Of the 68,000 ocean vessels, more than 12%, or 8,000, have an unknown owner, creating significant risks for the industry.
To better understand the world of ocean vessels and maritime trade regulation, Trade Finance Global’s (TFG) Deepesh Patel spoke with Michael Byrne, CEO of IIBLP and Tom Cardamone, CEO of Global Financial Integrity.
As the readers of Trade Finance Global (TFG) know, March is International Women’s Month. This month, the world is highlighting women across the globe and all industries.
Throughout the month, TFG has heard numerous personal stories, outlining what it is like to be a woman in the workplace in 2023, giving examples of how far the world has come, and pointing out the areas which need improvement.
TFG spoke to the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of International Trade Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, EDC, to discuss the Canadian Government’s role in international trade and supporting women in the workplace.
Read more here:
As part of our Women in Trade Campaign, Trade Finance Global’s Natasha Roston spoke with Catherine Lang-Anderson, partner at Allen & Overy, to hear about her personal experiences and lessons learned as a female leader in the legal industry.
To better understand the larger picture of ‘Embracing Equity’, TFG’s Brian Canup spoke to Natalia Clements, senior trade finance specialist at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, who shared her experiences as a woman in the insurance industry, the challenges she has faced, and the importance of embracing equity in the workplace.
With an estimated 3.5 billion fans around the world, it's no wonder the finance behind football piques interest, even in the world of trade and receivables finance.
In this podcast, Trade Finance Global (TFG) delved into various facets of trade finance that affect the world of football, including player and receivables finance, project and export finance for clubs, and the ownership and running of football clubs.
Read the full article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e109-trade-receivables-finance-football-terms/
Since 195 countries signed the Paris Agreement at COP 21 in 2015, ESG has been a central talking point in the trade finance world. The term “green finance” has seen a 300% search increase on Google from 2015-2023.
Shifting the conversation towards sustainability was undoubtedly an important step, as the shipping and trade sector contributes around 20% of global emissions. But what has come from this dialogue?
The trade finance community continues to finance fossil fuels, and there have been numerous examples of greenwashing in recent years. What are realistic expectations for ESG standards, and how does the trade finance community accomplish them?
To better understand how the trade finance industry can take the next steps in sustainability, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Roberto Leva, trade & supply chain finance relationship manager, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Johanna Wissing, who is interviewed as board member of ITFA. Johanna also is a director of finance syndication at Credit Suisse.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e108-dirty-financing-the-slow-progression-of-esg/
To learn more about their collaboration and the role that technology can play in the commodities industry, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Peter Johnston (PJ), senior manager digital and agtech at GrainCorp, and Sean Birrell, CTO and co-founder of Veridapt.
To read more:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/agriculture-beyond-iot-technology-transcending-industry-silos/
Taking a step forward, the UK legislature has enacted legislation to prevent economic crime.
To learn more about this essential piece of legislation in the financial and economic world, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Susan Hawley, executive director of Spotlight on Corruption.
Read more here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e106-uk-economic-crime-enforcement-act/
There is little doubt that 2022 has been an unprecedented year and for better or for worse, there has been a lot that has happened in the trade, treasury, payments and supply chain spaces.
As we make plans to wrap up this year and head into the next, TFG wanted to take a look back at all that has happened and the major themes discussed in each of the last 12 months.
Read more here:
With so many of our daily goods coming from abroad, Incoterms play a much more significant role in our lives than most of us realise.
Some estimates indicate that International Commercial Terms (Incoterms) help to facilitate around 90% of all goods and transport transactions worldwide.
However, despite their widespread use and importance, these terms are often the source of a lot of confusion for importers and exporters alike.
To help clarify the subject, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Holly Jade O'Leary, co-founder and director of Alinea Customs.
Read the article here: tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e104-incoterms-customs-case-studies-industry-challenges/
Maritime transport is the backbone of international trade and the global economy, with over 80% of the volume of international trade and goods being carried by sea.
The shipping industry has seen varying conditions over the course of the last two years, having been greatly impacted by COVID-19 and subsequent supply chain issues. This has been compounded by other events, such as the current Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Given the complexity of the topic, Annie Kovacevic sat down with Grant Hunter, director of standards, innovation, and research at BIMCO, to learn more about hot topics in the industry.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e103-float-sink-bimco-discusses-ebl-adoption-standards-interoperability/
To learn more about how the WTO is championing women-led MSMEs, Trade Finance Global (TFG) moderated a panel discussion at the WTO Public Forum in September 2022 with leaders in the field.
Participants in the WTO panel included Jennifer Buckley, founder and managing director of women-led independent impact investment firm, Sweef Capital; Jessica Espinoza, CEO of gender-focused global investment body, 2X Collaborative; and
Susan Barton, team leader, trade strategy and outreach, UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).
Women-led MSMEs are playing a critical role by creating income, generating opportunities, and supplying goods and services used daily in rural and urban areas.
Anabel González, WTO deputy director-general, hosted a roundtable discussion at the WTO Public Forum in September 2022.
Trade Finance Global (TFG) moderated the event which discussed technology’s role in bridging the financing gap that women-owned MSMEs face.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-p1-s1-e102-increasing-access-to-financing-and-empowering-women-owned-or-women-led-msmes/
At the WTO’s Public Forum in September 2022, helping MSMEs access trade and trade finance, especially during the current economic times, has been one of the top agenda items.
To learn more about how the WTO is putting its weight behind the cause, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Uruguay's Ministry of Foreign Relations, Mauro Bruno.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e101-trade4msmes-on-breaking-down-international-barriers-to-trade
To find out more about BaaS and innovations within the sector, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Valli Ardalan, global head of revenue and sales at Visa Direct, and Barry Rodrigues, EVP Payments Business Unit at Finastra.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e99-the-future-of-baas-and-innovation-in-the-cross-border-payments-space
Businesses and industries that were unprepared for a quick transition to a digital economy were hit hard during the early months and subsequent years.
Trade finance was one of these industries.
Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke with Rishikesh Tinaikar, global head of corporates and Trade Go to Market at SWIFT, to further explore the pandemic recovery and how lockdowns are accelerating trade finance’s push toward digitalisation.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e100-swift-thinking-how-the-global-payments-system-can-help-digitalise-trade-finance/
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) Trade Facilitation Program forum in Istanbul heavily featured discourse around Southeastern European countries, namely promoting trade into the region.
To learn more about the trade ecosystem in the Balkan peninsula, TFG joined Ana Golubovic, a management board member at Hipotekarna Banka in Montenegro, Europe.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-98-hipotekarna-banka-on-trade-finance-multilateral-support-digital-transition-in-montenegro/
Changing this mindset and highlighting the human lives behind international trade policy is what Clara Weinhardt, assistant professor in international relations at Maastricht University, hopes to do with the Faces of Trade Diplomacy project.
Find out more:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep97-faces-of-trade-the-people-behind-the-policies
Following on from the BAFT Annual Annual Meeting in Washington, Trade Finance Global (TFG) sat down with Dalton Lee, chairman of the Caribbean Association of Banks (CAB), to discuss the status of the correspondent banking world, and what cutting such relationships means to Caribbean economies.
Find out more:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep96-correspondent-banking-in-the-caribbean-the-impact-of-derisking-on-the-real-economy
TFG spoke to two leading policymakers at the G20 on how to improve financial inclusion for SMEs.
Check out the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep95-the-lifeblood-of-global-trade-improving-financial-inclusion-for-smes/
Trade Finance Global (TFG) are delighted to announce the official release of a new trade and export finance guide in partnership with the Department of International Trade (DIT) and UK Export Finance (UKEF).
In order to gain more information on the guide, TFG sat down with Mark Abrams, global head of trade and receivables finance, at TFG.
Find out more:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e94-ukef-dit-tfg-release-trade-export-finance-guide/
TFG spoke to two leaders in the fields of finance and technology about the changing role of Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) and hybrid models for streamlining and future-proofing corporate operational processes.
Check out the article here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e93-change-is-in-the-air-company-leaders-and-hybrid-models-hailed-as-lighthouses-holding-the-key/
Trade Finance Global (TFG) are proud to once again partner with International Trade and Forfaiting Association (ITFA) at their 48th annual conference in Porto. In preparation for the conference, TFG caught up with ITFA’s Chairman, Sean Edwards, to discuss some of the key themes.
Edwards outlined two major themes to be expected at the conference this year: digitisation and emerging markets.
Find out more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e92-itfas-sean-edwards-on-emerging-markets-and-digitisation
International trade has faced many challenges in recent years. In addition to COVID-19 taking a toll on the global economy, the conflict in Ukraine and subsequent sanctions against Russia have compounded the effects.
In our latest episode, Trade Finance Global (TFG) spoke to UCP 600 expert David Meynell, senior technical advisor for the ICC Banking Commission and digital rules advisor to the Centre for Digital Trade and Innovation, to get more information.
Find out more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e91-evolution-of-ucp-600-and-supplementing-rules-for-documentary-credits/
The world of factoring has undergone a major boom in the last two years.
TFG spoke to one of the world’s largest factoring associations to find out how trade receivables can help solve the liquidity crunch caused by supply chain disruption.
Check out this post to find out more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e90-fci-why-the-factoring-industry-is-experiencing-a-boom
With the trade finance gap at an all-time high, some tech companies are creating novel solutions to help combat the wide-scale fraud that has challenged the sector for many years, making it a more attractive space for lenders once again.
TFG spoke to Jesse Chenard, CEO of MonetaGo to find out more.
Check out this post to find out more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e89-fraudbusters-monetagos-ceo-on-tackling-duplicate-financing-fraud-in-trade-finance-via-the-trade-finance-registry
Managing risk within lending and underwriting is essential during uncertain times.
Given the critical role credit insurance and surety plays within trade and export finance, TFG spoke with Tinubu about the role of artificial intelligence (AI) and distributed ledger technologies (DLT) in future-proofing the industry.
Find out more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e88-future-proofing-trade-finance-and-insurance-through-technology/
With the current macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape looking fairly bleak, financial risk management and the ability for businesses to adapt quickly to changing conditions has never been more important. Technology has a role to play in both.
TFG spoke to two leading trade credit risk management experts, Marian Berden and Robert Meters of Schumann on how technology has the potential to help business avoid some of the costs and stresses associated with current economic conditions.
Find out more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e87-technology-can-reduce-risk-and-save-costs-if-used-effectively/
If a new trade bill is passed during the current UK parliamentary term, digital paperwork could be legalised under English Law, which could be a landmark moment for the trade and export industry.
On Tuesday, 10 May 2022, Prince Charles stood in for Queen Elizabeth to deliver the Queen's Speech to Parliament...
Read more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e86-why-queens-speech-is-about-accelerate-acceptance-digital-trade-documents-into-english-law/
Trade digitalisation has come a long way in the past half-decade, but there is still much more to do.
TFG’s Deepesh Patel sat down with Contour’s CEO Carl Wegner and Chief Product Officer Joshua Kroeker to discuss trade assets, trade receivables, and the distribution of trade finance.
Read more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e85-contour-on-fighting-the-trade-finance-gap-with-digital-assets/
Digital is all the rage right now in the trade space. Emerging technologies from AI to IoT to blockchain are promising to revolutionise global trade.
The hype is real.
However, there are a few blips on the radar: in a lot of jurisdictions, digital instruments are still not legally able to replace their paper predecessors.
This creates a lot of hesitancy among firms that are considering implementing digital processes.
Find out more here:
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e84urdtt-1-david-meynell-discusses-the-new-rules-for-digital-trade-transactions/(opens in a new tab)
Credit risk insurance is a vital instrument for bank risk and capital management, and for facilitating lending to the real economy.
Typically, banks only use the strongest insurers with sound capital bases and risk management practices for credit risk insurance, but even so, some market participants argue that current regulations are overly restrictive.
One of those is Silja Calac, board member at the International Trade and Forfaiting Association (ITFA) and head of the ITFA Insurance Committee.
Read more here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e83-aking-on-europes-credit-risk-insurance-rules-with-itfas-silja-calac-jean-maurice-elkouby/
In all the crises of the last two years - the pandemic, lockdowns, inflation, and now the Russia-Ukraine conflict - few industries have seen as much volatility as the commodities industry.
Disruptions in both supply and demand have been more or less constant, making it extremely difficult for producers and traders to plan ahead in terms of volume, pricing, and liquidity.
As a leading provider of stockpile and supply chain monitoring technology, Veridapt is among the companies best placed to help with solutions in such tough trading conditions.
Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, Veridapt is an industrial Internet of Things (IoT) business that has served the commodities markets for over 20 years.
In this latest episode of our Trade Finance Talks, Sean Birrell, co-founder and chief technology officer at Veridapt and Rod Hutchinson, is the regional business development manager for the Americas at Veridapt talks about how a revolution in stockpile and supply chain monitoring can transform trade finance
Daud Vicary has spent over 47 years in the finance and consulting industries, with significant experience in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
Though formally retired since 2017, he holds many current positions, including his flagship role as an independent director at Finalytix, an analytics provider to ultra-high net worth individuals (HNWIs), family offices, and independent financial advisors (IFAs).
He is also a managing director at DVA Consulting, an Islamic finance consultancy, and he is the chairman of Ethis Global, a fintech, impact investment, and Islamic crowdfunding platform based in Malaysia.
Applying his ethics skills in practice, he also sits on the advisory boards of PayHalal, the world’s first Shariah-compliant payment gateway, and IslamicMarkets.com, a leading financial intelligence and investing platform.
Read more here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep81-islamic-finance-guru-daud-vicary-on-fintech-sustainability-other-engines-of-growth/
The last two years have been a difficult time for SMEs, who have had to grapple with the challenges of supply chain disruptions, a global credit crunch, and inflation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But despite the uncertainty and volatility of the last two years, SMEs’ working capital practices have evolved significantly, and perhaps irreversibly.
Though the global trade finance gap has continued to make new highs, hitting $1.7 trillion in 2020, both SMEs and the banks that serve them are now focusing on new ways to access much needed capital.
At the forefront of this challenge is digitalisation, which in trade finance is driven by a mixture of new technologies and partnerships that aim to increase efficiency and reduce costs.
But where does the industry currently stand on the challenge of digitalisation, and how much closer are we to the ambitious goal of frictionless, borderless trade finance?
Joining TFG's Deepesh Patel to discuss is Iain MacLennan, head of trade and supply chain finance at Finastra.
Read more here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-open-by-default-finastras-iain-maclennan-on-fintech-partnerships-digitalisation-and-helping-smes-triumph-in-an-uncertain-macro-world/
The last two years have been like no other for the global economy. With a forced global shutdown followed by unprecedented fiscal stimulus, it's no surprise that volatility has been the name of the game since the outbreak of COVID-19.
But just as we say goodbye to one crisis, another has reared its head in the form of Russian aggression in Ukraine.
Last year, we were on a royal road to recovery, with global trade hitting a record high of $28.5 trillion for the year, according to UNCTAD.
But will these gains turn out to be short-lived, as the global economy swaps one crisis for another?
Joining TFG's Deepesh Patel to discuss commodities, inflation, and supply chain resilience is John Miller, chief economic analyst at Trade Data Monitor (TDM).
Read more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-bent-but-not-broken-tdms-john-miller-on-global-trade-resilience-as-we-say-goodbye-to-covid-19-and-hello-to-war-in-ukraine/(opens in a new tab)
For financial institutions, the decision to investigate a client for potential sanctions violations has always been more of an art than a science. And this is even more true when that decision is based on shipping activity.
Since the year 2000, the US Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) have issued a range of new guidance for banks and insurance companies regarding maritime sanctions.
Due diligence recommendations have covered everything from identifying commodities and trade corridors where ship-to-ship transfers take place, to tracking the use of automatic identification system (AIS) technology.
So, how can we monitor risky transactions and suspicious vessels, and how can we prevent illegal transfers of goods in high-risk locations?
Joining TFG's Deepesh Patel to discuss is:
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Saskia Rietbroek, executive director, Association of Certified Sanctions Specialists (ACSS)
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Michael Byrne, CEO, Institute of International Banking Law and Practice (IIBLP)
Read more: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep78-ships-sanctions-and-suspicious-vessels-how-ais-and-other-trickery-is-confounding-compliance/
With global trade already back at pre-pandemic levels, it is tempting to say that the global economy has recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic, and that the worst of its upheavals are now behind us.
However, there are also signs that the rebound from the low baseline of the pandemic is losing momentum, as major economies battle the shared headwinds of persistently high inflation, supply chain disruption, labour shortages, and new COVID-19 restrictions.
To ponder what effect these dynamics have had - and will continue to have - on trade finance in emerging markets, there are few better observers to call on than Rudolf Putz.
In the commodities super cycle that has emerged out of the COVID-19 pandemic, few resources have seen as much volatility as liquified natural gas (LNG).
From record lows to record highs in less than 18 months, LNG’s ups and downs are perhaps rivalled only by crude oil, whose 300% plunge to -$40 a barrel in April 2020 is one for the history books, and one for future economics students to ponder.
But unlike oil’s flash crash, LNG’s roller coaster has been a much more sustained affair, taking it from a pandemic low of $1.85 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) in May 2020, to almost $36 mmBtu today - an increase of more than 1,700%.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/video-grappling-with-oversupply-decarbonisation-record-price-volatility-what-does-future-hold-for-lng/
Like many products within trade finance, trade credit insurance has endured serious volatility during the last 12-18 months, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But while some products have struggled to bounce back - as evidenced by the growing trade finance gap - trade credit insurance has ultimately emerged from the pandemic stronger than before.
And perhaps one of the best witnesses to that recovery is Richard Wulff, executive director of the International Credit Insurance & Surety Association (ICISA).
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e75-u-shaped-recovery-icisas-richard-wulff-on-trade-credit-insurance-its-bounce-back-from-the-pandemic/(opens in a new tab)
As the trade finance industry shifts towards more digitalised ways of doing business, new niches are opening up within the market.
One such niche can be found in digitalised trade credit insurance and surety markets, of which one of the largest players is Tinubu Square.
Tinubu Square considers itself the leading B2B software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider for trade-related speciality insurance, namely credit insurance with short-term, medium-term, and political risk, bonds and surety, working with 60 insurers, 218 brokers and over 1000 obligees based around the world.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep74-getting-saas-into-surety-and-credit-insurance-tinubus-co-founder-talks-insurtech/
On the eve of COP26 - the biggest climate summit of the year - the world is more focused than ever on reducing carbon emissions, and on the role that individual companies can play in tackling climate change.
Starting this Sunday, COP26 will be the first UN climate conference since the publication of its landmark Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in August this year.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep73-pole-star-carbonchain-partnership-delivers-single-service-sustainability-compliance-solution/
We have just finished the marathon, that is SIBOS Virtual, a festival of trade, treasury and payments. So what better way to celebrate, than to be joined by the CEO of the Banks Association for Financing Trade (or BAFT), Tod Burwell.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep72-sibos-special-bafts-tod-burwell-on-last-century-of-trade-transaction-banking/
Today we’re talking about messaging. I’m sure we all have messaged before, humans might use whatsapp or messenger. Computers might use application programming interfaces, or APIs. Dogs bark at each other, dolphins message through using soundwaves. But what about banks? How do banks message one another?
Often banks need to talk to each other, confirming beneficiaries, recipients, payment amounts, and details of goods and services of their clients and transactions. SWIFT is the financial industry’s neutral and trusted infrastructure provider, and is still moving towards the creation of frictionless instant payments in an ever-changing and complex environment. Today, we’re talking about the evolution of SWIFT.
How has SWIFT changed, what challenges have they faced and how will they continue reinventing themselves in the highly competitive global payments market?
To help me answer these questions, I’m delighted to be joined by Marcus Hughes, Head of Strategic Business Development at Bottomline.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep71-evolution-of-swift/
The current banking landscape is going through a makeover. PSD2 and open banking has it’s advantages, but there are also many opportunities to continue to level the playing field, share risks and revisit the rules.
The Pandemic has driven the acceleration of open banking, from automatic IBAN and Identifier checking, to increased partnerships via APIs.
Today, discussing, the importance of open banking ecosystems and the need for global digital transformation, I’m joined by Industry expert Liliana Fratini Passi, Managing Director at CBI and Vice Chair of UN/CEFACT.
Read the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep70-italy-perspective-future-of-open-banking-automatic-iban-psd2-apis/
World trade is central to economic growth and as we emerge from the pandemic, trade is paramount in enabling the global economy to recover.
We’ve discussed trade digitisation and its many facets for some time now, but the pandemic has now rendered this critical, potentially a tipping point for scalable progress in digitisation.
But it’s not easy. Digitising a complex ecosystem involving myriad actors, rules and regulations, sprawled across both physical and financial supply chains in multiple countries and industries is a challenge.
Today, discussing, legal harmonisation, Richer data and standards and interoperability, I’m joined by Industry leader and one of TFG’s Women in Trade, Louise Taylor Digby, Head of Trade Strategy at SWIFT.
Full transcript: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep69-digitising-trade-the-time-is-now/
Global supply chains have been and continue to be deeply impacted by the changes that have taken place in the last 12 months. From the Suez canal debacle which showed just how interconnected global supply chains truly are, to the current shortage of HGV drivers in the UK which poses a serious threat to supply lines to schools and hospitals, it is fair to say that the industry is, currently, facing significant challenges.
Is the industry at a breaking point? And what can we learn from these challenges? To help me explore these questions I have Sam Greenhalgh, UK Sales Director at Zencargo!
Full transcript: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-ep68-freight-crisis-hgv-driver-shortage-shipping-blockages-and-the-digital-future-of-freight/
Open account business - buy now, pay later - drives economic activity worldwide. And during times of volatility, uncertainty and of course, the pandemic, the need for solutions when it comes to receivables finance has never been more pronounced. With more market participants, the rise of non-bank lenders, a drive towards digitalising the open account ecosystem, there’s a lot going on.
So today, I’m joined by the two co-founders of WOA, Erik Timmermans and John Brehcist.
Full transcript: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e67-woa-insights-receivables-rebounding-role-open-account-finance-post-covid-19/
Today we’re talking about some of the changes in trade in goods volumes, over the past 12 months. A lot has changed. We’ve had a commodity supercycle, with prices surging despite low volumes and amidst the pandemic, trade tensions continue all around the world.
World trade of goods has declined some 12% in the last year, representing a loss of $22 trillion USD of trade. Is it all doom and gloom for trade, or will we see a resurgence? Data also lies at the heart of this problem, with siloed or even duplicated trade data flows. Today I’m catching up with Trade Data Monitor’s Chief Economic Analyst, John Miller.
Full transcript: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e66-chief-economist-insights-are-iron-ore-prices-propping-up-global-trade/
The ICC Banking Commission is one of the leading global rule-making bodies for the banking industry, producing universally accepted rules and guidelines which are vital in facilitating trade-led growth and development. From the Uniform Customs and Practice rules for documentary credits to rules on collections, demand guarantees and electronic rules, ICC’s rules underpin trillions of dollars worth of trade going through banks each year.
TFG’s editor, Deepesh Patel spoke with Lynn Ng, ICC’s new Banking Commission chair to discuss ICC’s new governance strategy moving forward and some of the key priorities for the Banking Commission.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e65-icc-banking-commissions-lynn-ng-on-need-to-simplify-trade/
If sustainability and blockchain aren’t the biggest buzzwords in trade finance right now, it’s MLETR - the model law on electronic transferable records.
In this episode, we discussed the realities of implementing the United Nations Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records into local markets, an incredibly important advancement in accepting electronic signatures, with Sarah Green, Law Commissioner, English Law Commission.
Full Transcript Here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e64-electronic-documents-and-english-law-the-roadmap-to-digital-trade-documents/
Reporting Export Incidents, whether on a voluntary or involuntary basis, as well as investigating non-compliance in relation to trade finance operations, is of huge importance to multinationals, banks and policy makers. With that in mind, Spencer Chilvers, Head of Export Control Policy, Rolls-Royce to discuss export controls, the current sanctions environment, and the future, on Trade Finance Talks!
Full Transcript Here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e63-sanctions-rolls-royce-tactical-complexities-voluntary-reporting/
As part of Trade Finance Week by ICC Austria, we continued Trade Finance Week, with an African view on global trade.
For trade and supply chains in Africa, access to trade finance, the past 15 months have been incredibly tough for lives, livelihoods and economies, particularly in emerging developing markets. But trade must go on. If anything, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated many efforts to rethink the way we do trade. Is paper really necessary and is there a way that we can rethink trade documents? How has trade based financial crime fared in Africa, and what must we do to keep bad actors out of the trade system? And is this finally an opportunity for us to bring sustainability right to the forefront, as a business imperative, rather than just a nice to have? In this podcast, we talk AfCTFA, MANSA and the digital future of African trade, discussing trade digitisation, risk and compliance and sustainability.
Featuring:
- Eleonore Treu, ICC Austria
- Kwabena Ayirebi, AfreximBank
- Isaac Mahanke, Standard Bank
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/video-africa-focus-trade-digitisation-trade-finance-week-2021/ and here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/video-africa-focus-sustainable-trade-trade-finance-week-2021/
By the end of 2021, it’s anticipated that these rates will be discontinued, transitioning to the Sterling Overnight Index Average, or SONIA for short, and, for US Dollar benchmarks, the Secured Overnight Financing Rate, SOFR). But what does this mean for trade finance, trade finance documents such as Master Participation Agreements, products, and what are the current recommendations?
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e61-libor-transition-trade-finance/
Trade finance has a significant role to play in sustainable development and ESG, which extends to addressing global challenges around climate change, human rights and biodiversity.
The banking industry is certainly making progress towards their sustainability mandates, which is no longer a ‘nice to have’, rather, a business imperative. But if we are to jointly work towards the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, raising truly understanding the benefits of sustainable trade assets, understanding the appetite from the investment community, and sharing best in class practices that are being applied locally and globally is critical.
Digitalization often takes over conversations when it comes to making trade more efficient. It’s well documented that trade is an incredibly paper-heavy, inefficient, unsustainable business right now, but the insurmountable task of ‘digitizing trade’ is rather complex.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e59-bring-back-paper-documents-is-the-document-the-missing-part-of-digital-trade-puzzle/
ESG. Environmental, Social and Governance. Three words we hear more and more. But what does it actually mean? Both corporates and consumers are focusing on environmental and sustainability practices when making financial decisions. Consumers are demanding ethically and sustainably sourced products, and it’s leading to questions around the transparency of global value chains. As businesses look towards ESG factors in their trade finance decisions, we’re here today discussing whether financial instruments in trade can address these concerns.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-barclays-s1-e58-can-green-bonds-and-indemnities-reduce-environmental-impact/
We take a dive into the world of Letters of Credit (LCs) - non-structured, unfunded trade finance products - some of the essential tools in cross-border trade transactions. An LC is a payment undertaking that a financial institution issues on behalf of a buyer. There are many different types, and in this podcast, TFG gets an overview on Commercial Letters of Credit and Standby Letters of Credit (SBLCs).
Full podcast and transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e57-baft-standby-letters-of-credit-sblc/
In this podcast, as part of our UK trade series, we focus on 3 themes: what trade relationships in a post-Brexit world actually means for business, the role of trade when it comes to post-pandemic economic recovery, and the importance of international cooperation and multilateralism when it comes to boosting global trade.
On the 1st January 2021, the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) came into effect, but there are many loose ends, and the transition is not yet complete. We discuss this, as well as the UK's independent trade agenda with Andy Burwell, Director for International Trade and Investment at the CBI.
Read the transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/voice-of-the-cbi-what-is-the-uks-independent-trade-agenda/
Japan is the third-largest economy in the world, and one of the most open economies with 4% of global GDP. Once perceived a difficult market to enter, it has, over the past 30 years, grown to be a global powerhouse, from automotives and agriculture, to digital trade and innovation.
Today’s podcast focuses on the Free Trade Agreement, FTA with Japan, more specifically referred to as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, Or CEPA. The UK and Japan are major investors in each other’s economies, ranking fifth and sixth respectively for inward foreign direct investment.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/cepa-or-cptpp-an-overview-of-uk-japan-trade/
TFG heard from ICC Banking Commission experts who are taking a step beyond the hype of sustainable trade finance, and looking at the role of multilateral development banks (MDBs) and development finance institutions (DFIs) on what sustainable trade finance means and what the industry must do.
There’s no doubt that Covid-19 has also changed appetite here. Companies are under pressure to see what’s happening right across their supply chains, and tracing any items in them – from field to factory to customer (and beyond). Integrating any tools that can support resilient supply chains can also underpin sustainability efforts.
Access the resources and more information about the initiatives discussed in this podcast here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e54-podcast-multilateral-perspective-a-roadmap-for-sustainable-trade-finance/
One year ago, FCI members gathered in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, at FCI’s Annual Conference. Reflecting back, the 2018 factoring volumes stood at 2.7tn euros. For 2019, the volumes increased once again, by just over 5% YoY, at 2.9tn euros.
What were the biggest challenges to the industry in 2019? 2019 saw extreme economic and political volatility, the rise in nationalism and protectionism, and of course, this led to a general slowdown in global trade.
This was all before the coronavirus pandemic. Fast forwarding 12 months, the geopolitical and macroeconomic factors continued, even heightened, coupled with the crippling effects of the Covid-19 crisis.
The Receivables finance industry now plays a critical role in recovery and the turn towards eventual growth in global trade, particularly by continuing to finance SMEs during this challenging period. TFG’s Deepesh Patel caught up with FCI’s Chairman, Mr. Patrick de Villepin, and FCI Vice Chairman, Mrs. Daniela Bonzanini, joining virtually at the FCI Annual Conference.
In this podcast we heard from FCI on:
- The legality of delivering a Dutch based association’s Annual Conference online
- Response from the factoring industry - how the pandemic has affected factoring volumes amongst FCI and FCI members
- Factoring in 2019 recap - factoring volumes grew 5% last year to just under 3 billion euros, also reaching 4.05% global penetration, a rise from the previous year
- The likely impact of factoring volumes as a result of Covid-19
- The role of factoring in a real economy crisis
- The Bangladesh Policy on Factoring and FCI’s involvement
- The UNIDROIT Model Law on Factoring
- How can governments support and backstop the credit insurance market, why is this important, and what success have we seen so far?
- What is edifactoring and how does it help factors?
- Short- to medium-term focus for FCI
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e53-fci-views-from-the-board-factoring-and-receivables/
"Culture eats strategy for breakfast- which recognises the fact that strategies become extinct very quickly when faced with a pandemic, so it’s really important that the culture of a business or a treasury team, in this case, is one of agility and resilience." - Caroline Stockmann
What then makes a good and effective leader?
TFG's Deepesh Patel heard from Caroline Stockmann, Chief Executive, Association of Corporate Treasurers on lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic on building resilience in treasury.
https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e53-building-resilience-in-treasury-leadership-supply-chains-and-cash-flow/
Trade is a force good, but with the current Covid-19 pandemic, the World Trade Organization facing its biggest challenges yet, and a turn towards protectionism in many economies, the current trade outlook is unsettling, and uncertain.
The UK’s trading regime after the end of the transition period yields much uncertainty and potential tariff reversals in just a few months. Today we’re talking about the power of good trade policy, how trade negotiations are done, and how to mitigate the negative effects of trade.
We heard from Professor L Alan Winters, Director of UKTPO at the University of Sussex.
Full podcast and transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e51-uktpo-when-trade-goes-wrong-the-bad-and-ugly-of-trade-l-alan-winters/
The United States and the European Union are the two most integrated trading blocks in the world, having increased their economic interdependence with the linkages in global supply chains, e-commerce, and investment.
The trade flows between the two partners account for a third of world trade flows, totalling more than £1 trillion in 2019, and the two account for more than half of global foreign direct investment.
Yet this triangle of trade has gone through a lot recently. With the UK leaving the EU, the current political stance of the US administration, and the increasing role of China in the global economy changes the dynamics of these three trading blocs, and the position of the UK post-Brexit.
So what’s next for this powerful trio? TFG heard from Elitsa Garnizova, Senior Project Manager and Researcher, London School of Economics on the current updates and what we can expect in this UK-EU-US economic relationship.
Full article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e50-the-transatlantic-trade-love-triangle/
The supply chain finance technique of payables finance is regarded by the industry as a useful and beneficial tool for both buyers and suppliers. Yet recently, it’s come under significant scrutiny by the press, financial Ombudsman, and various regulators around the world. Add to this, the financial distress wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic, with SMEs tending to be the first to feel the effects of financial crises. Peter Mulroy, Secretary General of FCI, Stacey Facter, SVP of Trade Products at BAFT, and Christian Hauscher, Chairman of the Global Supply Chain Finance Forum and Product Manager for Trade and SCF EMEA at Deutsche Bank, discussed why payables finance remains a force for good.
Full article and report here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e49-misuse-of-supply-chain-finance-worrying-but-not-widespread-says-gscff/
The Coronavirus Pandemic has quite rightly been the key focus for governments around the world in recent months, but that doesn’t mean the UK’s exit from the European Union has taken a backseat. Seems like quite a while ago now, but as of February 1st this year, the UK Brexited the EU, and we are in the transition phase until the end of 2020. But when clocks chime midnight at the New Year, the way exporters and importers trade with the EU will change significantly. There are implications for customs and declarations, changes at the ports, documentation, and various checks. The information provided is often quite overwhelming, so in this podcast, we are catching up with an expert in these areas – Institute of Export & International Trade’s Kevin Shakespeare.
Among the oldest areas of financial services, trade finance always held a central position within international trade, with 80 to 90% of transactions being financed by some form of credit, guarantee or insurance.
However, the sector is one of the most manual and paper-based of the whole industry, resulting in expensive and error-prone operations with a slow processing time.
Emerging and new technologies have potential to address these problems, with the potential to transform the way these transactions are conducted. With that in mind, today I am joined by Arnaud Doly, CEO & Founder of Nabu.
Banks remain fairly optimistic about the future of trade finance, according to ICC’s recently published annual global survey on trade finance.
In the words of ICC’s Secretary General John Denton, “The year 2020 has not unfolded as anyone would have anticipated.”
As partners of this survey, TFG heard from Alexander Malaket, Chair of the Global Survey, joining from Toronto. We’ll be dissecting the Global Survey, highlighting the key takehomes and discussing what this means for trade finance.
Read more about the Global Survey here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/breaking-banks-predict-up-to-30-decline-in-trade-flows-latest-icc-global-survey-on-trade-finance-shows/
Trade in Asia is changing at an alarming pace. The US-China trade war continues to grind on, firms are now seriously thinking about their existing supply chain footprints, and understanding the importance of free trade agreements in and around APAC has never been more important.
TFG heard from Dr. Deborah Elms, CEO, Asian Trade Centre on the impact of COVID19 for businesses in Singapore and also more widely in Asia Pacific.
Full article and transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e45-china-plus-one-strategy-best-of-both-worlds/
It's never been a more important time to recognise and accelerate the adoption of technology to help enhance, promote and ease global trade.
Moreover, there are many challenges associated with the advancement of technologies, which are coinciding with the rapid emergence of: ecological constraints, the advent of increasingly multipolar international order and rising inequality. And to add to that, the economic and health impacts of the global pandemic Coronavirus have been huge.
With that in mind, we were joined by the World Economic Forum’s Ziyang Fan, joining us from San Francisco.
Full article and transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-wef-the-fourth-industrial-revolution-inclusive-digital-trade-is-the-future/
The coronavirus crisis has affected MSMEs disproportionately and has revealed their vulnerability to the supply and demand shock, particularly around liquidity and cash flow. It’s estimated that 40-60% of small businesses might not reopen after the Coronavirus pandemic. 200 million full-time job losses are expected between April and July 2020.
TFG heard from ICC’s Secretary General John Denton and talked about actions needed from governments, private sector leaders and international institutions to ensure the continued viability of our MSMEs.
Full article and transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e43-icc-sos-save-lives-save-livelihoods-save-our-smes/.
Today we’re talking about micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and their importance in real-world economic growth, job creation, and innovation.
Creating opportunities through MSMEs, particularly in emerging and developing markets is crucial, as it can help advance economic development and reduce poverty.
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are one of the strongest drivers of economic development, innovation, and employment. Access to finance is often identified as a critical barrier to growth for MSMEs. Creating opportunities for MSMEs in emerging markets is a key way to advance economic development and reduce poverty.
However, there is an MSME financing gap, to the magnitude of over $5 trillion USD according to the IFC’s recent analysis by the SME Finance Forum. Some 200 million businesses worldwide need financing to invest, grow and create new jobs, and they account for 9 out of 10 of business, half of global GDP, and two-thirds of job worldwide.
We wanted to investigate this and discuss why governors, financiers, and private sector players need to come together to support developments in the MSME sector.
Following on from TFG’s recent announcement of an industry partnership with the SME Finance Forum, today I’m joined by their CEO, Matt Gamser. Transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e42-the-5-trillion-usd-msme-finance-gap-2/
The ongoing impact of the global Covid-19 pandemic has severely impacted many businesses. Alongside the downfall of the oil industry and many others, we discuss the impact on a common commodity in everyone's household - sugar.
TFG is very delighted to hear from Tanya and Stephen of Czarnikow discussing in detail the impact of Covid-19 on sugar supply chains. Czarnikow buys, sells, and moves sugar, food ingredients, packaging, and ethanol around the world.
Full transcript and article here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e41-bitter-sweet-global-trade-disruption-and-its-impact-on-sugar-flows/
It is estimated that some EUR600bn of support to real economy businesses is provided by the credit risk insurance market, according to a recent survey by ITFA.
Credit insurance is crucial in facilitating bank lending and in supporting trade flows. Trade credit insurance cover is largely used to provide capital relief - i.e., non-payment credit risk insurance, surety and risk participations.
COVID-19 has certainly changed the behaviour of underwriters, and we wanted to find out where the CPRI market might be headed in a post-pandemic world.
TFG are proud media partners of TXF Commodities Virtual 2020, a two-part virtual and physical event in May and November 2020, where we will be joined by experts from across the commodity finance sector, which is currently facing unprecedented challenges.
Structured data and standard formats for exchanging information around bank guarantees and letters of credit are key for the digitisation of trade finance. Interbank and bank-to-corporate messaging remains a challenge, and whilst the industry welcomes moves towards structured data and SWIFT’s new messaging types, there are still challenges. TFG heard from Olli Jääsaari, Standardised Trust expert and Nordea’s Trade Finance & WCM Product Manager.
Full interview here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/letters-of-credit/swift-messaging-types/
Today's podcast is all about Asian trade flows and their expected growth, which is predicted to be between 4-9%, according to the ICC. A leader on the world stage, Asia produces, trades and consumes over two-thirds of major commodities. The region is on track to top half of global GDP and 40% of the world’s consumption by 2040. $900 billion of the $1.5 trillion USD trade finance gap stems from underfinanced businesses in Asia, yet promising developments around regional free trade agreements and the delivery of innovative technology born out of the APAC region is undeniable.
Money fuels serious crime, including drugs trafficking, human slavery and terrorism. Managing financial crime risk while keeping up with the speed at which trade finance and payments technologies are emerging presents a huge challenge for banks around the world. TFG heard from Standard Chartered’s Group Head of Financial Crime Compliance, David Howes.
The impact of COVID-19 on trade finance is hard to gauge at this current point in time, as the situation changes day by day. But the requirements for multinationals and development banks has never been more important in keeping supply chains running. TFG heard from Steven Beck, Head of Trade & Supply Chain at Asian Development Bank, joining from Manila.
Full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e36-development-banks-step-up-in-the-fight-against-covid-19-adb-steven-beck/
Today we're delighted to be joined by Simon Ring at Pole Star and Nick Barnes at TradeIX and the Marco Polo Network. This podcast is really about the intersection between freight forwarding, trade and regulatory technology.
Trade underpins the evolution of mankind, and with trade comes trust, and with trust comes third parties. Moving forward from IOUs and promises written on clay tablets thousands of years ago, to today’s interconnected world of trade, I want to question how far the industry has really gotten to, in terms of innovation and true digitalisation. Buzz words aside, TFG was joined by a world-renowned expert in trade and trade finance; BCG’s Sukand Ramachandran. Sukand is a leading expert in technological trends, as well as the complexities and nuances of cross border trade, trade finance and payments.
TXF Political Risk & Trade Credit Insurance is a uniquely interactive forum where banks, corporates and traders meet the CPRI market to forge new and deeper partnerships for distribution, capital relief and risk mitigation.
TFG are delighted to be Media Partners of the TXF Political Risk & Insurance conference in London on the 4th December, and to ensure you’re up to speed with this ever-changing environment, we caught up with leading experts in CPRI ahead of the conference.
We are joined by Sean Edwards, Chairman, ITFA & Head of Legal at SMBC, Peter Sargent, Head of Transaction Banking at DNB Bank, Rudolf Putz, Head of the Trade Facilitation Programme at the EBRD and France-Anne at Tinubu Square.
Understanding Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) and their significance for ISO 20022 and Trade Finance: Gerard Hartsink, GLEIF
DLT is not just a buzzword but a trend which is about to transform the financial industry. The European Central Bank also has a stake in the innovation game. We met Dirk Bullmann, ECB’s Innovation Lab Leader, during Sibos 2019 in London. We learned more about ECB’s work on distributed ledger technology, crypto assets and stablecoin. How innovative are stablecoins solutions? To what extent can stablecoins minimize volatility? How are they used today and how could they be used tomorrow? We got all this covered.
TFG caught up with Steve Lotito, Managing Director & Head of Trade Finance-North America, Transaction Banking at MUFG Bank. Steve is also in the Board of Directors of BAFT. There are many challenges and opportunities facing the trade finance business that requires daily attention to the most senior Business Heads. We talked about how the US players are dealing with such issues as new regulatory and compliance requirements, finding new pockets of growth and investing in new products in the open account / working capital space, competing and collaborating with FinTechs, managing their balance sheets, attracting and retaining talent and more.
TFG caught up with Iain MacLennan, Vice President for Trade & Supply Chain Finance at Finastra, on the key trends in trade and supply chain finance in an era of uncertainty and geopolitics, in preparation for the World Trade Symposium which will be held in New York on the 6th and 7th November. Read the full interview here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/pocast-s1-e28-world-trade-symposium-iain-maclennan-on-policy-in-an-era-of-digital-trade/
AGTB: New kid on the block. TFG heard from Daniel Gould, Deputy CEO of Anglo Gulf Trade Bank, and its new digital offering for trade finance in the UAE and MENA region. Building a trade bank from scratch without relying on legacy technologies has enabled AGTB to reimagine trade finance, building a competitive product for the corporate banking space.
The Italian Banking market continues to face headwinds and pressures around new payment service directives (PSDII), challenges from the regulator, and changing customer needs. TFG caught up with the CEO of RegTech innovator CBI about their latest product CBI Globe, and how this is positioned to help Italian banks succeed and grow.
TFG spoke to Mishal Ruparel, General Manager at Banking Circle, about the new applications of technology in banking to help better serve the underbanked SMEs. Using AI-driven credit scoring and new approaches to analyse credit card transaction data, Banking Circle's proposition is game-changing the world of SME finance.
Hear from the co-CEO of essDocs Alexander Goulandris about the different solutions for paperless trade and the launch of a new product in collaboration with SWIFT, called CargoDocs Match. Digitising trade is an enormous change management problem. The huge number of stakeholders that simultaneously need to change how they do business, from a paper-based manual approach to a digital approach. In addition to that, there's legal quandary - it’s where not all countries embracing digital trade or facilitate it in the legislation. So that makes certain people and certain users uncomfortable.
Today TFG record live from the ITFA Annual Meeting in Budapest. The conference covered developments within areas of supply chain finance, credit risk insurance and ever more creative risk distribution techniques, as well as the rise of FinTech within the trade and open account environment. TFG heard from Mr Charles Bryant, the founder and Secretary-General of European E-invoicing Service Providers Association EESPA, discussing e-invoicing.
Today we're reminding our listeners that incoterms rules are changing at the start of 2020. With the updates and specific changes to be announced very shortly by the International Chamber of Commerce. We are delighted to be joined by a world-renowned exporting expert, Mr Robert Ronai. He has over five decades of experience in exporting and importing stretches, in international banking and the world of international commerce. Bob now has the honour of being the first Australian and only the second non-lawyer to be invited by the ICC to be a member of their Incoterms® Drafting Group to draft the new Incoterms® 2020. Bob is a prolific speaker and an active voice within Incoterms and trade finance. Joining us today from Australia, Bob has managed two of the most active LinkedIn groups within trade finance and Incoterms, attracting a collective 50,000 followers in the community.
Islamic finance is a specialist area that presents exciting growth opportunities for UK-based financial and related professional services. The industry’s increasing importance for Islamic and other investors around the world is evidenced by its steady growth in recent years. Potential future growth prospects are robust, supported by global demographic trends. Sharia (Islamic law) compliant banking assets make up 6% of the world’s banking assets, but globally, approximately one in four people are Muslim. The scope for growth is obvious.
As we celebrate our 20th podcast of Trade Finance Talks, we’re doing something very special. It’s TFG's first-ever Podcast Takeover, and we welcomed Michael Bickers, Editorial Director of BCR Publishing, who Trade Finance Global has partnered with for the BCR Supply Chain Finance Summit APAC on the 15th and 16th of October in Singapore. Michael speaks to Jolyon Ellwood-Russell, Partner, Financial Markets at Simmons & Simmons, based in Hong Kong. The topic is around Supply Chain Finance (SCF) programmes in Asia, how they’re changing, and what corporate treasurers, transaction banking teams and service providers could be thinking about when it comes to SCF.
TFG heard from David Morrish and Charles Woodgate from the London Institute of Banking and Finance, ahead of their annual conference, the World Conference for Banking Institutes (WCBI). Given times of unprecedented change within global trade, we discuss what this means for trade-related education, as well as the current diversity and gender challenges within the trade.
Credit Insurance is an important risk mitigant in international trade. So much can go awry, from political issues to non-payment. Both corporates and banks are now using credit insurance as a risk mitigant when financing international trade. But what actually is credit insurance, how can it be used to facilitate trade finance as a risk mitigant, and what are the key watch outs a corporate or bank should consider when using credit insurance? We talked to two credit insurance experts about security, policy wording, obligations and what happens when things go wrong.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e18-moving-forward-with-credit-insurance/
Exporting is great, but hard. Particularly for UK exporters today. The global economy is changing fast. Despite the global financial crisis and Brexit, UK exports were worth around two times more in 2017 than in 1997 in real terms. Exporting is hard, especially for SMEs. Grappling with tariff changes, certificates of origin, Incoterms and all the customs documentation is no easy feat. On that subject, TFG spoke to the winner of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise: International Trade. Deepesh Patel interviewed Imran Arshad, founder of Eventuri, an SME that designs and manufactures advanced carbon fibre air intake systems used for performance cars.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e17-imran-arshad-eventuri-ceo-exclusive-with-uk-luxury-car-systems-exporter/
On the 1st January 2020, Incoterms® Rules will be changing. As Media Alliance Partners of the ICC Incoterms® 2020 rules changes, TFG's Deepesh Patel heard from ICC United Kingdom's Director General, Chris Southworth, as well as Professor Charles Debattista and David Lowe from the ICC Incoterms® 2020 Steering Committee. We hear about the importance of Incoterms® in international trade, why they are changing in 2020, and what businesses should be thinking about in order to prepare for these changes.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e16-incoterms-2020-rules/
Lesley McNamara, Head of Strategy and Product, Global Trade & Supply Chain Finance, Bank of America Merrill Lynch spoke to TFG on Transaction Banking Trends, with a Global Trade & Treasury Mid-Year Outlook. The life of a corporate treasurer is changing, and so is transaction banking. Amidst the current macroeconomic and geopopolitical climate, banks, treasurers and corporates must adapt. More than ever before, corporates are demanding more flexibility on working capital solutions and new opportunities for on-going investment in their businesses. This is forcing banks to innovate, both in supply chain finance and trade finance. We hear the latest from BAML on integrating product offerings, digital banking trends, corporate treasury and trade updates.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e15-bank-of-america-lesley-mcnamara-trade-treasury-supply-chain/
TFG were live at the Telegraph’s Future of Trade & Export conference, joined by Michael Boguslavsky, Head of AI at Tradeteq. There are a number of disruptive opportunities to digitise trade finance, including, machine learning, artificial intelligence, robotics, natural language processing. The International Data Corporation predicts that worldwide spending on cognitive and AI systems will reach $77.6 billion USD by 2022. It is clear that AI has much to offer to the trade and receivables finance area, and in this podcast we explore these opportunities.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e14-artificial-intelligence-ai-trade-finance-michael-boguslavsky-tradeteq/
TFG reports live from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam's financial centre, at FCI's 51st Annual Meeting. Southeast Asia is one of the world's fastest growing regions, yet is one of the most complex, and diverse. Editor Deepesh Patel heard from experienced author, journalist and conflict moderator, Michael Vatikiotis, talking about the world's largest economic trading hub, religious conflict in Asia, divergence and polarisation of the East and West and the role of the business community in championing global commerce.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e13-role-of-modern-southeast-asia-in-the-global-economy-vatikiotis/
The trade finance gap lies at around $1.5tn USD. Regulation and compliance, whilst set in best interests, may however be leading to the exacerbation of this trade finance gap. So, how do we ensure that regulation does not hinder the provision of trade finance and promote its fair regulatory treatment? The International Chamber of Commerce Banking Commission recently released a whitepaper urging the trade finance industry to work together, ensuring that regulation doesn’t hinder the availability of trade finance. Here to discuss their recent report, Banking Regulation And The Campaign To Mitigate The Unintended Consequences For Trade Finance: is Olivier Paul, Director of Finance for Development at the ICC, joining us from Paris.
See the full transcript and whitepaper here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e12-the-unintended-consequences-of-regulation-on-trade-finance-icc-olivier-paul/
During Consortia 2019, Deepesh Patel heard from Chief Strategy Officer Dave Sutter from TradeIX, discussing the key requirements for the true digitalisation of trade finance, and what interoperability means for the networks and consortia within the blockchain / DLT trade space.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e11-rewiring-trade-finance-tradeixs-dave-sutter/
Commodities have always been very difficult and complex products to finance. Commodities are typically low margin high volume, and are frequently traded cross-border, facing much higher transaction risk. Can DLT promise increased margins profitability, trust and better traceability of trade flows? In this TFG exclusive with komgo, we heard from CEO Souleïma Baddi talking about bringing blockchain and distributed ledger technology to commodity finance. We hear the key differences between VAKT and komgo, and how the komgo network helps banks, traders and all other participants to transact on the same secure software.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e10-blockchain-komgo-ceo-souleima-baddi/
TFG's exclusive interview with Robert Besseling covers the latest macro-economic factors at a regional level in Africa's key economies. The podcast includes an overview of debt and reform in Ethiopia and Angola, the opportunities and challenges around trade wars, Brexit, high interest rates and recovering oil prices on certain economies in Africa. Besseling also talks to TFG about IMF US dollar deonominated debt; the buzzword in many African economies right now. TFG also had an update on the latest crises in Zimbabwe and Gabon, as well as how political changes in Sudan, Algeria and Libya are affecting the economy.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e9-exx-africas-dr-robert-besseling-on-the-business-sentiment-in-africa/
Since 2016, the international trade and finance market witnessed a flood of new blockchain projects in cryptocurrencies entering the market, all part of a wider vision to digitize and transform trade. Blockchain has been frequently touted as the solution for bridging the $1.5 trillion US dollar trade finance gap. Technology for trade finance is hard, and blockchain offers potential for enabling trust, transparency and security and the $9 trillion US dollar open account trade finance space. We heard from Nitin Gaur, Director of IBM Digital Asset Labs last week at the ICC Banking Commission's Annual Meeting.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e8-the-hype-behind-hyperledger-ibm-nitin-gaur-on-blockchain-dlt-for-business/
As TFG prepare for IFN Asia, in Kuala Lumpar, TFG heard from Islamic Finance News Managing Editor, Vineeta Tan, who gave a brief overview of the Islamic Finance and Shariah market, as well as share what’s in stock for the conference. With Islamic faith spanning nearly 2bn adherents today, experts around the world tend to agree Islamic Finance emphasises the two main principles around risk-sharing and ethical investment. Vineeta is the managing editor of (IFN), the world’s leading Islamic finance news provider, and, IFN Fintech, the industry’s first and only publication dedicated to fintech for Islamic finance.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e7-vineeta-tan-ifn-sukuk-islamic-finance-shariah-fintech/
International trade continues to gain more headlines than ever before, with a fast-moving and increasingly complex global environment posing a range of challenges, from increasing concerns over protectionism and trade tensions to ongoing industry discussion over market disruption, disintermediation and the role of technology. TFG heard from Lionel Taylor and John Bugeja at Trade Advisory Network on the global outlook for trade, what's changed, and how companies are shifting their supply chains to counter the macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges today
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e6-john-bugeja-lionel-taylor-3d-printing-tariffs-education/
The trade and supply chain finance sector has changed dramatically since 2008. A combination of new technology and a need to comply with more stringent regulation has led to a fundamental change in the role of the banks, as well as how trade finance solutions are delivered. TFG worked with ICC United Kingdom, East & Partners and Coriolis Technologies to put together a whitepaper highlighting the key market changes, and this podcast features the collaborators: Dr Rebecca Harding (Coriolis), Mark Abrams (TFG) and Simon Kleine (East & Partners)
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e5-state-global-supply-chain-finance-uk-china-corridor/
Brexit continues to cause uncertainty and volatility for small businesses and UK exporters. This week on Trade Finance Talks, we spoke to the Institute of Export's Lesley Batchelor OBE on the future of Britain's trade
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e4-trade-brexit-lesley-batchelor-institute-of-export/
In this edition of Trade Finance Talks, we’re going to be hearing from Alisa DiCaprio, Head of Trade and Supply Chain at R3 on Corda, blockchain and data exchange in trade.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e3-r3-alisa-dicaprio-bridging-the-trade-gap/
In this edition of Trade Finance Talks, we speak with Roberto Mancone at we.trade, and Daniele Gnagnarella. Here, we discuss how they are changing the face of trade and receivables finance, and the Consortia 2019 event in May.
See the full transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e2-wetrade-on-blockchain/
We recently spoke with Laurent Tabouelle, COO of CODIX. Laurent's entire career has been in IT for the financial and now the SCF industry and, as CODIX's Group Managing Director, we wanted to hear about some of the advances in software and technology within the corporate finance and factoring sector.
See the transcript here: https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/posts/podcast-s1-e1-putting-customer-first-codix/