GTR Trade Finance eNews - Article 2008
Sibos Review: SCF plays on in the face of crisis
Despite the financial meltdown, delegates at Sibos managed to stay focused on the business at hand and many reported that supply chain finance deals are still being inked, writes Justin Pugsley.
This year’s Sibos meeting in Vienna was unfortunately over-shadowed by the momentous events in the financial markets, among the most damaging of which was the US authorities allowing Lehman Brothers to go bust.
Brazil and CPR deals: A Sure Thing?
The safety and certainty of the cédula de produto rural (CPR) has been an unassailable tenant in Brazil’s commodity markets – until a recent cluster of high-profile failures, writes Erika Morphy.
t has been a tedious day for a certain attorney in Sao Paulo. He has spent the morning meticulously double-checking paperwork for a transaction, which until recently could have been considered routine – and utterly safe.
Australia-China trade links resist turmoil
One market that has proved strong throughout the first year of global market mayhem is Australia. Rich in natural resources, supported by strong and relatively baggage-free domestic banks, and with an expanding China sucking in its exports, the country seemed living proof of the de-coupling theory, writes Helen Castell.
“Australia’s trade finance market is weathering the storm,” says Michael Wood, senior manager, structured trade and risk, international products at Westpac Banking Corporation.
Defiant Turkey faces up to the crisis
The Turkish trade finance market is facing a problem familiar across the globe: a lack of affordable short-term financing. With the country far better equipped to deal with this economic downturn following its 2001 banking crisis, the hikes in pricing on trade deals are no longer reflecting the real risks of doing business in Turkey, writes Rebecca Spong.
Turkey offers a country risk profile of a developed country but with emerging market growth,” remarked Mehmet Simsek, Turkey’s minister of economy, at a press briefing in mid-October at the British-Turkish Chamber of Commerce’s offices in London.
Nigerian Banks in the UK: London Calling
Only two Nigerian banks had a presence in London before 2007. Then Zenith Bank’s launch of a UK subsidiary last July opened the floodgates. Access Bank, Intercontinental and GTB followed within months, with more lining up at the door. And trade finance seems to be the reason they want to come, writes Rupert Sayer.
When Nigeria’s Zenith Bank opened a UK subsidiary in London – Zenith Bank (UK) – early in 2007, it was the first Nigerian bank to open up a new shop in the country for 25 years.
