GTR launched its first GTR Asia Leaders in Trade Readers’ Poll this year, reflecting our increasing focus on the growing economies of the South Asia and Asia Pacific region.

Opportunities for trade, export and commodity finance in the Asian markets are ever-increasing, with intra-Asian trade flows growing and the powerful economies of China and India continuing to fuel the global economy.We have been working hard to enhance our presence in the Asian region, setting
up a Singapore office last year to help us establish our name in the market.

The story so far has been a great success, evidenced by the enthusiasm surrounding our inaugural Asia-focused GTR Leaders in Trade awards. Winners of our Asia awards are invited to attend GTR Asia‘s awards ceremony being held in Singapore on September 8.

Best overall trade finance bank in Asia Pacific

Standard Chartered

Best structured commodity finance bank in Asia Pacific

BNP Paribas

Best export finance bank in Asia Pacific

HSBC

Best commodity finance bank in Asia Pacific

Standard Chartered

Best trade outsourcing bank in Asia Pacific

Wells Fargo

Best trade credit insurance broker in Asia Pacific

Gallagher Singapore (was ITI Solutions)

Best political risk insurance broker in Asia Pacific

Jardine Lloyd Thompson

Best trade credit insurer in Asia Pacific

Ace Global Markets

Best political risk insurer in Asia Pacific

Zurich

Best export credit agency in Asia Pacific

K-Sure

Best trade finance boutique in Asia Pacific

Trade Finance Corporation

Best trade finance bank in Pakistan

Citi

Best trade finance bank in Singapore

Standard Chartered

Best trade finance bank in Vietnam

Vietcombank

Best trade finance bank in People’s Republic of China

ICBC

Best trade finance bank in Malaysia

Maybank

Best trade finance bank in Indonesia

Bank Danamon

Best trade finance bank in India

ICICI

Best trade finance bank in Thailand

Kasikornbank

Best trade finance bank in Taiwan

Chinatrust Commercial

Best trade finance bank in Bangladesh

Standard Chartered

Best trade finance bank in the Philippines

Banco de Oro Unibank BDO

Best trade finance bank in Australia

ANZ

Best trade finance bank in New Zealand

ANZ

Best trade finance bank in Japan

The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ

Best trade finance bank in Mongolia

Trade & Development Bank of Mongolia

Best overall trade finance bank in Asia Pacific

Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) won the best trade finance bank in the Asia Pacific category earlier in the year, as part of GTR’s global Leaders in Trade Awards.

Its strong roots in trade and its experience in emerging markets helped win votes in the poll. Standard Chartered’s trade finance business has seen exceptional growth in Q1 2011, with underlying assets growing by 33% on a year-on-year basis.

With a strong heritage and base in Asia, the bank is well-placed to benefit from the region’s high economic growth rates.

Standard Chartered continues to innovate in supply chain finance and has plans to launch new capabilities this year in this space.

The bank is launching commodity financing capabilities in new markets too, in line with growing demand in this space, given increasing concerns on food security. “With increasing volatility in commodities, a well-structured product is needed as it manages the risks well,” says Ashutosh Kumar, Standard Chartered’s newly-appointed global head of corporate cash and trade product management.

“In line with this, we have also been working to roll out structured agri-finance, as well as structured warehouse finance, across our footprint.”
SCB has also seen a good demand for China-related renminbi (Rmb) trade.

Best structured commodity finance bank in Asia Pacific

GTR readers have voted BNP Paribas as the best structured commodity finance bank in Asia Pacific.

In 2011, BNP Paribas has acted as a major financier of oil and iron ore and soft commodities flows across the region through the teams located in Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai. Specific achievements include being the bookrunner of several large syndicated loans for major global traders including Asian tranches (for the likes of Glencore International and Gunvor International) and some of Asia’s leading regional traders (such as Wilmar International).

In the more structured space, the bank has led loan transactions for Salamander Energy, an Asian oil and gas exploration and production company, Newmont Nusa Tenggara, a copper-gold mine producer in Indonesia, Yanggu Xiangguang Copper, a copper smelter in China and Hope Downs Iron Ore, an iron ore project in Western Australia.

The bank is also providing debt advisory for several large mining projects located in Mongolia and Australia.

“We are very pleased that our commitment to Asia Pacific as well as the commodity sector has been recognised,” comments Pierre Joseph Costa, regional head of structured finance, Asia Pacific and Japan. “We will keep on strengthening our platform as well as expanding our product offer to support a very dynamic sector in a region which is key for the global economy.”

Best export finance bank in Asia Pacific

HSBC has won the accolade of best export finance bank in the Asia Pacific region.

HSBC has successfully carved out a name for itself in the export finance market and has worked with wide range of export credit agencies in the region on some ground-breaking transactions in sectors such as telecoms and renewable energy.

“We are honoured to receive the award. Being voted by the readers is recognition of the quality and breadth of our business over the past few years across the region, and testimony to some landmark, innovative transactions such as the Axis, shariah-compliant, limited recourse EKN facility in Indonesia
[Axis is part of an Indonesian telecoms firm], the EKF-supported Genting wind farm in India and the Aquasure desalination project in Australia with K-Sure,” comments Chris Green, regional head of export finance Asia Pacific.

The bank is expecting to see continued success throughout the rest of 2011, as Peter Luketa, global head of export credit and global specialised finance comments: “HSBC’s volume and quality of transactions in the first half of 2011 is extremely promising and we expect this year to be a landmark year globally.”

Best commodity finance bank in Asia Pacific

Standard Chartered continues its wave of awards by claiming its position as the best commodity finance bank in Asia Pacific, as voted for by GTR readers.
The bank has been active in Asia for more than 150 years and offers a complete product suite, ranging from working capital financing to highly-structured trade financing, debt capital and equity capabilities.

Through its principal finance business, the bank has invested in the equity of commodity giants like Wilmar, Wellard and Straits Asia.

“This [award] recognition is a strong testament to our client-focused strategy,” says Seshan Chathapuram, global head of commodity, trade and agri-business at the bank.

“We continue to be there for our clients and this is clearly demonstrated during the recent financial crisis when the bank not only stood by its core clients but also increased exposure to support clients through the crisis.”

Best trade outsourcing bank in Asia Pacific

GTR readers have voted Wells Fargo as best trade outsourcing bank in Asia Pacific.

According to the bank, the award is an affirmation of its focus on providing trade outsourcing solutions to global banks for over 20 years.

“Our commitment to trade outsourcing remains strong. This is evidenced by the technologically-enhanced, trade solutions which we continue to develop and to share with our partner banks. Our commitment to operational excellence is evidenced in part by the certified document credit specialist (CDCS) accreditation held by over 200 Wells Fargo team members,” says a spokesperson for the bank.

“2010 and 2011 have seen a strong rebound in trade. We have been actively engaged in bringing onboard new partner banks and developing new solutions for them,” the spokesperson tells GTR.

Stephen Holden, regional head of trade and payments, Commonwealth Bank of Australia comments on the bank’s success: “Wells Fargo has been a valuable trade partner for us. They have openly shared with us their front-end products as well as their trade platform and systems integration capabilities. Additionally, they have provided us with high-quality trade processing.”

Best trade credit insurance broker in Asia Pacific

GTR readers have voted for the insurance brokerage formally named ITI Trade Solutions as the best trade credit insurance broker in Asia Pacific.
The broker has gone through a period of dynamic change, after being acquired by US firm Arthur J Gallagher and subsequently rebranding as Gallagher Singapore.

The new Gallagher Singapore will be headed up by Freddie Lim, who was chief executive officer of ITI Trade Solutions.
Furthermore, the ITI team have all taken up positions at Gallagher Singapore.

The trade credit market has been difficult to break into in the region as Asia traditionally doesn’t use insurance products in transactions.
However, Lim and his team have made great inroads in building the product and customer base in the region by tailoring solutions to clients.
“I like to think GTR readers voted us as the best because we always worked very hard to fully understand their requirements and then work equally hard to ensure that they have the best possible insurance wrap,” Lim explains.

Best political risk insurance broker in Asia Pacific

GTR readers voted Jardine Lloyd Thompson Asia (JLT Asia) as the leading political insurance broker in Asia Pacific.
“I am delighted that the readers of GTR have voted JLT as the best trade credit and political risk insurance broker in Asia Pacific. The award reflects our long-standing commitment to the Asia Pacific region and our team’s efforts across the region in recent years,” comments Matthew Strong, managing director, capital risks, Asia.

JLT Asia has been a pioneer in developing the capital risks business in the Asia Pacific region, and was the first to start a specialist broking firm focusing on credit and political risks in Asia in 1996.

The global capital risks team within JLT handles more than US$45bn of insurance capacity at any one time.

In the coming years, JLT believes that credit and political risks will pose a growing risk to trade and investment, particularly as commodity prices and operating environments remain volatile and the effects of the credit crisis continue to be felt.

This is particularly true in emerging markets where these risks can often be seen as an investment constraint.

It will be increasingly important for companies such as JLT to minimise the impact of these risks.

Best trade credit insurer in Asia Pacific

Ace has proven itself the star of the pack having won GTR’s inaugural prize for the best trade credit insurer in Asia Pacific.

The insurer has been active in the Asian trade credit insurance market for the last four years and has successfully carved out a strong market position. GTR’s readers’ votes testify to Ace’s achievements in recent years.

Julian Hudson, regional manager, political risk & credit, Asia Pacific, based in Singapore comments: “Since the establishment of Ace’s regional political risk and credit office in Singapore in January 2007 our trade credit book has grown into a major contributor of ACE’s global portfolio.

“We strive to offer our Asia Pacific-based brokers and clients exceptional levels of service and our broad capabilities and approach to underwriting has resulted in us acquiring an enviable portfolio of short and medium-term trade credit business.”

The Ace Group has offices in 53 countries and clients in over 170 countries. Its core operating insurance companies are rated AA- for financial strength by Standard & Poor’s.

As a group it is one of the world’s largest providers of commercial property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, with US$83bn in assets and over US$19bn of gross written premium in 2010.

Best political risk insurer in Asia Pacific

GTR readers have voted Zurich as the best political risk insurer in Asia Pacific.

“We have been in Asia Pacific with credit and political risk insurance for 11 years and the prospects have never been brighter,” says David Anderson, senior vice-president and regional manager, Asia Pacific for Zurich Credit & Political Risk in Singapore.

Zurich continues to perform well in Asia, closing a wide variety of political risk insurance, public obligor non-payment and credit insurance transactions for a host of banks, traders, manufacturers and other investors.

“The outlook is positive for the second half of 2011,” says Anderson.

With offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, Tokyo and Sydney, Zurich brings to the Asia Pacific region its US$150mn per project capacity, and 15-year maximum period (mostly in the private market).

“We also have strong relationships with export credit agencies and multilaterals in the region, including ADB, ECGC, K-Sure, Malaysia Exim, Nexi and Sinosure,” Anderson adds.

“The industry has come through the global financial crisis and continues to face challenges in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and parts of Asia, but Zurich stands ready to help customers in Asia Pacific and global markets mitigate these risks.”

Best export credit agency in Asia Pacific

Korea’s K-sure has claimed the title of best export credit agency in Asia Pacific as voted for by GTR readers.

As of July 7, 2010 the agency assumed the new name Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-sure) from its previous name of Korea Export Insurance Corporation (KEIC).

With the name change, the export credit agency took on a new mission of providing support toward imports and overseas resource development projects on top of its existing services supporting exports and overseas investments, and as such can now provide comprehensive coverage for trade and overseas investment.

In 2010 K-sure provided US$13.8bn (W16.3tn) for medium and long-term export credit insurance in areas including engineering, procurement and construction, shipbuilding and resource development.

The agency also played a prominent role in successfully closing two mega-deals: it committed US$912mn for the Jubail Refinery Project in Saudi Arabia in April 2010 and US$890mn for Singapore’s Jurong Aromatics Project in November.

Best trade finance boutique in Asia Pacific

Trade Finance Corporation has won the award for best trade finance boutique in Asia.

The firm has been present in Asian trade finance markets for eight years and lists its wide industry connections, flexible approach and strong due diligence capability as main reasons for its success.

David Sullivan, chairman of TFC, tells GTR what the firm has planned for the coming year: “A ‘go local’ strategy. Our trade finance business has been done to date from a central hub in Hong Kong. In the last three years we have built up a network of TFC Capital offices relating to our investment banking business so now we intend to put trade finance teams in those offices as well.”

The firm’s ambitious strategy includes introducing, for the first time, new trade finance products in Cambodia and the Philippines.

Best trade finance bank in Pakistan

Citi has proven itself to be the best trade finance bank in Pakistan, according to GTR readers.

The bank has been in Pakistan for 50 years (1961-2011) and trade has and continues to be a critical part of its business activities in the region.
“Citi’s franchise in Pakistan is consistently viewed as a provider of cutting edge trade solutions to its customers,” comments Faraz Haider, managing director, trade head, Middle East and Pakistan.

“From the structuring of complex and large transactions to risk mitigation, distribution and value-added electronic banking solutions, Citi has been at the forefront of the trade product market in Pakistan. Our customer footprint is diversified and includes prominent corporate, public sector and FIs.

“In line with a changed environment where increased focus is being placed by clients on internal efficiencies and improved cash generation, Citi is again leading the pack with solutions like local supplier and distributor finance offerings to its customers.”

Best trade finance bank in Singapore

As well as being one of the overall powerhouses of Asia, GTR readers have chosen Standard Chartered as the best trade finance bank in Singapore.
The bank has a long history of working in the city state and boasts more than 150 years of uninterrupted presence in Singapore.

Sumit Aggarwal, the bank’s head of transaction banking, Singapore, says: “We are close to our clients and fully focused on their ambitions. Our client focus combined with our trade expertise and deep local knowledge gives us and our clients a unique competitive advantage.

“Our clients are able to tap some of the fastest growing markets with our extensive network in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. We also ensure that our clients conduct their business with proper risk management and full compliance with regulations across markets.”

Best trade finance bank in Vietnam

The award for best trade finance bank in Vietnam has been won by Vietcombank.

Headquartered in Hanoi, Vietcombank is one of the largest banking and financial services organistions in Vietnam, and its network comprises around 350 branches and transaction points countrywide.

“Vietcombank has affirmed its position as the leading bank, providing a wide range of financial services in international trade and traditional services such as treasury, fund mobilisation, credit, project finance as well as modern banking activities,” says a spokesperson for the bank.

“Thanks to its highly-experienced employees, Vietcombank is proud to be the prime choice for top local and foreign corporations as well as more than 5.2 billion individual customers.”

Last year the bank improved trade finance procedures by centralising the processing of transactions at head office for the small and medium branches. As a result, its trade finance business improved, contributing to an increase in import-export settlements. Total import and export turnover of 2010 was US$31bn, an almost 21% increase compared to 2009 and 12% higher than the target, accounting for a 20% import-export market share. The main markets were the US, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea, China and the EU.

Best trade finance bank in People’s Republic of China

ICBC has beaten off the competition and won the accolade of best trade finance bank in the People’s Republic of China.

The bank has set a high benchmark for other banks in the region to aspire to in terms of the volume of trade finance business closed by the institution.
During the first quarter of this year, the bank’s domestic branches granted nearly US$30bn in international trade financing, up 160.27% year-on-year.
Trade finance is a core business for ICBC and is centred around three main categories of financing products: accounts receivables, account payables/prepayment and commodity financing.

When compared to the huge trading power of China, trade finance business is still a nascent form of financing. However, ICBC has been at the forefront of product innovation and has carved out a substantial market share.

The ICBC name is gaining greater recognition outside its domestic borders, with ICBC Europe, the Luxembourg-based subsidiary of ICBC doubling its presence in Europe by opening five branches earlier this year.

Best trade finance bank in Malaysia

Maybank has been voted as the best trade finance bank in Malaysia by GTR readers.

The bank holds a trade finance market share of almost 25% in the country, which is delivered through its 400 branches nationwide.

A spokesperson for the bank says that one of the key reasons readers chose Maybank was down to the “experienced trade advisors with years of practical trade finance skills and the ability to handle the full suite of trade finance products transactions as well as trade advisory services”.

The bank serves government, multinational, corporate, commercial and small and medium-sized enterprises.

Maybank boasts the largest customer base in Malaysia, with more than 18,000 customers for both conventional and Islamic trade and cash management services.

The bank also has a popular online trade finance portal, called Trade Connex, which allows customers 24 hour access to the bank’s services.

Best trade finance bank in Indonesia

Scooping the prize for best trade finance bank in Indonesia in GTR’s inaugural Asia Leaders in Trade awards is Bank Danamon.

The bank provides a complete range of trade services ranging from vanilla products such as letters of credit to open account financing, which is finding its foothold again following the global financial crisis.

The bank also has the facilities to structure products to specific clients.

“Bank Danamon is one of Indonesia’s local banks and is famous as a trade bank,” explains Margaret Tjahjono, trade product management head at the bank.

“One of the reasons that GTR readers voted for Bank Danamon is because we are a source of knowledge; Danamon is one of the most active parties in ICC Indonesia and one of our directors is the chair of the [ICC’s] banking technique commission.”

The bank recorded a strong 2010 after its corporate and commercial loans grew year-on-year by almost 25% to Rp13.847bn (US$1.6bn). This was driven by working capital loans and the trade finance business which grew by 26% and 93% respectively to account for around US$1bn of business.

Best trade finance bank in India

ICICI Bank is a regular GTR award winner, and has once again proven itself as a winning institution.

GTR readers rushed to vote for ICICI Bank as the best trade finance bank in India.

It is not a surprising accolade for the bank considering that ICICI is the largest private sector bank and second largest bank in the country with total assets of over US$91bn as of March 31, 2011.

“Creating a unique value proposition for its customers is what differentiates ICICI from its competitors. A strong business and products team, well complemented by an efficient operations team strives to make transacting a rich experience with ICICI for its customers,” comments a spokesperson for ICICI.

The bank has recently launched a ‘customer satisfaction survey’ where senior executives at ICICI Commercial Banking regularly monitor the input from the customers and transforms it into new targets.

Best trade finance bank in Thailand

Trade finance is a key driver of Kasikornbank’s (KBank) performance, which has led the bank to scoop the title of best trade finance bank in Thailand.

The bank operates a “bank anywhere” concept, allowing customers to use services from any of its international trade centres. All trade transactions are submitted to a hub processing centre. This enables KBank to effectively allocate and share resources and create a centralised advisory centre and generate better quality control.

For the bank’s customers it means increased accessibility to the bank, which creates convenience, reduces cost and saves time. For some larger corporate customers, KBank has provided bank-in-office services where its staff is located at the customer’s office.This system can accommodate an unlimited number of transactions. Throughout five years of system implementation, KBank has increased the number of trade centres from 16 to 61 at the end of 2010.

KBank aims to be Thailand’s trade finance hub for other smaller banks too. According to the bank, this insourcing model benefits not only KBank but the whole trade finance market in Thailand, as it reduces the cost of trade finance operations for smaller banks which have fewer transactions and are not able to invest much in systems and technology.

Best trade finance bank in Taiwan

Trade finance has played a fundamental role in fuelling revenue growth for the winner of best trade finance bank in Taiwan, Chinatrust Commercial Bank (CTCB).

Some 8.8% of revenue for the bank’s institutional banking group came from trade finance in 2010. This is expected to rise to 9.7% for 2011.
CTCB provides a complete trade finance products line, including letters of credit (LC), factoring, documentary acceptances, pre-shipment financing, open account financing, forfaiting and usance LC payable at sight.

A particular success has been renminbi (Rmb) trade finance business through the Hong Kong branch, with a considerable increase in related derivative products business.

The China market is key for Taiwan’s exporters and the banks that support them.

Another growth area has been the supply chain finance of factoring products, which target small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Total revenue from SME business in the first half of 2011 will surpass revenue from the whole of 2010.

CTCB’s package of trade finance products, its strong relationships with financial institutions in China and its strong cross-border platform has stood it in good stead to provide trade solutions to its customers.

Best trade finance bank in Bangladesh

Standard Chartered swept the board as GTR readers voted for the bank to win the title of best trade finance bank in Bangladesh.

The bank has been in the country for more than a century, and has a presence that spans six major cities in the country through 27 branches.
“We are very honoured to be recognised as a leader in trade finance in Bangladesh,” says Dinesh Khanna, Standard Chartered’s regional head of transaction banking, South Asia.

“We will continue to focus on extending our coverage and provide best in class service to our clients in the infrastructure and power sector, and exporters in the textiles and garment space.”

Best trade finance bank in the Philippines

Banco De Oro Unibank (BDO) has been awarded the title of best trade finance bank in the Philippines.

Part of SM Group, BDO is able to capture a significant market share of trade finance transactions due to its broad client coverage. It processes over 34,300 trade transactions annually with a volume of over US$4.5bn.

Over the years, BDO has been supporting trade requirements ranging from simple letters of credit issuance to more complex aircraft financing deals. It also has access to long-term funding sources supported by export credit agencies (ECAs), export-import banks and other multilateral organisations.

The bank plans to implement new processes to streamline operations and improve turnaround time. It also aims to expand client services by partnering with ‘thrift’ and ‘rural’ banks offering its trade infrastructure to support the growing financial needs of local small and medium-sized enterprises engaged in international business.

Another aim is to pursue structured trade finance by tapping ECAs for large and long-term project base exports, including commodity financing covering goods and stocks. With the increasing number of large deals, BDO expects to lead and/or join trade syndications as a result.

Best trade finance bank in Australia

ANZ has taken a clear majority of votes to win the title of best trade finance bank in Australia.

GTR’s readers in Asia were keen to vote for ANZ, acknowledging the bank’s reputation for its trade expertise and awareness of the importance of customer relationships.

Mark Evans, global head of trade and supply chain at ANZ comments to GTR: “We strive to deliver superior sales and service underpinned by a geographic presence few banks can match – teams on the ground in 28 countries, with local relationships, product, service and operations supported by a global platform.”

As a sign of ANZ’s dedication to both its Australian domestic market and the growing potential in Asia, the bank signed a strategic cooperation agreement with China Eximbank in May this year.

The agreement focuses on export and project finance supporting energy, infrastructure and engineering projects in both Australia and the Asia Pacific. China Eximbank is a key channel for financing overseas investment projects by Chinese companies and is a major shareholder in the Asean Investment Cooperation Fund which provides investment in infrastructure, energy, natural resources and telecommunication projects in South-East Asia.

Best trade finance bank in New Zealand

ANZ was the clear winner in this category, securing the majority of votes for the title of best trade finance bank in New Zealand.

Already recognised in terms of its capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region in our earlier Leaders in Trade competition, GTR readers, particularly those in Asia and Australasia regions also saw ANZ’s strengths in the New Zealand market.

“ANZ trade and supply chain is delighted to receive these awards which reflect feedback from our customers,” says Mark Evans, global head of trade and supply chain.

There is growing potential to conduct trade finance business in New Zealand, particularly given the increasing ties with the Asian market.

According to an ANZ survey released in June this year, 90% of New Zealand’s privately-owned businesses are expecting to see positive growth in the next 12 months, and this is in part due to their optimism with the trade opportunities with China.

The survey found that 34% of businesses are operating internationally and a further 12% of New Zealand private businesses aspire to expand offshore.
ANZ also found that 32% of the companies surveyed cited concerns about getting paid as a constraint to operating internationally.

Best trade finance bank in Japan

The Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi-UFJ (BTMU), part of the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, takes the honours in GTR’s award for best trade finance bank in Japan.
As Japanese customers continue to expand their overseas activities, BTMU has contributed to enhancing their trade finance capabilities by, firstly, expanding the bank’s lending capacity via increasing resources in their overseas branch network, and also, by promoting export credit transactions through working with ECAs.

The bank is also actively focused on building partnerships with local financial institutions and has significantly increased its participation in the trade finance programmes of multinational institutions.

Toru Masutani, head of BTMU’s ECA, commodities and trade finance department, comments on the bank’s win: “It is our great pleasure and honour that BTMU is voted as the best trade finance bank in Japan. We have recently experienced a tragic earthquake and tsunami in Japan and BTMU continues to play an important role by providing emergency credit facilities to support our corporate customers to restore global supply chain.

“We would like to continue our effort to be the leading trade finance bank in the global market.”

Best trade finance bank in Mongolia

Mongolia was the world’s second fastest growing economy in 2010 in terms of US$ GDP growth rate. Mining and high commodity prices are fuelling growth expected for the next 20 years. With extensive deposits of copper, coal, iron, gold and other resources, Mongolia has lined up foreign companies to do business and invest in projects.

Mining is also helping to develop and pull together other sectors such as agriculture, infrastructure and manufacturing, where trade financing
is much needed.

Trade & Development Bank (TDB) is well-placed at the centre of this growth, as the largest lender to Mongolia’s corporate sector, with 25% market share at the end of March 2011. Established in 1990, TDB serves around 360 major Mongolian corporates in almost all major business sectors and has 140
foreign bank counterparties, many of which have approved credit lines for TDB, which has helped promote and expand the bank’s activities in trade finance.
In 2010 year-end, almost 57% of Mongolia’s foreign trade-related transactions, which include foreign trade-related direct payments and remittance and all transactions in documentary credit instruments, were handled through TDB.