LEADING corporate and conglomerates meet the banks and financial institutions for the first time under one platform to discuss the challenges, trends and booming potential of trade finance. With topics ranging from macroeconomic view, Islamic finance, commodity financing, risk management, liquidity issues to supply chain management and alternative sources of financing, the two-day conference at Radisson Blu Hotel, Riyadh that opened Tuesday saw a stellar lineup of speakers discuss and debate on these hottest topics. “We live in a globalized world, organizations need to protect themselves against commercial risks (unwillingness to pay and bankruptcy). The conference raises awareness on the importance of trade finance,” said Walid Abukhaled, Deputy Minister for Industrial Affairs, Ministry of Commerce & Industry. Trade finance around the world is on a rise, post-recession. People have understood the significance and importance of the latest tools and techniques used in finance in order to gain an edge over the competition viz. the leading conglomerates & MNCs. Sameer M. Sehgal, MD EMEA, CitiBank, sharing his views on global trade, said “by common consensus, the three biggest secular trends of our age are - globalization, urbanization and digitization, respectively. Each of these trends has a close connection to the world of trade.” Not only across the globe but in the GCC also the rise in confidence in trade finance as a preferred tool of financing is seen as a growing trend. “Across the GCC region, trade finance has been growing on the back of a buoyant economy and clients are today looking at alternative financing options which can assist in the growth of the business. Today banks are focusing on effective working capital management for clients and Banks in the region look to Trade Finance to support this growth,” said Krishnakumar Duraiswamy, Senior VP & Head of Trade Finance, Abudhabi Commercial Bank. Saudi Arabia is a hotspot when it comes to trade, being the largest economy in the Middle East and having higher working capital, lesser liquidity issues automatically makes it a desirable market for trade finance. Ahmar Azam, CFO, Obeikan Education & Retail added on to this fact and said, “this region is experiencing phenomenal growth which is being spearheaded by the Saudi Arabia along with other GCC countries. Trade Finance and related products are maturing at a fast pace with best practices evolving day by day. Companies are becoming more agile and sophisticated in their liquidity management and promptly learning and using trade finance products more effectively.” – SG
