Trade & Supply Chain

Trade finance is moving out of the paper age. But to fully leverage digitization, banks need to tear down data silos and standardize tools and procedures.

Using technology and creativity, banks help clients—big and small—reduce paperwork and costs.

Regional banks can take advantage of the $1.6 trillion funding gap that exists in trade finance but only if they move quickly.

Trade and tariff wars could lead to recessions.

Trade wars may not have winners but they certainly have losers.

Basel rules have created new opportunities for institutional and corporate investors in trade finance.

Trade and tariff wars are more likely to spiral out of control now that the WTO is weaker than during tense periods in the past.

Some see trade-war threats as posturing for negotiating advantage. Still, a lot of companies could get hurt along the way.

Following the Trump administration’s launch of tariffs on steel and aluminum, the director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Roberto Azevêdo, spoke again with Global Finance, about the global body’s role and the expanding trade tiffs that could set off another worldwide economic collapse.   

The latest tax and regulatory reforms in the US are intended to woo more corporate investment from abroad, but they offer both pros and cons that vary widely from sector to sector.

What does it take to excel at trade finance on a regional or global scale?

  GLOBAL WINNERS Best Bank for Trade Finance BNP Paribas Best Trade Finance Infrastructure Initiative CCRManager Best Bank for Commodity Finance Rabobank Best Trade Document Management  BNY Mellon Best Trade Credit Insurance Provider  Euler Hermes Best Bank for Export Finance ...

Lisa Lansdowne-Higgins, vice president of business deposits and treasury solutions, personal and commercial banking at RBC, discusses changes in innovation and free trade. 

Chris Laws, global head of product development, compliance and supply solutions for Dun & Bradstreet, explains how new technologies are providing ever deeper analysis to deliver reputational and financial risk mitigation

Supply-chain finance is primed for a leap in productivity, if it can put the theoretical benefits of blockchain to work in practical applications.

Each of the champions has a unique story to tell.

From Bigger Yields To Better Yields: Lively competition from strong and agile smaller banks is driving big trade-finance providers to focus on profitability rather than market share.

James Rausch, head of Canadian client coverage and global head of transaction banking for banks, brokers and exchanges with RBC Investor & Treasury Services, speaks with Global Finance on bespoke customer service, innovation and trade flows.

Ad van der Poel, senior vice president, financing services at Basware, winner of Global Finance's 2017 award for Best Web-Based Supply-Chain Financing Solution, explains how data aids collaboration, transparency and financial agility.

Robert O’Donoghue, ING’s global head of working capital solutions, explains the importance of a full view of the supply chain and reasons for growth.