Barclays has struck a partnership with Canadian IT consultancy CGI to integrate digital trade finance platforms, as the UK lender seeks to modernise operations and meet growing corporate demand for automated financial services.

CGI’s Trade360 solution will become integrated with fintech Komgo’s Konsole platform, creating what has been described as a “fully digital experience” for Barclays’ corporate clients.

Pressure has been mounting on traditional banks to digitise trade finance operations, with multinational corporations increasingly demanding real-time solutions made possible through technology – particularly in comparison to solutions seen in other realms of banking.

“Our corporate clients increasingly expect seamless, digital-first solutions for their global trade finance needs,” said Jaya Vohra, Managing Director and Global Head of Trade and Working Capital at Barclays. The integration would provide clients with “a fully digital experience while simplifying operations processing.”

CGI has positioned itself as a bridge between established financial institutions and newer fintech platforms. “Banks are at the heart of global trade financing, and CGI is ready to enable this next stage of digital integration,” said Neil Sadler, Senior Vice-President for Banking and Financial Markets at CGI’s UK operations.

The partnership incorporates Komgo’s multi-bank platform; Michael Mandell, Managing Director for the Americas at Komgo, said the integration demonstrated “how combining our multi-bank network with CGI’s robust processing capabilities delivers real value to both banks and corporates”.

The integration is expected to reduce transaction processing times and manual data entry requirements, whilst providing Barclays’ corporate clients with enhanced transparency over their trade finance operations.