Posts Tagged ‘SME Finance’

A three pillar approach to achieving a more sustainable and inclusive future for global trade

As MSMEs are weaned off fiscal support, a radical new attitude to how they access working capital will be needed more than ever.

As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded in the first quarter of 2020, governments around the world were forced to take drastic actions to counter the socio-economic challenges posed by the crisis.

Your Monday morning coffee briefing from TFG. The UK has now administered 22.2m first vaccine doses and 1.1m second doses. Per 100 population, the UK has administered 34 doses, ahead of the US (26), Germany (9) and France (8) but behind Israel (100) and the UAE (63).

City Bank has become the first Bangladeshi bank to execute a cross-border Letter of Credit (LC) transaction under a Shariah-based financing arrangement executed using blockchain technology.

Your Monday morning coffee briefing from TFG. The UK has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for use. The first vaccinations are expected to start this week. Following a week of intense negotiations, UK and EU negotiators issued a statement saying that “conditions for an agreement are not met.

The UK and Canada agreed to roll over their existing trade arrangements after the transition period and developments with a Covid-19 vaccine.

The age old problem of document digitization in trade has probably been around since goods were traded using stone tablets in the Mesopotamian era. So who’s making a dent using blockchain / distributed ledger technology? From the updated WTO / TFG periodic table of projects in trade, we reveal 12 projects tackling this head on.

Why are the technologies we use to promote cross border trade so SME unfriendly? TFG heard from Matthew Gamser, CEO, SME Finance Forum.

TFG heard from José Manuel Campa, Chairperson, EBA on the key initiatives taken by the banking sector to support the economy post-Covid such as technology and innovation in banks and prevention of financial crime.

EIPP in combination with blockchain can help banks avoid duplicate Invoice Financing and perform dedupe effectively.

There is immense synergy to be unlocked between SMEs and trade finance funds by working closely together and developing relationships that allow for a level of comfort on both sides of the coin to be developed over time.

SMEs need to re-think their innovation strategy including digitalisation as the pandemic has accelerated the shift to digital technology in trade.

SMEs need to explore innovative financing options like trade credit insurance as they plan and prepare for the “new normal”.

Banks, fintechs, and other vendors have a pivotal role to play in this situation to support communities and try to help the economy moving in the short and long term.