Agro Perspectiva

EBRD Silk Road Trade Finance Forum held in Kiev

04.10.2017 15:04 "Agro Perspectiva" (Kyiv) — Conference to promote trade links between Ukraine, Asia and the Middle East The EBRD and the State Export-Import Bank of Ukraine (JSC Ukreximbank) have organised a special conference , the «Ukraine Silk Road Trade Finance Executive Forum», which took place in Kiev on 4 October 2017. At the conference, key players in trade finance, including banks and exporters and importers from various countries, gained insights into Ukraine’s business environment and current trends in international trade. This will allow them to plan comprehensively for their future activities in the market and the region. Ukrainian participants were informed about new market opportunities in Asia and the Middle East and had a unique chance to be introduced to decision-makers from major Asian and Middle-Eastern banks. «Today we are the proud hosts of an unprecedented trade finance executive forum, which aims to cover the latest trends in trade and to facilitate interaction with new market players. It provides a platform for bringing together senior banking and legal professionals from Amman, Beijing, Cairo, Dubai, London, Tokyo, Taipei and Seoul, who can meet key Ukrainian partner banks and corporates that are engaged in trade with Asia and the Middle East. By running this conference, we are opening a new chapter in reviving trade links along the ancient Silk Road,» said Kamola Makhmudova, chair of the conference, and Senior Banker in the EBRD’s Financial Institutions team. The EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) played a leading role in organising the conference in cooperation with the Ukraine International Chamber of Commerce (Ukraine ICC), Oschadbank and Credit Agricole Ukraine. The TFP promotes international trade to, from, and within the Bank’s countries of operations, including Ukraine. Through the Programme, the EBRD provides guarantees to international confirming banks, taking the political and commercial payment risk of international trade transactions undertaken by banks in the countries of operations. In 2016 alone, the Programme supported 1,359 trade finance transactions totalling ˆ1.45 billion across the region. Since its inception in 1999, the EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme has supported several thousand trade transactions in Ukraine, the Bank’s most active country in the Programme. To date, fifteen Ukrainian banks have been engaged in trade transactions under the TFP, covering a variety of export-import contracts between Ukraine and the European Union and even in countries that are further away, such as Argentina, New Zealand and Vietnam. Through the TFP, the EBRD not only stimulates regional business, but also provides a unique knowledge-sharing platform for market professionals. The Bank’s Trade Finance e-Learning Programme for industry professionals has had a major impact on the Ukrainian banking sector. To date, hundreds of Ukrainian bankers have received scholarships and completed online trade finance training which has equipped them with the necessary know-how to conclude more sophisticated trade transactions. The e-Learning Programme, which is funded by the EBRD Shareholder Special Fund, was jointly established by the Bank and ICC in 2010. The EBRD is the largest international financial investor in Ukraine. To date, the Bank has made a cumulative commitment of almost ˆ11.6 billion through 383 projects since the start of its operations in the country in 1993.