Trade and Receivables Finance: A Practical Guide to Risk Evaluation and Structuring

Trade and Receivable Finance provides the definitive practical guide to the evaluation and mitigation of risk and the financing of international trade.This authoritative manual is built upon more than 42 years of experience in the trade and receivables finance market and carries the endorsement of The London Institute of Banking and Finance.The contents are comprehensive incorporating clause examples, specimen documents, financier checklists and diagrams.The traditional method of commercial lending assessment places primary importance on the ability of the borrower to repay the financier. However, this form of evaluation often results in insufficient credit appetite to release the required level of financial support for a company involved in cross border trade.When a trade-related proposition is properly evaluated so that the transactional risks are fully understood and mitigated to an acceptable level, and the source of repayment is identifiable and considered reliable, a well-structured trade and receivables finance facility reduces the risk of default when compared to conventional lending products and can generate additional credit appetite. This book will become a constant ‘go-to’ companion for transaction banking teams, bank relationship managers, specialist client-facing trade and invoice finance specialists, middle and back office trade advisory personnel, credit analysts, alternative market financiers, export development agencies and credit insurers. The techniques described in this book are applied to an extensive range of international trade scenarios inThe Trade and Receivables Finance Companion: A Collection of Case Studies and Solutions (Palgrave, 2020).

About the Author

Stephen A. Jones is a leading trade finance practitioner, trainer and consultant with over 42 years of experience. He has held senior positions in Lloyds Bank, NatWest and RBS, working in operations (letters of credit, collections, payments, foreign exchange, and negotiations), and in trade finance sales (client relationship, risk management and new business origination).

Stephen left banking in November 2009 to set up his own trade finance consultancy and training business. In 2014 Stephen was appointed Consultant Head of Risk for a new alternative market trade finance provider. During his term of office Stephen formulated the trade and receivables finance credit risk policy and operational instructions for the financier and headed up its credit risk committee.

Stephen regularly designs and delivers training programmes globally to banks on trade and receivables finance, risk management, AML and sanctions compliance.

He continues to work as a trade finance practitioner, consultant trade advisor, handles letters of credit for his corporate clients and arranges finance; this helps to ensure his material is both relevant to today’s market and highly practical.