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TradeBrief eBSI

ICC BANKING COMMISSION COVERAGE ....... 1 MATHS@SEA PROJECT ................................ 5

ICC INDIA & TOUR ....................................... 8

SUPPLY CHAIN FINANCING ............................ 9 WEBLINKS FOR EXPORTERS .......................... 13 IFC FIT INITIATIVE UPDATE ........................... 14

GUARANTEES VS STANDBYS ......................... 17 CHINA SYSTEMS UPDATE .............................. 19 FRAUD UNDER UCP ..................................... 20 TRAINING FEATURE – IBQ QATAR ................. 22 RECENT EVENTS .......................................... 25

ICC China on Fact Finding Mission to Dubai Chamber of Commerce

ISSUE 9 May. 2012

.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates Dubai, UAE: As part of its efforts to consolidate bilateral ties with its second top-most trading partner, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry hosted a high profile Chinese banker’s delegation of 21 officials, headed by Mr. Zhao Xiaodi, Secretary General, China International Chamber of Commerce (CCOIC), at its headquarters recently.

In his welcome address to the visiting delegation, Mr. Atiq

Juma Nasib, Senior Director, Commercial Services Sector, stressed on the long-time trading ties enjoyed by Dubai and

Chinese investors stating that both the sides are looking forward to working together in areas of common interest which will serve and support the achievement of their mutual goal of promoting the business culture of their respective regions.

He informed the visiting banker’s delegation that Dubai’s financial sector has been playing a leading role along sides the trade, tourism and logistics sectors in stimulating Dubai’s economy and there is ample scope for Dubai and China to enhance cooperation and work jointly in new areas of

banking and financial services for the benefit of both the sides.

Dubai and China’s mutual partnership has seen the country

occupy the 2nd position in Dubai’s list of top global trading partners as the Emirate’s non-oil trade with China reached AED 82.8 billion in the first 10 months of last year. Dubai offers enormous potential as a gateway to 2.2 billion consumers in the Middle East region and a solid base to tap into, European, Asian and African markets for Chinese businesses, added Mr Nasib.

On his part, the Secretary General of China International

Chamber of Commerce pointed out that Dubai Chamber enjoys a well-known reputation in China for the quality of service and support provided to the Chinese companies operating in Dubai. He further stated that the common objective of promoting trade is the reason for close trade ties enjoyed by the two sides.

The Dubai Chamber introductory presentation provided a comprehensive overview of Dubai’s economy, Dubai

Chamber’s added-value services offered to the business community including the issuance of certificates of origin,

ATA Carnets, membership renewals, and its overall efforts to support economic growth while creating a stimulating business environment for global investors in the Emirate.

Speaking at the conference from L to R was Ms Jo Zhang, ICC China;

Omar Khan, Dubai Chamber, Zhao Xiaodi, ICC China and Vincent O’Brien

Practical v Legal

Letters of Credit in Turbulent Times

Dubai Chamber – 30 May 2012

Register Now!!! http://www.ebsi.ie/PVL_Dubai

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TradeBrief eBSI ICC Banking Commission - Doha

Doha, Qatar The ICC Banking Commission meeting held in Doha from 25 to 29 March 2012 was hosted by ICC Qatar and

Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry and attracted participation from more than 400 delegates from 50

countries. The theme of the commission meeting ‘Reframing the future of Trade Finance’ aims to encourage

governments, regulatory bodies and G20 leaders to remove obstacles to trade finance and stimulate economic

growth and job creation.

“SMEs could be the engine of economic growth if given better access to investment through new regulatory

frameworks for trade finance,” said Kah Chye Tan, ICC Banking Commission Chair.

The Operations Committee of the ICC Banking Commission in Doha, Kah Chye Tan, Remy Rowhani, CEO

ICC Qatar, Paulina Martinez and Vincent O’Brien. The success of the Doha event can be attributed to

the superb efforts invested by both ICC Paris and ICC Qatar in collaboration with the event sponsors,

congratulations all!

ICC Market Intelligence Group

The ICC Market Intelligence Group, Chaired by Vincent O’Brien, delivered a very informative presentation of the

preliminary results of their latest Trade Finance Survey which will be published soon. A number of awards and prizes were also featured at the event including China Systems, International Bank of Qatar and others.

Special prize of an iPhone 4S presented by Mr. Rangan of National Bank of Fujairah, with Vincent O’Brien.

Key issues for the G20

G20 leaders need to rapidly expand access to financial

services, particularly in the developing world, so as to

finance economic growth. Regulators, they said, should give

SMEs greater opportunities by:

simplifying regulatory and bureaucratic requirements

for setting up and doing business;

providing incentives that encourage the financial

sector to lend to SMEs;

improving access of SMEs and innovative ventures to

capital markets.

The banking experts recommended that regulation of trade

finance be based on facts and an objective assessment of

trade finance's low risk, self-liquidating character. Trade

finance should receive a more favourable treatment under

the financial regulations being considered in line with the

Basel III framework, they said.

Classifying trade finance as a high-risk financial instrument,

subject to higher capital adequacy requirements, could have

a severe and adverse impact on the pricing and supply of

trade finance.

Winner of the ICC Tools for Trade prize receives his ICC Toolbox

Distinguished delegates at the ICC Banking Commission Meeting

ICC Banking Commission Meeting in Doha, Qatar

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TradeBrief eBSI News & Commentary

Directors Note Welcome to

this ninth

edition of eBSI

Tradebrief.

Dear Readers,

We are indeed in challenging

time once again for trade

finance.

The Eurozone crisis persists and

is deepening, trade finance

credit lines for emerging

markets are tightening.

SME companies around the

world are finding it hard to fund

their international trade

operations.

In this edition of Trade Brief we

provide an update on key

developments in trade finance

and report on international trade

finance events from around the

World.

We thank you for your

continuing support and for

providing valuable content for

the publications.

Vincent O’Brien

Muddying the export waters

The row boiling up in Washington over the ‘no’ vote on America’s ExIm Bank charter

and lending cap extension has made headlines in a debate that

is hardly new. Democrats are accusing Republicans of holding US jobs to ransom and, in the

words of US Chamber of Commerce international affairs

chief John Murphy, “picking foreign companies as winners and American companies as

losers”.

The definition of trade finance, Murphy reminds readers of The Hill’s

Congress Blog, is “one of the safest kinds of finance because the goods sold

serve as collateral, and the buyer, the seller and the price, have already

been set”. Not enough US senators have grasped this basic truth.

Part of the problem is that accusations the US export credit agency (ECA) is

distorting the export playing field are hard to bat off when ExIm’s biggest

single customer is Boeing.

Legal action between the aircraft manufacturer and the airline lobby group,

Airlines for America, over the ECA’s US$2.4bn deal to ‘support’ the sale of 30

aircraft to Air India – pricing Delta airlines out of the New York to Mumbai

route – has not helped public relations. Republican house majority leader Eric

Cantor has called for the winding down of the bank’s clout, saying its

activities are “improper government interference into the private

marketplace, putting taxpayers at risk.”

Trade needs its export credit agencies and, without them, trade finance would be even tougher than it is already.

Dealogic confirmed that 2011 ECA activity reached a record 409 deals at US$68bn. Given that total trade

finance recorded for the same period was US$168.8bn, 40% of deals done with ECAs add up to a hefty level

of underwriting.

Will it be possible to persuade governments to stop meddling? Government finance that forces importers to

choose suppliers on price alone does nobody any good in the long run and is a questionable use of taxpayers’

money. And by the look of things in Washington, the distraction from the spirit of true trade has been deeply

damaging all round.

On the bright side, innovative deals that enable a region to become self sufficient demonstrate how ECAs

reach parts of the world other banks can’t – at least not on their own. One of these won a TFR Award – only

the other day JP Morgan’s Dani Cotti reminded me at the US bank’s very enjoyable press party how the

Aberdeen Angus cattle deal with HSBC and EFIC was “totally out there!” And while we are on the subject of

awards, don’t forget that voting for the TFR Excellence Awards is now open on our brand-new website.

Perhaps readers could take this opportunity to look closely at which ECA deserves the winner’s gong for

2012?

Visit http://www.wlrstore.com/tfr to obtain a 20% discount on your annual subscription to Trade & Forfaiting Rview!

Clarissa Dann

Expert Profile Name: Clarissa Dann Position: Editor Employer: Trade & Forfaiting Review Location: London, UK Specialisation: Trade & Forfaiting Contact: cdann@waterlow.com

International Trade

Certified Training Programmes Programme Intakes every two months from January 23rd, 2012

Certificate in Logistics

Certificate in Finance

ITS Accreditation

Advanced Certificate in

International Trade & Logistics

Diploma in Export Operations

Certified Course in US Customs Procedures

Delivered exclusively by:

eBSI Export Academy

Tel: +353 94 9381444 Fax: +353 94 93

Web: http://www.ebsi.ie Email: info@ebsi.ie

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TradeBrief eBSI Advertisement - Seminar

http://www.ebsi.ie/PVL_Dubai

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TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

MathsatSea.com : a new and exciting

e-learning tool for nautical Maths

“The problem”

Many young people embark upon a career at sea ill-equipped to cope

with the academic rigours awaiting them at nautical college,

especially in terms of tackling the level and type of mathematics

required.

Officer trainees presenting at college frequently struggle with maths, even though they may hold a good GCSE grade or even A Level in the subject (it’s possible to secure a pass grade at GCSE level without being exposed to geometry, trigonometry or algebra). The result is that career progression is hampered and they become personally dispirited. For colleges and sponsoring companies there’s disruption and extra costs in providing ‘remedial’ maths, sometimes on a one to one basis. Ratings seeking advancement to officer also face difficulties. The Marine Society administers a scholarship scheme, which offers financial and learning support to around 60 such seafarers annually. Many are adults who left formal learning many years ago; for some embarking upon formal study at college is a new experience. A means was needed to determine the level of preparedness of a potential scholar to cope with nautical maths. If the candidate was found to be wanting, then an additional means was

required to provide up-skilling in the basics in preparation for college.

“The solution” The Marine Society, the world’s most experienced seafarers’ charity, came up with the concept of a combined testing tool and up-skilling programme in functional maths. Delivery is web-based, affording access to a global audience 24/7. The maths content of the programme was developed by Coracle following discussion with nautical college staff currently involved in teaching seafarers. It was important that the pitch, tone and academic content was right. The e-learning platform was provided by CoracleOnline and the project went live in August 2011. Feedback indicates that the resulting product is making a significant contribution to the lives of many seafarers. Key to its success is its direct relevance to the maths which underpins studies at nautical college today; its easy accessibility and user-friendly style; and the fact that the whole programme has been marine contextualised.

So the language of the programme and all the examples are nautically flavoured, thus making them familiar and relevant to nautical learners. This helps to ensure those returning to learning after perhaps a protracted absence are made to feel comfortable.

Evidence shows that lack of self-confidence, particularly as far as tackling Maths is concerned, can be a formidable barrier to career progression for seafarers. Helping to overcome this represents a major contribution to personal well-being and professional development.

Whilst designed principally to test and up-skill in functional maths to about Level 2, the programme is finding favour with many throughout the maritime sector who are embarking upon professional studies. Many

individuals use it as a refresher course as a means to achieving their goals. It’s also proving popular with ship operators and crew manning agencies. Maersk, for example, is using it routinely with applicants for cadetships.

For industry endorsements and learner feedback please refer to the video carried on the home page of the project at http://www.mathsatsea.com

James Tweed

Expert Profile Name: James Tweed Position: Managing Director Employer: Coracle Online Location: London, UK Specialisation: International Shipping Contact: info@coracleonline.com

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TradeBrief eBSI

ICC India Roadshow – ICC Rules for Trade – ICC Tools for Trade

ICC India Roadshow

New Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai, India ICC India, in association with ING Vysya Bank, organised three seminars on “ICC rules for trade - ICC tools for

trade” on February 27, February 29 & March 02 in New Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai respectively. These

seminars were attended by bankers, corporates, exporters, importers and consultants.

Seminar Leader

Mr. Vincent O’Brien, Chair, ICC Banking

Commission, Market Intelligence Group (MIG) led

the seminars. Mr O’Brien is a highly experienced

practitioner of International trade finance being a

long-standing member of the ICC Banking

Commission. He has more than 20 years

international trade banking experience and has

delivered trade finance technical assistance and

training in more than 70 countries worldwide.

He is also a regular and respected contributor to

international trade finance publications such as

Documentary Credits Insight, Global Trade

Review, LC Monitor and Documentary Credit

World.

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TradeBrief eBSI ICC India Roadshow

Understanding the new provisions of Incoterms® 2010 and how the changes impact users will provide businesses with the confidence and legal certainty to trade in unfamiliar markets and save both time and money.

The seminars were addressed by Mr. Ashok Ummat, Executive Director, ICC India, at New Delhi and Chennai and Mr. Raghu Mody, President, ICC India, at Mumbai. From ING Vysya Bank, Mr Vasant Shanbhag, Head- Trade Finance Marketing, ING Vysya Bank, addressed the participants at New Delhi and Mr. Amit Bagri,

Head - International Clients Group, ING Vysya Bank at Chennai and Mumbai. In his remarks, Mr Raghu Mody, President, ICC India mentioned that with the effects of the global financial and

economic crisis still being felt in most countries, businesses need to take even more stringent measures to ensure that their transactions are

watertight.

Mr Mody also mentioned that in the context of the global financial crisis, the recently published ICC Global Trade Finance survey which gleaned hard facts from more than 100 countries reported that ‘34% of respondents indicated an increase in the percentage of documents

refused on first presentation’ and ‘94% of respondents experienced

increased pressure from applicants to refuse documents during 2010’. In his presentation, Mr O’Brien focussed on UCP 600 & revised Incoterms 2010 rules and presented case studies on experience of users of ICC trade facilitation rules. He highlighted the practical application of the technical rules of Incoterms and UCP600 – to manage risk, reduce costs, eliminate unnecessary discrepancies and

enhance security of payment and international trade cash-flow.

International Trade Certified Training Programmes

Programme Intakes every two months from January & March 2009

Certificate in Logistics

Certificate in Finance

ITS Accreditation

Advanced Certificate in

International Trade & Logistics

Diploma in Export Operations

Certified Courses in Shipping

Delivered exclusively by: The electronic Business School International

Tel: +353 94 9381444 Fax: +353 94 9381708 Web: http://www.ebsi.ie Email: info@ebsi.ie

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TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

Benefits & risks for banks in Supply Chain Finance

I have a Labrador dog, Andy whose breed originated in Greenland.

I buy its food online in a store located in Germany whose product

of Canadian origin is delivered directly to my house in Madrid,

Spain thanks to TNT, a transport company of Australian foundation

whose majority shareholder is the Dutch KPN; now that's

globalization!

To survive in a so competitive world companies need to buy and sell goods

in a very efficient way. Traditional systems – to buy raw materials using

either the company’s own funds or borrowed funds from a bank, process, sell and wait for the buyer’s funds – are not suitable any more.

By participating in a SCF structure, a bank obtains a series of

benefits: Hold the different accounts necessary for a fast and efficient flow of

payments;

Benefits from the use of funds deposited in such accounts and obtain fees for the payments between the participants;

Fees received for the use of the IT platform helps the bank to compensate the loss of revenues coming from traditional trade instruments (e.g. letter of credit) which the clients have substituted

by an Open Account scheme; The bank may charge fees to the participants as a provider of the IT

platform; Once the IT platform is available, the Bank can offer this service to

different customers, making such an investment into a clear competitive advantage;

Has a complete knowledge of the full operation of its clients, what implies a better understanding of their business;

If necessary, the bank can grant funding to buyer or seller, depending on the case, enjoying the most accurate information

about the operation he is funding and with the possibility of controlling the flow of funds;

The bank has an excellent opportunity to attract the sellers as new

customers and to make a cross-selling of its services; and, Through participation in a structure of SCF, the Bank demonstrates

to markets its determined commitment by international trade, its capacity to adapt to new technologies and becomes a major player in this kind of activity within the reach of a small number of entities.

Today’s companies need a financing system nimble

and flexible, adapted to their needs since, for

international trade transactions, money is as vital as

blood for life. One of these systems is the Supply

Chain Financing (SCF) scheme.

SCF it’s a wide-ranging term that can be considered

from several points of view:

From a management point of view, SCF means that the company

receives the raw materials needed for its production in time and

at the lower cost possible; arrange payments to its suppliers in a

way that allows them to obtain the price easily and speedily but

without being debited immediately into the company’s bank

account; and, convert into cash its receivables as soon as

possible. An accurate SCF management allows the company to

optimize its inventory, to prevent outages and to maximize its

payment terms.

From a transactional point of view, SCF implies the use of an IT platform capable to interconnect buyers,

sellers, the logistic company and the bank. Such platform may be provided by the bank, either using its own

in-house developed software, purchasing any software license or through an agreement with a third-party

provider. From a banking point of view, SCF represent for the banks an ideal opportunity to evolve from the

role of a financial services provider to a non-replaceable business partner directly involved in the commercial and productive process of the company.

Expert Profile Name: Carlos Bacigalupe Position: Trade Finance Consultant Employer: eBSI Export Academy Location: Madrid, Spain Specialisation: International Trade Finance

Contact: cb@ebsi.ie

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TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

However, banks must take into account that any

SCF scheme involves also a number of risks:

In any SCF structure, the bank usually

concentrates its risk on the buyer (who

approves the invoices); therefore, it should

be a creditable corporation enjoying a sound

financial position;

SCF structures are suitable for high volume

transactions held by trustworthy companies

in developed countries; Usually, the discount of approved invoices

to the seller is on a non-recourse basis;

SCF involves not only financial transactions

(discount of invoices, cash advances, loans,

etc.) but commercial transactions as well

(input of purchase orders, invoices approval,

logistic documents, etc) which are not always

well-known for the bank’s staff;

In summary, we could say that SCF it’s a modern

structure that uses the advantages of new

technologies and allows banks to participate directly

in the day-to-day operations of their clients, adapting

to the new challenges of the globalization.

Carlos

The International Finance Corporation recently established the Global Warehouse Finance Program to focus on this area.

Companies are willing to participate in a SCF

structure when the payment terms are

medium and/or long term;

Cost of providing the IT platform can be high

and, unless a wide-scope agreement is

previously reached with one or more highly

reliable companies willing to participate in a

SCF structure, it could be an unproductive

investment;

Access of the companies’ staff to the IT

platform implies to design an appropriated

authorization process in order to guarantee the safety of the whole operation;

The Global Warehouse Finance Program (GWFP), created in September 2010, aims to increase working capital financing to farmers and agriculture producers by

leveraging their production. The program will support the agriculture sector by providing banks with liquidity or risk coverage backed by warehouse receipts, which can be used to provide financing in the form of short-term loans

or guarantees to agriculture producers and traders ahead of export. The program has two components: Credit Line: IFC offers a short-term loan to a bank, which will in turn use the funds to lend to farmers, agriculture

commodity producers, or traders against warehouse receipts or equivalent as collateral. Risk-Sharing Facilities: IFC guarantees up to 50 percent

of short-term loans extended to agriculture commodity producers or traders against warehouse receipts or equivalent as collateral. Banks can transfer credit risk to

IFC from their own portfolio or from a new portfolio they originate. The assets typically remain on the banks’ balance sheet, and the risk transfer comes from a partial credit guarantee provided by IFC. For more info email Makiko Toyoda MToyoda@ifc.org

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TradeBrief eBSI

Guarantees versus standby letters of credit

Expert Commentary

Rules versus no rules

Guarantees

In 2010, a new version of the URDG, URDG 758,

came into force. Those are ICC's Uniform Rules for

Demand Guarantees. Even though rules designed for

demand guarantees have existed since 1992, there

are still a substantial number of guarantees issued

without reference to any rules. There are also

examples of a counter-guarantee and a guarantee

being issued subject to different rules.

Standby

Practically every standby is issued subject to rules,

either ISP98 (International Standby Practices) or

UCP 600. The latter is designed to facilitate

commercial documentary credits and may not

always be suitable for standbys, whereas the first is

made specifically for standbys.

Comment:

It is a clear advantage to have a standby/guarantee

issued subject either to ICC/IIBLP rules than to no

rules at all. Although there may be provisions in the

rules that are not always desirable, it is still easier

to navigate when one knows which rules apply.

Being subject only to local law means that the

outcome of a potential dispute will be far from a given.

Points of entry/ availability

Guarantees

A guarantee is only "available" with the guarantor.

The beneficiary has one point of entry and must

make a demand to the guarantor on or before the

expiry of the guar-antee.

The beneficiary cannot present a demand to a

counter-guarantor, and a complying demand to the

guarantor does not obligate a counter-guarantor.

Standby

A standby may include a "confirming party" which,

(depending on the wording in the standby), allows

the beneficiary to present either to the confirmer or

the issuer. In a worst case scenario where the

confirmer goes bankrupt, the beneficiary may

present to the issuer. It should also be noted that a

complying presentation to a confirmer also

obligates the issuer.

Comment:

From the perspective of the beneficiary, this is an

advantage for the standby over the guarantee.

When the beneficiary has done its "duty" under a

standby, i.e., made a complying presentation to the

confirmer, then both the issuer and the confirmer

are obligated. The same is not true for guarantees;

a complying demand to the guarantor only

obligates the guarantor.

Approaches to standby letters of credit (standbys) and

guarantees differ in different parts of the world. People perceive

things differently, and that has an impact on how practice

evolves. Take for example the Americas where standbys are

generally used when issuing a guarantee undertaking. In Europe,

however, (and for that matter in other parts of the world)

guarantees serve the same purpose.

It is said that the counter-guarantee originated in the Middle East, and

the standby was invented in the US because US banks - at a certain point in time - were not allowed to issue guarantees.

It may not seem fruitful to have too many rules dealing with instruments that are in-tended to cover similar

transactions, e.g., URDG 758 (for demand guarantees), UCP 600 (for documentary credits - which include

standbys), ISP98 (for standbys) or, for that matter, "no rules", i.e., local law. Add to these the forms used for

these instruments, which also differ considerably: letter of guarantee, SWIFT MT760, SWIFT MT700, SWIFT

MT799 or the good old telex.

The question is whether it makes a difference what these instruments are called. Can a guarantee always be

used in lieu of a standby and vice versa?

Rules versus structure

When considering the differences between two instruments, the rules used are im-portant. They define the

basis for the transaction, the obligation of the parties and re-flect the structure of the transaction. The

traditional guarantee is used when a guarantor issues an undertaking vis-àvis a beneficiary. If the beneficiary

would like to obtain an undertaking from its own bank, this is solved by using a counter-guarantee.

This means that the beneficiary of the guarantee receives a guarantee issued by a bank (guarantor), even

though it is originally issued by the applicant's bank (counter-guarantor). The counter-guarantee indemnifies

the guarantor in the event a complying demand is made (by the beneficiary) under the guarantee. The

counter-guarantee and the guarantee are two separate guarantees, independent of one another.

In similar circumstances, the standby is generally confirmed by a confirming party. The ISP98 rules state that

the "issuer" includes a "confirmer" as if the confirmer was a separate issuer and its confirmation was a

separate standby issued for the account of the issuer".

Expert Profile Name: Kim Sindberg Position: Technical Trade Finance Adviser and Vice President at Nordea Employer: Nordea Trade Finance Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Specialisation: International Trade Finance Contact: kim.sindberg@nordea.com

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TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

Expiry dates and places

Guarantees

Since the counter-guarantee and the guarantee are

two separate guarantees, each guarantee includes

its own expiry date and place. These are normally

"adjusted", so that it is expected that the guarantor

will have sufficient time to make a demand under

the counter-guarantee when a demand is made

under the guarantee. However, there is the risk that

this may not be possible.

Standby

Since there is only one standby, there is only one

expiry. If there is a confirmer, then the presentation

must be made to the confirmer or, if the standby

permits, also to the issuer. In this , a complying

presentation to the issuer will also obligate the

confirmer. A complying presentation to the

confirmer always obligates the issuer.

Comment:

A confirmer knows that the issuer is obligated when

a complying presentation is made under a standby.

The same is not true for a guarantor that has issued

a guarantee on the basis of a counter guarantee, as

the guarantor must make a complying demand to

the counter-guarantor. This raises the risk of not

being able to present a complying demand.

It should be added that when a complying

presentation under a standby is made to the

confirmer, then the risk of documents being lost in

transit lies with the issuer.

The same is not true for guarantees. However, this

may be solved by allowing for demands via

electronic means (e.g., SWIFT).

Points of entry/ availability

Guarantees

A guarantee is only "available" with the guarantor.

The beneficiary has one point of entry and must

make a demand to the guarantor on or before the

expiry of the guar-antee.

The beneficiary cannot present a demand to a

counter-guarantor, and a complying demand to the

guarantor does not obligate a counter-guarantor.

Standby

A standby may include a "confirming party" which,

(depending on the wording in the standby), allows

the beneficiary to present either to the confirmer or

the issuer. In a worst case scenario where the

confirmer goes bankrupt, the beneficiary may

present to the issuer. It should also be noted that a

complying presentation to a confirmer also

obligates the issuer.

Comment:

From the perspective of the beneficiary, this is an

advantage for the standby over the guarantee.

When the beneficiary has done its "duty" under a

standby, i.e., made a complying presentation to the

confirmer, then both the issuer and the confirmer

are obligated. The same is not true for guarantees;

a complying demand to the guarantor only obligates the guarantor.

Protection Guarantees

It is not clear whether a guarantor that is not

being reimbursed by the counter-guarantor due,

for example, to an injunction against the counter-

guarantor, is protect-ed by URDG 758. According

to the Guide to ICC Uniform Rules for Demand

Guarantees - URDG 758, in similar

circumstances, there would be a possibility to sue

the applicant.

Standby

Under a standby, when a confirmer pays out on

the basis of the nomination granted by the issuer,

the confirmer is "protected" by the applicable

rules. This is the case when a court injunction is

filed against the issuer. It should be noted that

this is the generally understood practice, but

courts may rule differently based on local law.

Comment:

This is a legal issue, and it may be hard to

foresee the outcome of an actual case. However

it appears that the standby offers more protection in cases like this.

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TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

Originally published in DCInsight Vol. 18 No.1 January - March 2012

In other words, there is only one instrument, but two parties (issuer and confirmer) are obligated under it.

Law and jurisdiction Guarantees

For demand guarantees, the applicable law and

jurisdiction is the place of the counter-guarantor

for the counter-guarantee and the place of the

guarantor for the guarantee. There can result in a

"mismatch" between the law and jurisdiction of

the two instru-ments, possibly creating a

dilemma in the event of a dispute.

Standby

There is a general understanding that the law and

jurisdiction of a standby is the place where the

standby is available.

Comment:

The rule for guarantees is stated clearly in URDG

758. However, it can be a messy situation with

two guarantees covering the same transaction but subject to two different laws/jurisdictions.

The differences

The above-mentioned differences in structure make a

guarantee - by nature - different from a standby. The

following is not a test of whether one set of rules (e.g.,

URDG 758) is better or worse than another set of rules

(e.g., ISP98), but rather a comparison of the structural

differences in demand guarantees versus standbys.

The assumptions at the end of this article are based on

the situation in which the beneficiary's bank has obligated itself to the beneficiary.

Conclusion

The standby is a more sophisticated instrument than a traditional guarantee. In some cases, this does not

matter, for example where the guarantor and the beneficiary live in the same country. In others, for example

in cross-border transactions where the beneficiary requires an undertaking by its own bank, this can mean

the difference be-tween being paid or not!

The demand guarantee is a reliable instrument that has been around for many years, and seems to be

working well. However, when making a facts-based analysis it is hard to reach any conclusion other that the

standby has significant advantages, at least in the situation where the beneficiary requires an undertaking

from its own bank.

The differences between the two instruments, some of which are considerable, may well justify the use of

two different sets of rules.

Kim

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EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

13

TradeBrief eBSI Advertisement - elearning

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14

TradeBrief eBSI eBSI Weblinks for Exporters

eBSI Weblinks for Exporters is our regular section that provides you every issue with websites recommended by our course participants as being of particular use to them in their international Trade Activities! Websites that can be considered for inclusion in this section include but are not limited to International Trade, Trade Finance and Logistics sites such

If you have a site to recommend then send it to Weblinks for Exporters at weblinks@ebsi.ie!

Business Networking Sites

References or Blogs

Import Export Directories

Country Portals

China Systems is the biggest Trade Finance Software vendor

in the world with a broad and loyal customer base. Their

Eximbills Trade Finance System is a great platform to

manage trade finance operations for any bank.

http://www.chinasystems.com

Coracle Voice is a social media, news monitoring and online consultancy service for the shipping industry. Coracle Voice is brought to you by Coracle Onlinehttp://coraclevoice.co.uk/

Coracle delivers expert professional development packages and

training solutions for the shipping industry. Their blended and

adaptable skills courses allow shipping professionals to easily

integrate education and training into their work or home lives.

That is why eBSI counts Coracle as its strategic education

partner for our clients in the Shipping industry. Check out their

new iphone apps for the shipping industry at:

http://www.coracleonline.com/apps

Exportcourse.com is a free online resource which offers basic guides to exporting and coordinates enrolments for Caribbean students of eBSI Export Academy. Their basic guides are an excellent primer for the more advanced studies offered by the International Trade Specialist Accreditation. http://www.exportcourse.com

Open Your Own Global Trading Business by becoming a Territory Partner/ in the iComTrader Global Business and Trade Network Work with the full support of our already existing global trade team and member portals and share in the profits! http://www.icomtrader.com

GlobalTrade.net is an initiative from the Federation of International Trade Associations (www.fita.org) with the objective of being a knowledge resource for international trade professionals & a cross-border database of

international trade service providers. http://www.GlobalTrade.net

The Global Small Business Blog (GSBB) was founded on July 20, 2004 by Laurel Delaney for the

purpose of helping entrepreneurs and small businesses expand their

businesses internationally. http://borderbuster.blogspot.com

iComTrader is accepting applications from qualified companies and individuals that would like to profit from our global trade ecosystem as a Territory Partner. iComTrader is growing quite rapidly, and we are now accepting applications from qualified companies and individuals that would like to join our franchise team of global trade professionals as an authorized territory partners. We provide our clients with various services such as market entry, export sales, sourcing, joint venture structuring, trade finance, documentary and logistics management, consulting, research and more. iComTrader is now active in more than 35 countries, and industries include raw materials, commodities, food and wine products, textiles and textile raw materials, chemicals, petrochemicals, minerals, metals, agricultural products, fertilizers, forestry bioenergy, consumer goods, etc.

Email sales@icomtrader.com for a copy of our Territory Partnership Agreement.

Visit our website to view the latest client export offers and product inquiries: We only do business with sellers that have been verified, and have access to our information portal. We expect suppliers to provide specifications and competitive pricing to use our sales offices.

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EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

15

TradeBrief eBSI IFC FIT Initiative

IFC 8th Annual Trade Finance Seminar held in Washington DC

Washington DC, United States IFC welcomed 200 representatives of the global trade and supply chain finance industry to its Washington, D.C. headquarters on the eve of the U.S. Export-Import Bank's annual meeting. Participants took advantage of the half-day seminar to network and to learn more about IFC's latest product initiatives, including the

Global Warehouse Finance Program and the Critical Commodities Finance Program.

The next intakes of the IFC FIT Program will be taking place from 14 May 2012 so contact us at info@ifcfitinitiative.com if you would like to join the course!

Online Collaboration Site for stakeholders

To leverage the network aspect of the 'FIT'

Initiative all stakeholders (participants, tutors

and coordinators) will have access to an online

networking and collaboration system designed to

facilitate exchange of ideas and contact building.

Online Interactive Core Learning Material

The Finance of International Trade (FIT) course

is comprised of the following Learning Units:

* Methods of Payment

* Bills of Exchange

* Documentary Collections

* Documentary Credits

* Import Documentary Credits

* Bonds & Guarantees * Forfaiting, Factoring & Invoice Discounting

* Structured Trade Finance

* Export Credit Agencies

* Complex Transactions

* Warehouse Financing

* GTFP Trade Facilitation Program

The IFC ‘FIT Initiative’ is an e-learning

program that is designed with an important

dual purpose:

1. to train and certify international trade finance professionals

2. to build an online global network of

international trade and finance professionals

who will share knowledge and experience on

an online platform specifically developed for

the program

This Three Month program is delivered in a

combination of the following learning

elements:

Online Support site for students

Students will be incorporated into the eBSI

Alumni and will be able to collaborate through

a purpose built learning platform.

Online Specialised training in UCP 600

ICC Approved Online Training in UCP 600

(Mentor or Upskill 600).

Project Partners in the IFC FIT Initiative eBSI Gratefully acknowledges the participation and contribution provided to

the success of this project by the following project participants:

FIT Initiative Graduation held in Dhaka Bangladesh on 1 August 2010

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

16

TradeBrief eBSI IFC FIT Initiative

Next Intake Dates for the IFC FIT Initiative The next program intakes will take place in the following

countries on 14 May 2012

Bangladesh, Ataur Rahman, Bangladesh@ifcfitinitiative.net

Pakistan, Umar Farooq, Pakistan@ifcfitinitiative.net

Nigeria, Bunmi Funke, Nigeria@ifcfitinitiative.net

Vietnam, Martin Nguyen, Vietnam@ifcfitinitiative.net

Cambodia, Cambodia@ifcfitinitiative.net

East Africa, Kenya@ifcfitinitiative.net

For other countries please contact info@ifcfitinitiative.net

Shezad Mumtaz and Gboyega Songonuga of IFC

Global Warehouse Finance Program In countries where a legal system does not exist for banks to lend money to farmers, agriculture producers, or traders against warehouse receipts as collateral, IFC is able to work under the Collateral

Management Agreement (CMA) or Stock Monitoring Agreement (SMA), which are two common agreements used by banks. About 75 percent of the world’s poor are rural and involved in farming and agriculture. The program is part of IFC’s efforts to increase access to finance for farmers and to promote agriculture development as a

means of alleviating poverty. The GWFP will also provide advisory services to emerging market

banks to help promote the acceptance of warehouse receipts as collateral for the short-term loans. The objectives of the program are:

Promoting access to finance for farmers Increasing market efficiency so that commodity producers will

have more options to time the sale of the products and have better cash flow management

Lowering transaction cost and developing the local financial markets which can serve the agriculture sector

Mobilizing and preserving jobs Creating an enabling environment

For further information on the GWFP, please e-mail GWFP@ifc.org

Thierry Senechal of the ICC Banking Commission

Makiko Toyoda presents the GWFP

[Type text]

International

Finance

Corporation leads

way in e-Learning

for Trade Finance

Practitioners

IFC FIT Initiative – Key Benefits

The key benefits of the FIT initiative can be outlined as follows: Builds capacity in technical international trade and finance skills.

Uses accelerated learning techniques to speed up the learning curve in what is considered to be a technical area of expertise. Learning can be accessed anywhere at any time regardless of geographic location of learner and at a pace and time suitable to learner. Learner joins network of participants with similar focus on developing international trade finance knowledge and skills. Provides international certification by the Institute of Export United Kingdom (IOE) which has a long track record in trade certification. Provides international certification by way of certificate issued by the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris (ICC). Provides an operational day-to-day support tool for trade finance professionals on web based trade finance discussion forums with responses to technical queries and issues. Reduces operational risk for banks in emerging markets as trained and certified staff is unlikely to make operational errors leading to operational losses. Operational risk and its potential to cause financial loss is a component for risk determination under Basel II. Increases the penetration of the use of traditional trade finance instruments into the corporate market as such trade instruments have been acknowledged as involving less risk than conventional lending or general banking facilities. The highly visual and interactive learning system provides learners with an enjoyable learning experience and increases their retention capability and in turns empowers participants in the workplace.

The Finance of International Trade (FIT) is comprised of the following Learning Units:

• Methods of Payment • Documentary Collections & Documentary Credits • Bonds & Guarantees and Standby LCs • Forfaiting, Factoring and Invoice Discounting

• Structured Trade Finance • Export Credit Agencies • Complex Transactions • Warehouse Financing • IFC Global Trade Finance Program • UCP 600 (Mentor or Upskill 600) • Incoterms 2010

For more information visit www.ifcfitinitiative.com or email

info@ifcfitinitiative.com or contact your local enrolment coordinator.

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

18

TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

Does UCP600 really encourage the nominated bank to provide finance to the beneficiary?

UCP600 has been in force near five years. When it has been

published, many experts or banking practitioners believe that

one of the main difference between UCP500 and UCP600 lies in

that the nominated will be protected if it provides financing to

the beneficiary under UCP 600 especially in acceptance or

deferred payment credits.

Is that really practical?

Standard in examination of documents

The basic doctrine of documentary credits is material complying on the face. As

I pointed out in DCI Volume 3 that the nominated bank may hold different

opinions towards documents from the issuing bank’s. There have been queries

to ICC Banking Commission concerning with argument between the nominated

bank and the issuing bank in relation to whether the documents are complying.

These queries can be found in TA663 REV, TA664 REV, and TA676 REV. Under

such circumstance, the nominated bank may become hesitated in financing to

the beneficiary.

Fraud issue

The fraud issue is not included in UCP. It is in fact a legal issue, which makes

everything invalid. Consequently, if the applicant has found out enough proof

that the beneficiary is fraudulent, he can ask the issuing bank to reject

payment by applying for an injunction from the local court. However, the

issuing bank will have to reimburse the nominated bank or the confirming bank

even if fraud occurred under the following circumstance:

‘(i) the nominated person, or the authorized person of the issuing bank

has made payment in good faith under the instructions of the issuing

bank;

(ii) the issuing bank or its nominated person, or authorized person has

accepted the bills of exchange under the Credit in good faith;

(iii) the confirming bank has made payment in good faith; or

(iv) the negotiating bank has negotiated the Credit in good faith. ’

Therefore, if fraud occurred,

from the aspect of the issuing

bank, it will examine the

documents in a much stricter

way to manage its risks.

Provided the issuing bank

checks out the discrepancyies

which are not found by the

nominated bank or the

confirming bank, it is still

entitled to refuse payment

against discrepant documents

instead of injunction.

Therefore, it’s not easy for the

nominated bank to be

protected by the issuing bank

under UCP600 if fraud

happened.

Expert Profile Name: Wang Ofei Position: Lecturer of International Trade Employer: Anhui Agricultural University Location: Hefei, Anhui, China. Specialisation: International Trade & Finance Contact: ofei@ebsi.ie

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

19

TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

Thus, the nominated bank may hardly be protected by the ‘fraud exception’ principle. In TA672 REV, the

confirming bank purchased the deferred payment undertaking and effected payment to the beneficiary before

maturity. But later it received the issuing bank’s SWIFT message indicating that payment of the credit had

been stopped as per court order. Though the conclusion of ICC Banking Commission states: ‘Due to the

content of sub-article 12 (b) and sub-article 7 (c), the issuing bank should seek to resist such an injunction in

order to preserve the integrity of its credit and the UCP. It must be expected that the issuing bank will seek to

have the injunction removed by referring the court to the appropriate articles of UCP 600 and the terms and

conditions of the credit. The issuing bank would also be well advised to inform its applicant(s) of the content

and effect of sub-article 12 (b) for this and any future transactions. It is the responsibility of the applicant to

cover any issues concerning quality of goods in the documents called for and the data content required to

appear on those documents, and not to seek redress that affects the right of a nominated bank to receive

reimbursement in respect of a complying presentation.’ But other statement in the conclusion that ‘The

general principle, as stated in the conclusion to ICC Opinion R 519, is that local law will prevail over the

transaction’ would discourage the nominated bank to make prepayment.

Nature of documentary Credits

It is also well-known that documentary credit is a

tool of payment as well as means of financing.

However, when the situation is becoming worse,

financial crisis, for example, each bank will have to

take safety as the primary principle. Banks are

profitable organizations after all. Whether or not

the nominated bank provides financing to the

beneficiary usually depends on agreement between

it and the beneficiary rather than protection of

UCP600. So, I have to say, the original intention of

UCP600 is good and workable, it is not that ideal in

practice anyway.

Conclusion

I would like to cite the words Mr. Vincent O’Brien

once wrote in his article: ‘Remember, the

importance of 'KYC' - know your customer!

Never forget the importance of 'LYC' - listen to

your customer!’ To a nominated bank, both

beneficiary and issuing bank are its customers.

So, the crucial point is to know its customer well

before making the decision whether or not act as nomination or provide financing.

Nomination or not

Article 12 of UCP600 stipulates the nominated bank’s

rights. Moreover, Article 7 also stipulates the issuing

bank’s undertaking to the nominated bank. It seems by

appearance that the nominated bank is very important

in documentary credits operations. However, in many

cases, banks are reluctant to act as nomination. If they

do, they might face the risks that documents are caviled

by the issuing bank. Thus they won’t get reimbursement

from the issuing bank. On the other hand, as explained

above, if there is proof to evidence the beneficiary is

fraudulent, the issuing bank may be much more stricter in examination of documents.

Would you trust him?

Friend or Fraud?

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

20

TradeBrief eBSI China Systems Update

CS Newsflash

CS Prize Draw featuring Top Spec Apple iPad awarded to lucky attendee at Doha ICC Banking Commission

FircoSoft and China Systems Partner to Provide Sanctions Screening for Trade Finance Activity New York, January 2012. FircoSoft, the leading global provider of watch list filtering solutions, announced today that it

has formed an alliance with China Systems to provide real-time filtering of trade finance transactions with a new plug-in connector to CS Eximbills and Eximbills Enterprise. Eximbills from China Systems is an established global standard installed by many international banks to meet their trade services processing requirements. It combines a Rapid Application Development toolkit with a flexible base business model, providing support for Traditional Trade, Open Account, Supply Chain Finance, and Payments operations. The new plug-in connector for Eximbills was developed by China Systems to significantly speed deployment and ease ongoing

maintenance, while protecting its financial institutions against sanctions compliance violations. "We are very pleased to announce the alliance with FircoSoft, the leading provider of watch list filtering solutions," said Pedro Ramos, Deputy Managing Director, China Systems (USA & Canada) Inc. "With the seamless integration of our financial solutions, including CS Eximbills and Eximbills Enterprise, we feel it brings yet another major advantage to our customers, in ensuring they meet compliance requirements with an end-to-end solution and with minimum impact to their existing installations and workflows."

"We are delighted to be adding China System's Eximbills to our growing roster of supported banking applications systems for which we provide direct plug-in connectors that are fast-to-implement and easy to maintain," said Laurent Corbel, Americas Managing Director of FircoSoft. "One of our goals is to help financial institutions move away from siloed filtering solutions for different transaction systems in order to drive increased efficiencies and control compliance costs. With the plug-and-play connector to

Eximbills, we further broaden our solution offering to meet increasingly stringent regulatory requirements and mitigate sanctions compliance risk."

Vincent O’Brien, in his role as China Systems Trade Finance Advisor, arranged a Prize Draw for an Apple iPad2 at the ICC Banking Commission Meeting in Doha from 25-29 March 2012. Congratulations to the lucky winner of the China Systems Prize Draw!

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

21

TradeBrief eBSI Featured Report

Doha, Qatar

The International Bank of Qatar recently concluded an advanced training

program in trade finance for both operations staff and business

development staff.

The full program comprised of three stand alone workshops which were held

on 18 February 2012, 10 March 2012 and a final advanced training

component on 31 March 2012.

The training focused on the two dimensions of operational trade finance

knowledge and also on business development skills for relationship

managers.

Trade finance is a relationship business and to achieve trade sales the

bank’s staff must not only understand the key features and benefits of trade

finance products but must learn how to understand their customers trade

and business cycles.

Mr Ramesh Nonavinkere said ‘the training was not only practical, full of

content but also very enjoyable and helped develop the relationships

between the operations staff and the business development staff”

Trade Finance Workshops

Program Outline The Trade Finance Workshops delivered for IBQ were structured with gaps between each session to ensure participants had adequate time to assimilate learnings and to formulate any queries for the next training. The schedule of Doha workshops was : * Foundation Training – 18 February 2012 * Foundation Training – 10 March 2012 * Advanced Training – 31 March 3012 Key elements of the training were: * Risk Analysis of Trade Products * Documentary Collection in Detail. * Managing Export Collections

* Fundamentals of Documentary Credits * Types of Letter of Credit * Standby Letter of Credit * Bonds and Guarantees * Implications for Bank Customers * ICC Rules for the Issuance of Bonds and Guarantees * Receivables and Supply Chain Financing

INTERNATIONAL BANK OF QATAR KEEP TRADE TEAM AT CUTTING EDGE

Mr Ramesh Nonavinkere (Centre) , Trade Finance Manager at International Bank of Qatar with Vincent O'Brien and members of his trade finance team at advanced trade finance workshop in Doha, Qatar.

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

22

TradeBrief eBSI Featured Report

Trade Finance Operations Summary Outline

The Trade Finance Operations dimension examined

the practical operational areas in order to ensure

first of all a proper understanding of the spectrum

of trade finance products a bank can offer and how

to manage them moving through to advanced

technical training to meet the needs of IBQ’s

sophisticated trade customer base. Below is a

summary of topics covered:

• General aspects of Trade Finance

including various documentation (and

legal)

• Letters of Credit

• Letters of Guarantee (URDG 758)

• Documentary Collection (URC 522)

• UCP600 (including latest trends)

& ISBP

• Incoterms 2010

• Standby Letters of Credit

Trade Finance Business Development

Summary Outline

The Trade Finance Business Development

dimension focused on the following understanding

the trade customers trade finance cycle, trade

product knowledge and how to match the product

offerings to satisfy the trade customer’s needs.

This business development dimension was driven by

cases and simulation exercises.

• Understanding the trade cycle

• Trade Products – key features

• Trade Products – key benefits

• Basic structuring techniques for trade

• The value proposition for trade

• Product summaries

• Interactive case studies

The trade finance quiz

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

23

TradeBrief eBSI Advertisement Feature

DISCOVER HOW GLOBALTRADE.NET CAN HELP YOUR OVERSEAS OPERATIONS Want to share your expertise to the international trade community and in return gain new business leads from other trade professionals? FITA Online (http://www.fita.org) makes it possible through its new website http://GlobalTrade.net .

Are You an Importer/Exporter? Find informative content and service providers for your international trade operations in GlobalTrade.net’s Knowledge Resource. Here international trade professionals can find experts’ analysis, market surveys, tips, white papers, country profiles, experts’ views, webinars, news flows, video tutorials, etc.

Are You a Service Provider? Feature your expertise by posting content to our Knowledge Resource and listing yourself in our Database of International Trade Service Providers. International trade professionals can select experts such as international marketing consultants, trade finance companies, banks, freight forwarders, quality control firms, lawyers, accountants, customs brokers, instructors, insurance providers for their international operations.

http://www.GlobalTrade.net is run by FITA Online (http://www.fita.org) , the online services division of the Federation of International Trade Associations (FITA), together with partners U.S. Commercial Service, UK Trade & Investment, ThomasNet, Alibaba and Kompass.

eBSI Export Academy has teamed up with FITA Online to provide you with special invitations to try out this new website. You will be among the first to try it out. So what are you waiting for? Sign up today! The new website is currently in its “soft launch” phase- that meaning you can only access it by an exclusive invite. Launching in only a matter of weeks, GlobalTrade.net would like to invite all eBSI TradeBrief subscribers to create a profile today, post informative content and gain new business leads for FREE. Creating a profile and posting content is free. Being listed in the Database of International Trade Service Providers is free until June 2011.

Simply log in with the ID and Key below to start getting new business today! ID: eBSI KEY: 1234 *** FITA Online offers diverse online services to the worldwide international trade community. Its services include the websites http://www.globaltrade.net and http://www.fita.org, as well as International Trade Information Platforms for Banks, online international trade information systems for government economic development agencies and customized international trade marketplaces. Explore GlobalTrade.net for FREE at http://www.globaltrade.net

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

24

TradeBrief eBSI Expert Commentary

Moscow, Russia The EBRD’s Trade Finance Programme (TFP) e-Learning 2012 Graduation Ceremony took place during the Exporta 5th

Annual Russia and Eurasia Trade and Export Finance Conference. A series of prizes was awarded to the best students in the e-Learning Programme, a flexible online study programme for people from the trade finance and corporate banking departments of issuing banks provided by the TFP.

Here is our report of events on the day.

EBRD E-Learning Graduations 2012

It was the afternoon of 7 February 2012 and the Petrovsky Salon in Moscow’s Marriott Royal Aurora was packed. The last session of Exporta’s 5th Annual Russia and Eurasia Trade and Export Finance conference was taking place: the second annual graduation ceremony of the EBRD Trade Finance e-Learning Programme.

The graduates of 2011 braved frosty Russian weather and travelled to Moscow to receive their ICC Certificates of Achievement. All of them had 12 months to complete seven modules – the most extensive suite of trade finance training available to any trade finance professional worldwide.

It was hard to tell who was more nervous – the graduates, the TFP team or Thierry Sénéchal, Senior Policy Manager at the ICC Banking Commission who came to Moscow especially for this event. For many graduates it was a rare opportunity to receive their certificates directly from the main authority in trade finance.

As in the previous year, the TFP’s partner banks awarded the best students with special prizes. Commerzbank invited Innesa Amirbekyan of Ameriabank to complete a two-week internship at its headquarters in Frankfurt. Michael Gutsa of Credit Bank of Moscow won a bespoke one-

week training course in London, sponsored by Euromoney Training.

Mariia Ivaschenko of Raiffeisen Bank Aval and Nadica Bosilkova Boskova of Kommercijalna Banka AD Skopje both won iPads, presented by China Systems and eBSI. Suren Kocharyan of Ameriabank received a subscription to DC Pro,

courtesy of Coastline Solutions, as did Olga Belovolova of NBD Bank, the only top graduate from a regional Russian bank.

Thierry Senechal of ICC Paris at the Graduation

Thierry Senechal and Vincent O’Brien represented ICC Paris at the Graduation in Moscow, Russia

Vincent O’Brien congratulates a Graduate!

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

25

TradeBrief eBSI eBSI Recent Events

Demand for eBSI experts to deliver seminars and attend conferences around the world has grown

dramatically despite financial crisis. Here is a brief overview of some of our more notable appearances since last issue!

Dubai, United Arab Emirates The IFC organised a planning and feedback session with its consultants on 20 January 2012 in Dubai, UAE at which eBSI was well represented with Thomas Smith and Carlos Bacigalupe attending. eBSI also updated the delegates on the

progress of the Finance of International Trade e-learning program supported by IFC which has now surpassed 600 graduates in the 6 countries where the program is run.

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia EBRD Initiated a new series of Seminars in 15 countries of operation in the area of the new ICC Rules which recently came into force, namely the Uniform Rules for Demand Guarantees 758 and Incoterms 2010. The first of these training events was held in Mongolia on 2 and 3 February 2012 in Ulaanbaatar.

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia While in Mongolia Vincent O’Brien was invited to deliver a corporate training workshop for Khanbank on 4 February 2012 with over 100 participants.

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

26

TradeBrief eBSI eBSI Recent Events

Ekaterinburg, Russia

The next Seminar in the EBRD Tour of URDG 758 and Incoterms 2010 tour of

training sessions was held in Ekaterinburg, Russia on 9 and 10 February 2012.

Doha, Qatar

Vincent O’Brien delivered the first of 3 planned Trade Finance Training Sessions for the staff of International Bank of Qatar on 18 February 2012

Vincent O’Brienduring the delivery of his Incoterms 2010 seminar in Paris.

Tbilisi, Georgia

The next Seminar in the EBRD Tour of URDG 758 and Incoterms 2010 tour of training sessions was held in Tbilisi, Georgia on 23-24 February 2012.

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

27

TradeBrief eBSI eBSI Recent Events

New Delhi, India ICC India in association with ING Vysya Bank organised a series of seminars around India

starting with New Delhi on 27 February 2012. The subject of these seminars was ICC Rules for Trade – ICC Tools for Trade. The Seminars were delivered by Vincent O’Brien.

Chee Seng Soh & Vincent O’Brien with CMBC Staff Members at the Trade Finance workshop.

Chennai, India The second city chosen for the ICC India ‘ICC Rules for Trade – ICC Tools for Trade was Chennai in Southern India.

Hanoi, Vietnam eBSI Trade Finance Tutor Pavel Andrle delivered a series of Trade Finance Seminars in Vietnam. Pictured below is the participants form Hanoi.

Vincent O’Brien with participants in Dubai Chamber of Commerce.

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

28

TradeBrief eBSI eBSI Recent Events

Danang, Vietnam The next location scheduled for Pavel Andrle in his tour of Vietnam was in Danang in

central Vietnam, our first time in this beautiful city for Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam The final Seminar in Vietnam for VCCI was in Ho Chi Minh City in Southern Vietnam, which is a regular seminar venue for eBSI Tutors.

Kiev, Ukraine The next location scheduled for the EBRD tour of seminars on the topic of URDG 758 and

Incoterms 2010 was to be in Kiev Ukraine. The seminars were held on 8 & 9 March.

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

29

TradeBrief eBSI eBSI Recent Events

Yerevan, Armenia

The EBRD Regional Training in URDG 758 and Incoterms 2010 continued to Yerevan in Armenia where a seminar was held on 14-15 March 2012.

Doha, Qatar

Vincent O’Brien continued his series of seminars in International Bank of Qatar

with a seminar in Doha on 10 March covering Trade Finance Operations.

Doha, Qatar

The Final Seminar for International Bank of Qatar was held on 31 March in Doha and focused on Advanced Trade Finance Techniques for their Trade Operations Staff. Overall the feedback from the tree seminars was excellent!

EBSI EXPORT ACADEMY www.ebsi.ie

30

TradeBrief eBSI Upcoming Events

Certificate in Logistics Learn all you need to know about Transport and Logistics!

Online Tutorials Certified by the Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport Includes Section on Logistics Customer Service Recognised Internationally Interactive self-paced learning 3 Written Assignments and 1 Online Exam

Contact us for more details: The electronic Business School International Tel: +353 94 9381444 Fax: +353 94 9381708 Web: http://www.ebsi.ie Email: info@ebsi.ie

Global Trade Review The world’s leading international trade finance and export finance magazine.

emeafinance The complete

information source for the finance industry in

the EMEA region.

9th Annual Europe Trade & Supply Chain Finance Conference

June 18-19, 2012 Amsterdam, Netherlands

4th Annual East Africa

Trade & Commodity Finance Conference

May 22, 2012 Nairobi, Kenya

8th Annual Innovations in Trade & Export

Finance Conference June 12, 2012

New York, USA

2nd Annual Levant Trade & Export

Finance Conference June 6, 2012

Beiruit, Lebanon

Congratulations!

We would like to

Congratulate Ms.

Jennifer Cruz, from Manila

in the Philippines

who was nominated

to get the ‘China

Systems

Irrevocable

Transferable

Scholarship’

compliments of

China Systems

Corporation.

Ms Cruz can now nominate any friend or colleague

to avail of the EUR 2000 scholarship for the ITS

Accreditation Program courtesy of China Systems!

To subscribe to this ezine simply go to www.ebsi.ie

and complete the blue form there and we will add

you to our subscriber list and add an entry to the

draw for a free scholarship for our International

Trade Specialist Accreditation worth EUR 2000!

eBSI Upcoming Events:

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan – EBRD Guarantees subject to URDG

758 and Incoterms 2010 Thursday 25 and Friday 25 May 2012

Amman, Jordan – EBRD Trade Facilitation Conference Tuesday 29 May 2012

Dubai, UAE – Letters of Credit Practical V Legal

Wednesday 30 May 2012

Tirana, Albania – EBRD Guarantees subject to URDG 758 and Incoterms 2010 Monday 2 July and Tuesday 3 July 2012

Frankfurt, Germany – ICC Germany Corporate Trade Finance Workshop Thursday 5 July 2012

Chisinau, Moldova – EBRD Guarantees subject to URDG

758 and Incoterms 2010 Monday 9 and Tuesday 10 July 2012

Belgrade, Serbia – EBRD Guarantees subject to URDG 758 and Incoterms 2010 Thursday 12 and Friday 13 July 2012

Skopje, Macedonia – EBRD Guarantees subject to URDG

758 and Incoterms 2010 Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 July 2012