Your Monday morning coffee briefing from TFG: UK Freeports: catalysts for regional economic development and recovery

If you read the international shipping media during the final quarter of 2022, you would be forgiven for thinking that it’s “Game Over” for international trade.

The shift to a more digital form of globalisation changes who is participating, how business is done across borders, and where the economic benefits are flowing. This creates a new paradigm where not only large corporates, but also retailers, SMEs, and individuals can use international payments, integrated commerce, or trade interfaces regularly.

Citi has launched its latest Global Perspectives & Solutions (Citi GPS) report, “Supply Chain Finance: Uncertainty in Global Supply Chains Is Going to Stay” Its findings indicate that in an… read more →

Large national infrastructure projects have rarely been delivered at the pace of the UK Freeport programme; in March 2020, the government launched its consultation document, and in March 2021 it was announced that, subject to completing the necessary authorisation processes, the above eight locations would become Freeports.

In TFG’s conversations with industry experts, we have learned quite a lot about trade volumes and commodities, trade technology, and trade credit insurance. While there is plenty of uncertainty regarding the global outlook in 2023, it is clear that there are many areas of optimism for international trade.

There is little doubt that 2022 has been an unprecedented year and for better or for worse, there has been a lot that has happened in the trade, treasury, payments and supply chain spaces.

Alex Gray, head of trade finance at The London Institute of Banking & Finance, explains why the staff at trade banks will have an important role to play in gathering and utilising ESG data from supply chains 

To improve food security in Bangladesh at a time of rising commodity prices amidst a global shortfall of staple crops, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) is providing a $32.5 million… read more →

In light of the current landscape, Trade Finance Global (TFG) were delighted to have the opportunity to speak with Liliana Fratini Passi, Managing Director, CBI, about how innovating and collaborating may be the way forward.