Trade Facilitation Programme holds annual information session
- EBRD recognises special achievements in trade finance by partner banks
- Experts discuss rising costs of compliance with new regulations
- To date, TFP exceeds €1.5 billion in 26 countries.
The EBRD Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) has honoured its most successful partner banks in 2017 in an award ceremony at the Bank’s Annual Meeting and Business Forum in Jordan today.
Prizes were awarded to:
| Award for 2017 | Winner |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in ARMENIA | ACBA-CREDIT AGRICOLE |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in BELARUS | Priorbank JSC Member of RBI Group |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in BULGARIA | Eurobank Bulgaria AD |
| Most Active Partner Bank in CROATIA | ERSTE & STEIERMÄRKISCHE BANK D.D. CROATIA |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in CYPRUS | Bank of Cyprus Public Company LimitED |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in EGYPT | QNB ALAHLI |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in FYR MACEDONIA | Komercijalna Banka AD Skopje |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in GEORGIA | TBC Bank |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in GREECE | Alpha Bank A.E. |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in JORDAN | Bank al Etihad |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in KOSOVO | NLB Banka Prishtina |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in KYRGYZ REPUBLIC | Optima Bank OJSC |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in MOLDOVA | MOBIASBANCĂ – GROUPE SOCIETE GENERALE |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in MONGOLIA | Khan Bank |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in MONTENEGRO | Hipotekarna Banka AD Podgorica |
| Most Active Partner Bank in MOROCCO | BMCE Bank of Africa |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in ROMANIA | Alpha Bank Romania S.A. |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in SERBIA | Eurobank a.d. Beograd |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in TAJIKISTAN | Bank Eskhata OJSC |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in TUNISIA | Amen Bank S.A. |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in TURKEY | Alternatifbank A.Ş. |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in TURKMENISTAN | JSCB “Rysgal” |
| Most Active Issuing Bank in UKRAINE | Raiffeisen Bank Aval JSC |
| Most Active TFP Confirming Bank | Commerzbank AG |
| Academic Excellence Award in cooperation with ICC | National Bank of Egypt |
| Deal of the Year | Facilitating the import of a merry-go-round from Bulgaria to FYR Macedonia – Komercijalna Banka AD Skopje |
| Deal of the Year – Energy Efficiency
|
Import of energy efficient leather production equipment from Spain to Egypt – QNB ALAHLI |
| Deal of the Year – Social Impact | Modernising the provision of medical care in the Kyrgyz Republic in 2017 – Demir Kyrgyz International Bank CJSC |
The ceremony was attended by the Governor of the Central Bank of Jordan, Ziad Fareez and hosted by Nick Tesseyman, EBRD Managing Director, Financial Institutions, and supported by David Yung-Lo Lin, Taipei Representative Office in the UK.
Mr Tesseyman said: “Trade finance is an essential part of fostering economic development and growth. It is our partner banks who make progress happen by providing the financial means that allow companies to explore and conquer new markets. The EBRD is proud to be associated with this and our awards today are an expression of our recognition and appreciation.”
The awards ceremony marked the end of the information session of the EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme. The event attracted over 250 representatives from issuing and confirming banks under TFP as well as decision-makers in trade finance to discuss industry challenges with leading specialists including regulators.
The information session was opened with welcome speeches from the event sponsors, Jordan Ahli Bank, Housing Bank for Trade and Finance and Cairo Amman Bank.
The focus of discussions was on new challenges such as the rising cost of complying with anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) regulations. Experts discussed the impact of de-risking in trade finance, streamlining and reducing KYC costs and the potential and future trends in AML and KYC. The EBRD TFP team presented its action plan to address current industry challenges and support partner banks with mastering these new tests.
Speakers included Jens Fürhoff, Head of the Anti-Money-Laundering Department, Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, Germany; Maher Sheik Hasan, Deputy Governor and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, Central Bank of Jordan; Olivier Paul, Head of Policy, ICC Banking Commission; and Nour Jarrar, CEO, Citibank Jordan.
Presentations by Marc Auboin from the World Trade Organization; Vincent O’Brien from the International Chamber of Commerce; and Rudolf Putz, EBRD Associate Director and Head of the Trade Facilitation Programme, provided an update on trade and trade finance statistics as well as the latest trends and challenges in the industry with an outlook for the rest of year.
The event concluded with a dinner reception hosted by Bank al Etihad where international attendees had the opportunity to enjoy traditional Jordanian hospitality while making new business contacts in the region.
Launched in 1999, the EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme aims to promote foreign trade to, from and among the countries in which the EBRD invests. Through the programme, the EBRD provides guarantees to international confirming banks and short-term loans to selected banks and factoring companies for on-lending to local exporters, importers and distributors. The TFP currently includes 94 partner banks in 26 countries, with limits exceeding €1.5 billion in total and more than 800 confirming banks worldwide.
Source: EBRD