TRADE FINANCE INSTRUMENTS - 1 -
Document Revision History Revision Date By Author Remarks 1 12/1/2017 Graham Bright Initial version created 2 3 1. 2. Contents About Us... 3 About Trade Finance... 4 What are the risks in Trade Finance?... 4 1. Documentary Letter of Credit (LC)... 5 Differences between Sight and Usance LC s?... 5 How do I get an LC issued by Euro Exim Bank?... 6 2. Standby Letter of Credit (SBLC)... 7 How do I get a SBLC issued by Euro Exim Bank?... 7 3. Bank Guarantees (BG)... 8 4. Proof of Funds (POF)... 9 5. SWIFT... 10-2 -
3. About Us Euro Exim Bank Ltd consists of Euro Exim Bank Ltd, headquartered in the Government created Enterprise Zone in The Gambia, and Euro Exim Bank Ltd (Representative Office) based in the UK. Euro Exim Bank Ltd is a Gambian banking institution which does not provide any services to any natural person or legal entity in The Gambia who is not a resident of the Enterprise Zone as well as FINMA regulated services in or from The Gambia. Its capabilities include banking activity regarding accounts, payment transactions, debit cards, deposits, investment banking and trade finance instruments, proof of funds and warranties. Euro Exim Bank Ltd (Representative Office) is an English incorporated non-banking financial institution which does not provide FCA regulated services in or from the UK, nor FINMA regulated services in or from The Gambia. Euro Exim Bank Ltd and Euro Exim Bank Ltd (Representative Office) provide services exclusively to corporates engaged in international cross border trade flows. If you are a UK national or resident, operating on an individual basis, we are not able to provide services. Euro Exim Bank Ltd (Representative Office) with its UK registered office at Suite 1c, 1 Oaks Court, 1 Warwick Road, Borehamwood WD6 1GS, offers international trade finance instruments specialising in documentary letters of credit (LC s), and Standby Letters of Credit (SBLC s). We pride ourselves on speed, integrity, reliability, innovation, operational excellence and above all, cost effective delivery, facilitating global trade through years of expertise in dealing with trade documents and communicating via the SWIFT network to counterparties the world over. Since our foundation in 2011, Euro Exim Bank Ltd (Representative Office) has built an enviable reputation for its personal attention to detail and client care, and to building our organisation to become a boutique institution, serving the needs of international corporate trade finance business the world over. With our simple targeted business model, transparency of pricing, rapid operating methodology and continued growth of relationships, we are expanding operations towards applications for e-money licenses, a new HQ highly compliant location, credit card issuance and trade platform management. Nb. EEB do not provide credit insurance, a confirmation service or monetising/collateralising of any instruments. Loans/deposits and account opening is ONLY available through The Gambia. - 3 -
4. About Trade Finance Trade finance helps settle the conflicting needs of the exporter and the importer. An exporter needs to mitigate the payment risk from the importer and it would be in their benefit to accelerate the receivables. The importer wants to mitigate the supply risk from the exporter and it is in their benefit from a cash-flow perspective to receive extended credit on their payment. The function of trade finance is to act as a third-party to remove the payment risk and the supply risk, whilst providing the exporter with accelerated receivables and the importer with extended credit. A common solution to this problem in the area of trade finance is through the issuing of a letter of credit, which is opened in the exporter's name by the importer through a bank in his home country. The letter of credit essentially guarantees payment to the exporter by the bank issuing the letter of credit upon receipt of documentary proof that the goods have been shipped. Although this is a somewhat complex process, the letter of credit system is one of the most popular trade finance mechanisms. 5. What are the risks in Trade Finance? As international trade takes place across borders, with companies that are unlikely to be familiar with one another, there are various risks with which to deal. These are not restricted to, but include: Payment risk: Will the exporter be paid in full and on time? Will the importer get the goods they wanted? Country risk: A collection of risks associated with doing business with a foreign country, such as exchange rate risk, political risk and sovereign risk. For example, a company may not like exporting goods to certain countries because of political instability, history of dealing in dual use goods or prohibited goods, a deteriorating economy, the lack of legal structures, etc. Corporate risk: The risks associated with the company (exporter/importer): what is their credit rating? Do they have a history of non-payment? To reduce these risks, banks and other financiers have stepped in to provide trade finance products. - 4 -
6. Documentary Letter of Credit (LC) A letter of credit provides a seller with a guarantee that they will get paid as long as certain documentary delivery conditions have been met. The use of letters of credit has become a very important aspect of international trade. Letters of credit can contain complex terms and conditions and state what documents the Beneficiary must present, what information they must contain, and the place and date it expires. In the event that the buyer (Applicant) is unable to make payment on the purchase, the Beneficiary may demand the bank to make payment. The bank examines the Beneficiary's demand and if it fully complies with the terms of the letter of credit, the obligation rests with the bank to honour the demand. They are often used in international transactions to ensure that payment will be received where the buyer and seller may not know each other and are operating in different countries. In this case the seller is exposed to a number of risks such as credit risk, and legal risk caused by the distance, differing laws and difficulty in knowing each party personally. The process is shown below: Differences between Sight and Usance LC s? With a Sight L/C, the issuing bank will pay the beneficiary of letter of credit right away (no credit tenor / sight basis) after the issuing bank find that the documents presented to them are compliant with the Letter of Credit s terms and conditions A Usance (deferred) Letter of Credit (L/C) is a letter of credit that is payable on specific term / tenor upon presentation of necessary documents within the terms and conditions of the letter of credit. The issuing bank will incur a deferred payment undertaking or payment acceptance that they will pay on specific tenor or credit term (Usance tenor) once the documents presented are deemed compliant. 7. - 5 -
How do I get an LC issued by Euro Exim Bank? LC s may be issued by The Gambia or the UK with the following procedure: 1. Applicant sends us the pro-forma/sales invoice 2. EEB create a draft instrument and quote you our charges (to be paid in advance) 3. Once you have accepted the draft, we send you indemnity (KYC/AML/due diligence) documents which need to be signed and notarized by a lawyer. 4. We also send you a formal invoice for our charges. 5. Once we receive our paid invoice along with all indemnity documents, subject to legal and compliance acceptance, we will SWIFT the instrument to the beneficiary's bank. Escrow account facilities with a UK third party are also available to assist in settlement of invoices, and we request for a commitment fee along with Escrow administration charges. 6. The beneficiary sends the goods to you and the documents to us. 7. Once documents have arrived, we have 3 business days to act on it, after which, if formally accepted, we send you a copy of the documents. 8. Upon acceptance of the documents, you will be required to pay the beneficiary. When completed, we send you all the original documents. 9. Goods arrive. The negotiable fee is typically 5-10% of the face value. - 6 -
8. Standby Letter of Credit (SBLC) A standby letter of credit (SBLC) is a guarantee of payment issued by a bank on behalf of a client that is used as "payment of last resort" should the client fail to fulfil a contractual commitment with a third party. Standby letters of credit are created as a sign of good faith in business transactions and are proof of a buyers credit quality and repayment abilities. The institution issuing the SBLC performs compliance and brief underwriting duties to ensure the credit quality of the party seeking the letter of credit, then sends notification to the bank of the party requesting the letter of credit (typically a seller or creditor). Importantly, when requesting a SBLC, a business owner proves to the bank he is capable of repaying the loan. Collateral such as promissory notes, post-dated cheques and Escrow deposits will be required to protect the bank in case of default. The business owner must pay a SBLC fee for each year that the letter is valid. The negotiable fee is typically 5-10% of the SBLC value. How do I get a SBLC issued by Euro Exim Bank? SBLC s may be issued by The Gambia or the UK as follows: 1. Applicant sends us underlying contract (Ex: Sales Contract / pro-forma invoice) 2. EEB create a draft instrument and quote our charges (to be paid in advance). 3. Once you have accepted the draft, we send indemnity (KYC/AML/due diligence) documents which need to be signed and notarized by a lawyer. 4. We will send you a formal invoice for our charges. 5. Once we receive our charges and all DD checks are completed and approved, along with all indemnity documents, we will SWIFT the instrument to the beneficiary's bank immediately. 6. Beneficiary is paid at least 14 days before the expiry date (Up to 2 years from SBLC issue date) - 7 -
9. Bank Guarantees (BG) - exclusively issued by Euro Exim Bank Ltd in The Gambia. A Bank Guarantee is an undertaking/promise given by a Bank on behalf of the Applicant and in favour of the Beneficiary. The Bank agrees and undertakes that, if the Applicant fails to fulfil his financial or performance obligations as per the exacting terms and conditions of the Agreement, then the Guarantor Bank, on behalf of the Applicant will make payment of the guarantee amount to the Beneficiary upon receipt of a demand or claim from the Beneficiary. Whilst these guarantees can come in various forms Euro Exim Bank Ltd Gambia specialize in performance and financial guarantees only, which are exclusively not cash backed. The process is as follows: 1. EEB receive underlying relationship contracts (Ex: Sales Contract / pro-forma invoice) 2. We create the first draft BG and quote charges within 3 working days. 3. Once you have accepted the draft, we send indemnity documents which must be signed and notarized by an appropriate legal representative. 4. We send an invoice for our charges. 5. Once invoices are paid and all indemnity documents received, subject to legal and compliance acceptance, we will SWIFT the instrument to the beneficiary's bank. 6. Applicant pays the beneficiary at least 14 days before the expiry date - 8 -
10. Proof of Funds (POF) A proof of funds (POF) is a document or bank statement proving that a person has the financial ability to perform a transaction. Euro Exim Bank Ltd in both The Gambia and London are able to approve the service of a Proof of Funds message, based on availability and legality of the funds to be used as a transaction. Example text is as follows It should be noted that every POF document has an expiry date, at which point the document becomes void to the seller. Charges for POF/RWA messages start at USD5000. For more information on issuance of POF s and all instruments, please contact our sales team at sales@euroeximbank.com or contact +44 208 207 2868 for assistance. - 9 -
11. SWIFT SWIFT is the abbreviation for Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, an international cooperative of financial institutions founded in 1973, which operates a telecommunications network (the SWIFT network) for the exchanging of information between the members. SWIFT s messaging services are trusted and used by more than 11,000 financial institutions in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. Providing reliable, secure and efficient messaging services to our community of users, SWIFT is the backbone of global financial communication. SWIFT represents the primary communications channel for financial institutions engaged in correspondent banking all around the world, and offers the most secure, cost-effective and reliable way of transmitting financial messages relating to payments, securities, treasury and trade. Since its inception, SWIFT has played a leading role, together with its community, in the standardisation that underpins global financial messaging and its automation. The use of standardised messages and reference data ensures that data exchanged between institutions is unambiguous and machine friendly, facilitating automation, reducing costs and mitigating risks. Through SWIFT, banks, custodians, investment institutions, central banks, market infrastructures and corporate clients, can connect with one another exchanging structured electronic messages to perform common business processes, such as making payments or settling trades. SWIFT is committed to the confidentiality, integrity and availability of its messaging services. SWIFT have controls and procedures in place to: protect message data from un-authorised disclosure; to help ensure the accuracy, completeness and validity of messages and their delivery; and to ensure service availability requirements are met. Euro Exim Bank operate with SWIFT code EUEIGB22, holding relationships for transmission of authenticated secure structured messages with over 330 active counterparties in 90+ countries. - 10 -