Quinlan & Associates and eCOM Registry Host Webinar on Optimizing Trade Finance and Cargo Service Financing

Hong Kong, May 30, 2024

Quinlan & Associates, in collaboration with eCOM Registry, hosted a compelling webinar on optimizing trade finance and cargo service financing. The session offered lenders fresh insights into leveraging alternative data to enhance economic value in trade finance, particularly addressing untapped opportunities in the cargo service sector.

Speakers included:

• Benjamin Quinlan, CEO & Managing Partner, Quinlan & Associates

• Horace Mak, CEO, eCOM Registry

• Philip Ho, CEO, OnePort Limited

• Gianluca Pizzituti, CEO & Co-founder, Velotrade

• Anthony Lin, Head of Asia and Global Head of Market Management, Transaction Banking, Standard Chartered
  

Webinar Highlights:

• Global Trade Rebound: Post-COVID, global trade activity has surged, especially in the APAC region, with Hong Kong ranking among the top 10 global markets by total trade value.

• Cargo Service Ecosystem Challenges: Players in the cargo service sector face issues with payment cycles, currency fluctuations, and cash flow management.

• Payment Cycle Mismatch: This mismatch creates demand for credit to bridge working capital gaps.

• Exchange Rate Fluctuations: These fluctuations impact the working capital needs of importers and exporters.

• Untapped Market Potential: An estimated half a billion USD remains untapped in Hong Kong's cargo service finance market.

• Leveraging Alternative Data for SME Financing: Lenders can utilize alternative data for risk modelling and optimizing credit scoring to better serve SMEs. This addresses the challenges many face in securing loans due to traditional lenders' stringent requirements and targets the middle segment often overlooked by banks.
  

Insights from Horace Mak: 

Mak highlighted three critical roles in addressing financing challenges: data service for trust data, business insight analysis, customer prequalification, and direct lending options like eFreight Pay Later.

• Data Utilization: OnePort's container-based data tracks the movement and contents of containers, while data analytics validate and authenticate this information for financial institutions.

• Real-time Data Analysis: This enables financial institutions to react to risks quickly.

• Continuous Monitoring: Ongoing data monitoring helps assess risk for loan approvals, enhancing KYC/KYB processes.
  

The webinar underscored the pivotal role of alternative data in transforming trade and cargo service financing. The collaboration between Quinlan & Associates and eCOM Registry highlights the innovative approaches needed to capture new market opportunities and drive growth in the trade finance sector.

To watch the full webinar, please visit [HERE]