News - Press Releases

5 December 2000

Former U.S. Ambassador to France and Bankers Trust International Chairman to Head Global Trade Finance Network's™ New Internet Trade Platform for $2-Trillion Export Finance Market

Global Trade Finance Network™ Harnesses Top Talent and Proprietary Technology to Open Global Trade Finance Opportunities

New York, NY --Evan G Galbraith, former US ambassador to France and former chairman of Bankers Trust International, is to chair the board of Global Trade Finance Network (GTFNet), the Internet trade platform aimed at opening up the financing of exports to emerging markets. Rodney Galpin, formerly chairman of Standard Chartered Bank and former executive director of the Bank of England, has also joined the board, along with former CEO of First Interstate, Harold J Meyerman.

GTFNet is a collaborative initiative, founded by Tara Kimbrell Cole, which harnesses the Internet to make it easier for banks to finance and distribute trade debt receivables. Export finance for emerging markets is a market estimated this year at $2 trillion, but geographical factors and communication problems create cumbersome paperwork and delays, meaning that capital is often used inefficiently. Using proprietary technology for securing and settling trades electronically, GTFNet aims to help banks both large and small to grow their markets, service their customers, generate and distribute assets, and reduce risk.

"There is broad sentiment that the traditional process for acquiring and distributing trade debt receivables developed many decades ago is in need of reform," said Evan G. Galbraith, Chairman of the Board of GTFNet. Mr. Galbraith, while at Morgan Guaranty, was a driving force behind the launch of EuroClear, the standard clearing system for bond trading in Europe.

By providing consolidated, reliable information, based on in-depth industry knowledge and market awareness, and a secure, neutral Internet enabled trade-finance platform, GTFNet will increase the liquidity of emerging market receivables. The proprietary interests of its subscribers’ information will be fully protected.

Rodney Galpin, chairman of GTFNet’s Strategic Advisory Board and former executive director of the Bank of England, said, "In balance sheet terms, the attractions of this initiative for both countries and financial institutions are clear."

GTFNet differs from other initiatives not only in its leadership and team but also in the comprehensiveness of its offering. GTFNet’s proprietary technology allows documentation and procedures to be standardized. It also offers participants a wide variety of choices tailored to an institutional investor’s needs and practice. Value-added, services making it accessible to those who are not frequent participants.

Harold J. Meyerman, who has joined the Board of GTFNet, said: "GTFNet has the vision, technology and leadership to transform the way trade debt receivables are financed, acquired and distributed."

" There are a variety of private initiatives seeking to develop Internet platforms to redress the current trade finance climate. While each has its merits, none of them seem a complete solution," said Tara Kimbrell Cole, the founder of GTFNet and an international finance expert. "Over time the various initiatives on this front will need to come together to provide a truly global organization with a comprehensive approach. Only a truly integrated international approach can break down the old barriers and create a viable, trade finance platform that will be open to all markets—both developed and emerging." GTFNet has been developed from Singapore with support in the U.K. and USA. GTFNet enters the market with trade debt generated by its charter participants and will operate initially out of key Asian centers and the United Kingdom, followed thereafter by other major markets such as Latin America.

For more information about GTFNet, visit www.TradeFinanceNetwork.com.