Emerging markets haven’t lost their luster, and either has the role trade finance plays there.
Those are just some of the key takeaways from “The New Emerging Markets” panel that was organized by British American Business and moderated by John Stillwaggon, CEO of the Tradewind USA division. The event took place on September 20 at DLA Piper in Midtown Manhattan where panelists delivered poignant perspectives on the BRICS and other developing economies.
The panelists leading the roundtable discussion hailed from the banking, information services, and legal sectors and included, respectively, Jonathan Richman, Managing Director, Head of U.S. Trade Finance and Working Capital, of Banco Santander; Michelle Karavias, Deputy Head of Industry Research, of Fitch Solutions; and Terence Trennepohl, Head of Environmental Law Practice, Brazil, of Campos Mello Advogado.
The discussion primarily focused on selling into emerging markets and targeted what risks businesses may face in doing so, how to manage these risks, and how to choose appropriate supply partners. It also pinpointed new sectors investors should keep an eye on.
While the panelists deliberated on the benefits and drawbacks of operating in emerging markets, such as the boon of tax incentives for doing business in Brazil and, negatively, the threat of rising populism, it was unanimous that these markets, overall, are valuable for companies and investors alike, fertile with opportunity to tap into.
As new territories, once barren with industry, develop into hubs for commerce and consumer activity, the discussion illuminated how trade finance is proving its worth for SMEs sprouting in these regions.
Though each country’s economy can change at the whim of factors like politics, the event injected confidence back into existing and new emerging markets, as well as into international trade.
