FCIB Summit Offers Important Glimpse into Global Credit Issues

Examining country risk from a banker's perspective and optimizing working capita] were two of the main topics discussed at FCIB's annual International Credit and Risk Management Summit, April 19-21 in Madrid, Spain. Credit professionals from around the globe traveled to the chic Hesperia Hotel, located near Madrid's city center, to share knowledge and experiences.

Conference guests arrived on Sunday evening to meet and network with their colleagues at a welcome reception. Over the following two days, the group listened to expert speakers, engaged in discussions with FCIB member panelists, and had the opportunity to ask questions and discuss issues relative to their industries. Topics covered included: country risk assessment from a banker's perspective, supply chain management, e-commerce driven strategies to support working capital management and trade financing in emerging markets. The summit also provided an invaluable opportunity for FCIB members and non-members to expand their network with people who conduct business and manage credit all over the world.

FCIB would like to thank our generous sponsors: Atradius for the networking dinner, S&P Capital IQ for the networking luncheon and Bureau Van Dijk for the networking coffee break. We would also like to thank all of the exhibitors and participants who attended and supported this year's Summit! We hope that you will join us at a future FCIB event. Please visit FCIB's website (www.fcibglobal.com) to see more of this years photographs and for information about future events. 1

"We are still on the road to recovery and next year seems slightly better than this year."

Freddy Van den Spiegel (Keynote Presentation: Itte Global Fxommdc Landscape), Professor, Free University Brussels. Vlerick Business School and VVwsmv University, Former Chief Economist BNP Paribas Forth, Brussels, Belgium, Advisor European Organizations (F.FAMA, F.BF)

"The Grexit is on the table. Nobody is surprised by that and everyone is aware that it could happen. But it is a non-event in my opinion in the financial market."

Freddy Van den Spiegel, Keynote Speaker

"The range of risk we have in banks is usually higher than in corporate risk. It's likely that in a certain country we have a local presence for many years. This makes our perception very different from corporations because we cannot pick up and leave in 24 hours."

Alejandro Casas, sovereign risk director. BRVA. Madrid, Spain

"Electronic documents are here to stay. They have now become a reality. The more corporations who see that, the more will want to give them a try. They are seen as a great value in speeding up trade. We see a huge interest in this and with the corporations come the banks."

Ashley Skaanild, head of trade finance. essDocs. London. United Kingdom

"We meet regularly with the sales director and account managers. By creating awareness, they realize that they need us as much as we need them. The CEO decided that the credit department has the last word-if it's no, it's no."

Ingrid Ros, senior credit manager, EMEA. Lyondell Chemie Nederland B. V, Rotterdam, Netherlands

"We spend time in each department talking about policies and procedures, and compliance and ethics. We live and breathe it."

Karen McLaughlin. ICCE, group credit manager, bmospec Limited and bmospec Inc. United Kingdom

"You would be very surprised at what a company knows about you when you purchase something in a store. They can extract so much information that benefits them."

Jaap Jan Nienhuis, senior consultai, Innopay BV Amsterdam. Netherlands

"In the Middle East, it's a sales-focused market. There's a real imbalance between the credit and commercial departments. If the guy from the top just doesn't get it, it's not going to happen. You can't lose the business, but can you afford to lose the money?"

Andy Yiacoutni, MICM. managing partner, Credit Management Institute Middle Hast FZ, I.LC. Dubai, United Arab Emirates

"The need for infrastructure in Africa is huge-many countries don't have the money. Your client is facing a lot of challenges that he wouldn't have in Europe, like currency exchange and transportation costs."

Jef Vincent, chief underwriting officer. The African Trade Insurance Agency. Nairobi, Kenya

"If you are giving payment terms for 120 days or are just saying 'pay when you can,'... sure, it's easy to sell that, but it's not easy to collect."

Martine Zimmermann, ICCE. ÊEMEA Operations Direct Markets. Credit Management. Pharma Finance. K Hoffinann-Ln Roche AG, Switzerland

Jennifer Lehman, NACM marketing and communications associate, can he reached at jenniferl@nacm. org.