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Sunday, October 26, 2014, 00:01
Growing global
Fimbank president Margrith Lutschg-Emmenegger discusses the bank’s recent international expansion into new markets.
Fimbank recently inaugurated its branch in Greece. What services will the Athens branch be offering?
Fimbank’s Athens branch will be providing a comprehensive range of trade finance, forfeiting, factoring and banking solutions, targeting corporate clients and focusing on international as well as domestic trade. The bank has engaged a team of professionals, all of whom have first-hand experience of the Greek corporate banking and commercial finance sector. We now have six full-time employees at this branch and expect the figure to double by the end of next year.
I’m very confident that the comprehensive technical know-how and business acumen of the team will translate into a positive experience for Fimbank in this market.
Fimbank also made an announcement regarding a strategic agreement with a factoring company in Spain. Can you provide more details?
Our international network allows us to make the right connections between clients and markets all over the world
We recently signed a cooperation agreement with Mas Factoring in order to provide factoring solutions to exporters from Spain. We want to take advantage of the significant potential in a market niche that has not been fully explored by Spanish financial institutions. There is a high demand for factoring as well as reverse factoring in this market and figures for 2013 show the volume of international factoring in Spain rising by 20 per cent to circa €13,687m.
Do you plan to open a branch in Spain?
We do not have any intention or plan to open an office in Spain. Mas Factoring, an independent private firm, will be introducing Spanish businesses to Fimbank, which in turn will be running operations from its head office in Malta.
Fimbank has further expanded its international factoring network with a new acquisition in Latin America. What are your plans for the Chilean factoring house?
The acquisition of First Factors forms part of the Fimbank Group’s strategy to develop and expand its international footprint and reflects the board’s wish to further extend our factoring franchise in South America.
The group already provides factoring services in the continent’s largest economy, Brazil, through our joint venture Brasil Factors. Our desire for a stronger presence in Latin America stems from the expansion in South-South trade in recent years. We are now in a better position to benefit from the increase in trade flows and interregional trade, particularly between the Americas and Africa.
Have you acquired a controlling stake in First Factors Servicios Financieros of Chile?
Yes, we have subscribed to 20,227 new shares in the company for an initial investment of $5.8m. This represents an acquisition of 51 per cent of the participating interests in the company. We also have the opportunity to increase our stake to 65 per cent or 100 per cent of the entire issued share capital if certain conditions are met.
What can you tell us about First Factors Servicios Financieros?
First Factors was established in 2005 to provide all types of factoring services, financial leasing, and other management services. This factoring house, which specialises in recourse and non-recourse factoring as well as financial leasing, has 73 employees and provides its services through six branches throughout the country.
We firmly believe in its potential to grow beyond Chile’s borders and actively seek factoring business in neighbouring countries such as Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. First Factors will shortly be rebranded as Latam Factors, in a move which reflects the wider scope of the company post-acquisition. It will continue to be led by its existing CEO, Carlos Baudrand, who has over 20 years experience in the asset based lending business, occupying senior positions at GE Capital and Heller Financial, among others.
In January Fimbank announced its planned expansion into Slovenia. What is the status of this particular project?
Unfortunately, the shareholders agreement that was signed in December 2013 has been formally terminated due to circumstances beyond our control. We were originally interested in this business and had plans to acquire 40 per cent of this company, with an option to eventually increase our stake, subject to certain conditions. PRVI Faktor is a Slovenian factoring and finance company which is currently jointly owned by Nova Ljubljanska Banka d.d. Ljubljana and Slovenska Izvozna Banka. It is headquartered in Slovenia and is active in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Macedonia. Notwithstanding the termination of this agreement, negotiations between the parties are still ongoing.
What are the benefits of Fimbank’s growing global reach?
Today, Fimbank Group has a physical presence in Athens, Beirut, Cairo, Dubai, Istanbul, London, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Santiago, Sao Paulo, Singapore and Malta. In today’s increasingly competitive marketplace a global footprint and outlook are critical to a company’s success. Our international network allows us to make the right connections between clients and markets all over the world, and to serve our clients closest to where they do business. The client has been and remains at the centre of our mission, and the harnessing of the combination of our global reach, trade finance expertise and understanding of the local culture and sensitivities, has the sole aim of providing the highest quality of service possible.
How do you see the future for the Fimbank Group?
We have established strong and tested foundations for sustained growth and have a strong reference shareholder which has led to a stronger equity base and facilitated our access to more competitive funding. Trading patterns around the world are changing, and it is clear that several emerging economies will be among the fastest growing in the coming years. Fimbank is well positioned to benefit from this development because it will mean increased trade flows in regions where the Group is present and already enjoys a strong reputation.
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