Insights

Writing and interviews

14 pieces since 2017 on the trade gap, dollar liquidity, regulation and sustainability in African trade finance.

Mar 2024How to bridge Africa's trade finance gapTelevision
CNBC AfricaWhy global capital rules push African banks towards sovereign bonds and away from trade, and what would change it.
Sep 2023The critical importance of trade credit and liquidity in Africa
GTR Africa supplementAfricans are best placed to trade their way out of the gap. They need credit and liquidity, and trade refinancing and structured letters of credit are the tools.
Jul 2023African sustainable trade finance: the way forwardPodcast
Trade Finance GlobalA conversation with Deepesh Patel on the African trade finance system and what stops it applying sustainability principles.
Apr 2023What does sustainability mean in Africa and why is trade finance the answer?
Global Trade ReviewSustainability and ESG are different things. Read from a developing economy, the UN goals point straight at trade finance.
Jul 2022African trade finance and sustainability: a question of systemic liquidity and ESG standardisation
Trade Finance GlobalRising rates and choked supply chains leave Africa short of US dollar liquidity. What that means for trade and for ESG standards.
Apr 2022African ESG trade finance realities: the wood and the trees
Global Trade ReviewA practical view of closing the trade gap through the SME sector while meeting the sustainable development goals.
Jan 2022Qualifying sustainability for African trade finance
Global Trade ReviewWhy African trade finance is the right channel for international ESG funding.
Jan 2021The importance and commercial rationale of structured LCs in African trade finance
ITFA newsletterA technical explanation of structured letters of credit and why they matter for trade in emerging economies.
Nov 2020The African SME trade gap, Covid-19 and practical solutions
ITFA newsletterWhat the pandemic did to a gap that was already wide, and practical steps to close it.
Oct 2020Tools for trade
Global Trade ReviewWhy and how trade finance holds the key to African development.
Sep 2020Managing the impact of lockdown on African supply chains, part twoInterview
Treasury TodayThe sectors hit hardest by lockdown and what treasurers should watch.
Aug 2020Managing the impact of lockdown on African supply chains, part oneInterview
Treasury TodayThe financial and treasury impact of lockdowns on African supply chains and trade finance.
Jul 2019Africa's trade finance gap is a systemic failure of SMEs to obtain credit terms
Capital Markets in AfricaSME trade finance, the continental free trade area, Basel rules, trade insurance and Chinese investment in Africa.
Jun 2017Emerging banking regulations and their impact on African trade finance
Capital Markets in AfricaHow new banking rules change the economics of trade finance on the continent.