BAFT Re-elects Zion’s Mark Garfield to Lead Board of Directors

May 4, 2020 by Jessica Moore

BAFT would like to congratulate its board officers on their re-election to the 2020-2021 association year and also welcome new directors Maurice Iskandar, Banque Libano-Française; Robert Mancini, Finastra; Nick Smit, ING; Robert Hostler, JPMorgan; and Michael Vrontamitis, Standard Chartered Bank.

WASHINGTON — BAFT, an international financial services association, announced today Mark Garfield of Zions Bancorporation will serve a second term as the chair of its board of directors for the 2020-2021 association year.

Garfield is the head of global financial institutions at Zions and a long serving member of the BAFT board. He has over 30 years of banking experience, with more than 25 years covering trade finance, foreign exchange and correspondent banking. Garfield has served on the DEC National Advisory Board, Board of the World Trade Center (Utah), and as Chair of the Utah District Export Council.

“I look forward to continuing to serve as the board chair for BAFT,” said Garfield. “In a time of unusual crisis, BAFT continues to support its members by providing thought leadership, best practices, and serving as a global advocate for the transaction banking industry.”

BAFT board officers include:

Vice Chair: Raffaele Martino, Intesa Sanpaolo
Secretary / Treasurer: Stephanie Wolf, Bank of America

Other directors include:

Maram Al-Jazireh, Arab Bank
Tod Burwell (CEO), BAFT
Maurice Iskandar, Banque Libano-Française
Patrick Gmür, Credit Suisse
Miriam Ratkovicova, Deloitte
Ulf-Peter Noetzel, Deutsche Bank
Robert Mancini, Finastra
Amy Sahm, Fulton Financial Corporation
Patricia Gomes, HSBC
Nick Smit, ING
Robert Hostler, JPMorgan
Steve Lotito, MUFG
Mark Borton, National Australia Bank
Jonathan Elkins, National Bank of Canada
Kimberly Burdette, PNC
Bart Timmermans, Santander UK
Michael Vrontamitis, Standard Chartered Bank
Tarik Muzaffar, TD Bank
Christian Stolcke, UBS
F. H. Ahlborn, US Bank
Kai Fehr, Wells Fargo

About BAFT
BAFT, the leading global financial services association for international transaction banking, helps bridge solutions across financial institutions, service providers and the regulatory community that promote sound financial practices enabling innovation, efficiency, and commercial growth. BAFT engages on a wide range of topics affecting transaction banking, including trade finance, payments, and compliance.

BAFT Media Contact:
Blair Bernstein
[email protected]
+ 1 (202) 663-5468

April 23, 2020 by Jessica Moore

In a global emergency, international trade may slow but it must not stop. Even as COVID-19 reveals the shortcomings of a paper-based trade system, financial institutions (FIs) are finding ways to keep trade circulating. How are they doing it? Read this joint paper published on April 23, 2020 from BAFT, the ICC and the ITFA entitled ‘How Banks Are Going Digital To Manage COVID-19’.

This paper, jointly published with the ICC and the ITFA, collates common practices undertaken by global banks in the COVID-19 emergency situation and shares some guidance. This is not a “best practices” document and many of the practices described are being improved already. Rather it is a practical reference document with information about measures put in place to continue the flow of trade and trade finance when paper transfer has become difficult or impossible.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted shipping, in-person interactions, and travel. As such, alternative procedures are required to settle trade finance transactions. Data is sourced from 2020 data from ICC, ITFA and BAFT members.

This brief shares the ad hoc practices being implemented by FIs under the COVID-19 pandemic. Their approaches are different from every previous global crisis in that responses target the singular problem of how to keep trade flowing when physical interactions are impracticable. The document makes clear that these quasi-digital solutions are interim only until actual e-enabled digitized solutions are fully developed.

Read the full paper from the ICC Digitalisation Working Group in the Library of Documents page under White Papers.

April 21, 2020 by Jessica Moore

On April 14, 2020 BAFT along with the ITFA, the Berne Union, the IACPM, the IUA and Lloyd’s Market Association filed a joint comment letter to policy makers in the European Union regarding the ongoing discussion about facilitating bank lending and the role of credit insurance amid the COVID-19 crisis.

The International Trade and Forfaiting Association (ITFA), the Bankers Association for Finance and Trade (BAFT), the Berne Union, the International Association of Credit Portfolio Managers (IACPM), the International Underwriting Association (IUA) and Lloyd’s Market Association (LMA) follow with great interest and appreciate the ongoing discussion of the policymakers in the European Union about facilitating bank lending amid the COVID-19 crisis. The aforementioned industry representatives believe that when it comes to credit insurance and guarantees, public and private sectors are inextricably connected through their respective complementary roles.

We welcome the initiatives to reconsider the provisioning requirements for loans covered by Export Credit Agencies and other publicly guaranteed loans. This will be a very helpful measure to enable banks to continue the flow of much needed trade finance.

We wish to highlight that the private credit insurance market also provides important support to economic activity within Europe through facilitating bank lending in the same way as public sector Export Credit Agencies. Like Export Credit Agency cover, private credit insurance support a wide range of short, medium and long-term bank lending, including trade-related, asset-backed and corporate loans, for activities across the entire European Union and worldwide.

Read the full Comment Letter in the Library of Documents page under Comment Letters.

April 1, 2020 by Jessica Moore

BAFT issued comments in response to the ARRC Consultation on Spread Adjustment Methodologies for Fallbacks in Cash Products Referencing USD LIBOR.

On March 25, 2020, BAFT issued comments in response to the ARRC Consultation on Spread Adjustment Methodologies for Fallbacks in Cash Products Referencing USD LIBOR. In addition to responding to the consultation, BAFT made the case that the lack of a forward looking SOFR term reference rate presents operational challenges for this business line and encouraged the ARRC to develop a working group focused on trade finance to address issues specific to this subset of the industry. The comments are posted on the Library of Documents page under Comment Letters.

March 20, 2020 by Jessica Moore

We have chosen to postpone our planned North America Annual Meeting, scheduled for May 3-6, and our Regional Bank Conference, scheduled for June 15-16. Both conferences will be rescheduled for November 2020 and consolidated with the 30th Annual Conference on International Trade.

To help stop the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), BAFT is following the Center for Disease Control’s guidance and recommendations. We have chosen to postpone our planned North America Annual Meeting, scheduled for May 3-6, and our Regional Bank Conference, scheduled for June 15-16. The health and well-being of our members, conference attendees, speakers, sponsors and employees is a top priority for BAFT and we believe this is the best way to ensure their safety at this time.

Both conferences will be rescheduled for November 2020 and consolidated with the 30th Annual Conference on International Trade. We are working closely with BAFT’s Board of Directors and the various Conference Planning Committees to deliver these programs in unison to maximize the value for attendees, speakers and sponsors. We will be in touch with the specific dates and hotel location once they are available.

We would like to thank the relevant committees and individuals who have dedicated their time and resources thus far to helping plan these events, and we remain committed to delivering these programs when it is safe and practical to do so.

We look forward to welcoming you later this year as your continued support is paramount to our joint success.

If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. We appreciate your understanding, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

March 5, 2020 by Jessica Moore

Due to growing concerns around the coronavirus (COVID-19) and subsequent travel restrictions, BAFT has rescheduled its upcoming 2020 MENA Bank to Bank Forum from March 18-19 to September 1-2.

In light of the growing concerns around the coronavirus (COVID-19) and subsequent regional travel restrictions, BAFT has decided to postpone its upcoming Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Bank to Bank Forum scheduled for March 18-19, as well as the Master Participation Agreement (MPA) Pre-Conference Workshop on March 17, both to be held in Dubai, UAE. The health and well-being of our members, conference attendees, speakers, sponsors and employees is a top priority for BAFT and we believe this is the best way to ensure their safety at this time.

We have rescheduled the MENA Bank to Bank Forum for September 1-2, while the MPA Pre-Conference Workshop is now scheduled for the afternoon of August 31, both in Dubai. All registrations will be transferred accordingly. If you are no longer able to attend the meeting due to the date change, please contact [email protected].

Currently, all other BAFT conferences remain on schedule and unchanged. Our staff experts will continue to track developments regarding the coronavirus in close coordination with public health officials. We will update you should there be any additional changes to BAFT’s conference schedule. Attendees with questions should feel free to reach out to the BAFT events team directly at [email protected].

We appreciate your understanding.

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