Given the recent expansion of the regulatory landscape in light of the ongoing events in Russia and Ukraine, namely the imposition of extensive sanctions on Russia (and certain Russian banks and nationals), there has been a lot written and published on the black letter terms of the sanctions themselves. This update focuses on the common “secondary issues”, these being the commercial questions that arise from the implementation of sanctions that are most likely to impact on parties’ contractual obligations.

By Amanda Montano, associate, and Talal Khan, trainee

In the latest edition of Sullivan's webinar series, Geoffrey Wynne, Head of the Trade & Export Finance Group at Sullivan's London office, discussed key aspects of structuring trade finance transactions, including best practice approaches and risk mitigation. Geoff was joined by Jacqueline Cook, Of Counsel and Senior Knowledge Development Lawyer, who gave an informative overview of the key aspects of security used in trade finance structures. Here are some of the key areas discussed.

By Amanda Montano, associate, and Stefan Bateson, trainee

At the latest Trade & Export Finance webinar, Geoff Wynne, head of the Trade & Export Finance Group and Sullivan's London office, gave a whistle-stop tour of recent developments in digital options available in trade finance, including the multi-jurisdictional efforts to recognise electronic transferable records.

By Amanda Montano, Associate, and Raghav Vohora, Trainee

This blog post is the second instalment of our two-part series covering our June 2021 Trade & Export Finance Webinar, "Payments, Problems and Practical Solutions for Trade and Export Finance Transactions".

Following on from our recent coverage of the Revlon loan dispute[1], we briefly consider the nature of payments, as well as the consequences of making an erroneous or late payment. We also address the ways in which parties risk payments being diluted by virtue of forces beyond their control or as a result of common contractual provisions.

Few cases in recent memory have stirred up as much concern and controversy in the syndicated loan market—on both sides of the Atlantic—as the Revlon case.[1] The ruling of the New York federal court in Revlon was that the recipients of erroneous wire transfers made by Citibank N.A. (Citibank), acting in its capacity as administrative agent for a syndicated loan facility made available to Revlon, Inc., were entitled to keep almost $500 million of Citibank’s own money. This was notwithstanding the fact that Citibank had only intended to transfer $7.8 million in interest payments and not the $900 million or so that was actually transferred by mistake. Indeed, had it not been for some of the recipients returning the mistaken payment they received, Citibank’s losses could have been even more significant.

By Amanda Montano, Associate

Following Sullivan’s recognition as a Leader in Trade for Innovation by Global Trade Review (GTR) for recent contributions to the digitalisation of trade finance, this is an opportune moment to recap the progress that has been made in this space over the past 18 months.

The various local and global lockdowns forced by the COVID-19 pandemic, which no one could have foreseen at the beginning of 2020, have put the spotlight firmly on the challenges of operating a paper-based industry—such as is international trade finance—in the 21^st century and the practicalities of obtaining original documents (e.g. bills of lading and warehouse receipts) and wet ink signatures in a world where many are working from home. In considering how the industry has adapted, one thing has become clear—there is certainly scope to improve the manner in which trade transactions are conducted going forward.

By Amanda Montano, Associate, and Theodora Okocha, Trainee

Although parties rarely consider dispute resolution provisions in any great detail at the contractual negotiation stage of a transaction, they should. Time spent on considering these issues at the outset will ultimately prove to be invaluable down the road should a dispute occur, saving time, costs and energy in the long run.

At the latest Trade & Export Finance Webinar, we looked at key considerations parties should take into account when opting for litigation versus arbitration and offered some practical tips to bear in mind for drafting dispute resolution provisions for your contracts.

By Amanda Montano, Associate and Andrew Thompson, Trainee

At the latest Trade & Export Finance webinar, partners Geoffrey Wynne and Sam Fowler-Holmes delved into the topic of receivables financing. Given the manner in which COVID-19 has impacted businesses’ cash flow and supply chains, financing receivables has, perhaps unsurprisingly, accelerated over the past year. With the recent fallout of Greensill, the ideal opportunity arose to discuss the nature of receivables finance, the challenges facing the industry and key factors in mitigating risks and achieving the benefits the industry has to offer.

By Amanda Montano and Humzah Irfan

Jacqueline Cook, Senior Knowledge Development Lawyer at Sullivan's London office, broke ground on our first Trade & Export Finance Webinar of 2021, held on 21 January, and the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (the TCA) for the post-Brexit position was top of the agenda. London's Senior Partner, Geoffrey Wynne, followed with thoughts on what the trade finance industry should be looking out for in 2021.

By trainee Humzah Irfan at Sullivan in London

At Sullivan's monthly seminar in December, Mark Norris, partner at Sullivan’s London office, reflected on a roller-coaster year in 2020, breaking down key trade finance related events and picking up on common themes with a view on how issues from 2020 might feed into 2021.