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FCI ‘is a network not an association’

Neil Harm, FCI

At the FCI 15th CEE & SEE Regional Conference on Factoring and Supply Chain Finance in Prague last week, Neil Harm, FCI Secretary General told delegates that FCI should be considered a network rather than an association – connecting members with each other is its core strength.  He reiterated how the traditional four-corner model which supports members’ across the board financing including deep tier financing because the buyer and seller each has banks in their respective countries and if the selling bank knows more about the buyer, then its more likely to be in a position to advance more to the seller.

In a recent survey, 81 per cent of member banks expect their asset size to increase and 27 per cent of those banks see an increase in accounts receivable – an opportunity for FCI to grow and support more business of their members.   FCI will strive to increase the number of countries where it has members to more than 90 and also plans to deepen its relationships with multi-lateral development banks in trying to encourage regional banks in emerging banks to offer receivables finance products, by providing education, not only in product mechanics and development but also in regulatory and other requirements of the banks, such as in ESG.

Vít Mikušek, Macroeconomic Analyst, Raiffeisen Bank commented on the regional success of the CEE region and how it is converging with the EU economic performance, over time, with Poland displaying the fastest rate. When compared with the Western economies, CE/SEE Europe outperformed in most cases over 2024, with Kosovo, Serbia and Albania, for example, showing particularly strong growth at around the 4.0 per cent mark. In the region, consumer demand was driven by robust labour markets and declining inflation, and increasingly, also by lower rates. However, some risks in terms of consumer cautiousness and a slightly disappointing rebound so far seen in some countries such as Slovakia and Romania, said Mikušek.

 

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