March/April 2012 VOL 14/ No. 2 2012 IFA SPRING

newsCondolences tothe Passing of IFAAdvisory BoardMember Bob Sawyer& Memorial FundInformationThe Factoring Community hassuffered a tremendous loss withthe sudden death of Bob Sawyera former Factoring professionalwith Bibby Financial (amongothers), whom had retired afew years ago; he was alsoa valued member on the IFAAdvisory Board.To honor and continue hislegacy and passion, both hisfamily and friends at theJunipero Serra High School inGardena, California, where heserved as a loyal, hardworkingand passionate board member,have established the BobSawyer Memorial Fund forTuition Assistance. The familyhas requested that in lieu offlowers, financial contributionsbe made in his honor to:Junipero Serra High SchoolBob Sawyer Memorial Fundfor Tuition Assistance14830 Van Ness AvenueGardena, CA 90249-3799providing loyalty programs that rewardusers of mobile, internet radio and television stations. The facility was closed inless than 2 weeks from the initial inquiryand is being used to assist the companywith their aggressive growth plans in themarket.Wells Fargo Capital FinanceProvides 5 Million FacilityThe Purchase Order Finance Group atWells Fargo Capital Finance, part ofWells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC),recently provided a 5 million facility to aCalifornia-based a distributor of audio andvideo broadcasting equipment.Republic Business Credit Closes 2 Million Receivables PurchaseFacilityRepublic Business Credit announces a 2,000,000 receivables purchase facility for a Mississippi based equipmentdistributor.Federal National Payables ProvidedTen Working Capital FacilitiesBethesda, MD. Federal National Payables,Inc. recently closed ten accounts receivable lines, totaling 5.3 million. Some ofthis current activity includes the followingaccounts receivable facilities: 1.2 million for an IT solutions firm; 800 thousand line for a start-uphealth services company; 750 thousand line for a softwareproducts and services company; 750 thousand line for a provider ofprofessional and integrated IT services; 650 thousand line for a provider ofproject management and cost analysissupport.Brookridge Funding Announcesthe Completion of 3.4 Million ofFacilities for Seven New ClientsBrookridge Funding announces the recentcompletion of 3,650,000 of fundingfacilities for seven new clients: Includedabove are Purchase Order funding linesof 1,600,000, 500,000 and 300,000 forthree Government resellers, introduced toBrookridge by their factors, who will be retiring the purchase order fundings out oftheir initial advances on the governmentreceivables created after the merchandiseis delivered.Industry NewsGibraltar Business Capital AcquiresGreenfield Commercial CreditGibraltar Business Capital LLC, a leading provider of asset based loans andfactoring solutions for small and mediumsized businesses, has acquired GreenfieldCommercial Credit LLC, a providerof working capital financing solutionsand asset based loans in the Midwest.Gibraltar will now have resources inChicago, New York, Houston, Los Angeles,Detroit, and Atlanta focused on providingasset based loans and factoring solutions to borrowers seeking financing of 100,000 to 5,000,000.Universal Funding Corp. AnnouncesRenewal of Funding Facility withSterling BankUniversal Funding Corp., a leading provider of professional accounts receivablebased funding in the United States andCanada, has finalized a renewal andexpansion of its current financing facilitywith Spokane, Wash. based Sterling Bank.The facility is a renewal of a credit facility first entered into between UniversalFunding and Sterling in 1998.United Capital Funding Corp.Announces Renewal of FundingFacility with First Tennessee BankI F A C o m m e r cia l F ac t o rNow 6 issuesEnjoy Commercial Factor more often!Call today for advertising rates and information:Jamie Berman(215)765-2646 jamieberman@rw-assoc.com6 The Commercial Factor March/April 2012United Capital Funding Corp., a providerof professional Accounts Receivable basedfunding and credit management solutions, has finalized a renewal of its currentfinancing facility with Memphis, Tenn.based First Tennessee Bank, a subsidiaryof First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE:FHN). The senior-secured facility isan early renewal of a credit facility firstentered into between United Capital andFirst Tennessee in 2006.

Industry Education andAdvocacy in ActionQ&A with Allen Frederic, Jr., CEO, Republic Business CreditSome people talk about moving mountains, others do it; take Frederic for example,who has over 40 years of combined finance experience. He’s served on factoringcommittees, led training courses, lobbied Congress, you name it—Frederic has made atrue impact on this industry.What has your experience inAFA been like thus far?Why/how did you get involved?I’ve been the President of AFA for 3years. I became involved when BertGoldberg encouraged me to help outwith this new organization aimedat advocacy efforts for factors andfactoring associations. It has beeneye-opening to see Washington, D.C.politics in this light. To observe howthe process works and the opposingviews in Congress has been influentialand memorable. Both parties havedifferent sides to the issue of regulationof finance institutions.It has helped me to appreciate the viewsof big government/big regulation ANDsmaller government/less regulation.I now appreciate that both groups arepassionate about their side. What isdifficult to appreciate is why they can’tfind a middle ground.What have you learned overthe years in banking, financeand now factoring finance thathelped to create your view ofhow our economy is recovering?How do you see it specificallyaffecting the factoring industry?I’ve seen changing business cycles,inflation and recession, expansion andcontraction of the economy. Whilethis is the longest recession that we’veexperienced in quite awhile, my experience has taught me that there is alwaysa recovery around the corner; we justdon’t know where that corner is.There are signs of recovery, although itappears to be slow. There are positivesigns in transportation, jobs, capitalinvestment and revenue growth withinspecific industry groups. However, asa part of the global economy, there arefears of the debt burden of Europeancountries and the potential slowdownof certain Asian economies.You have served in manyindustry committees.What were some of youraccomplishment there? Whattype of factoring professionalshould join committees?The experience has been rewarding!I’ve been able to work with the IFA andalong with many other professionalshelp launch the IFA factoring schools(training courses). Also, I’ve moderatedboth training courses and panels for theIFA and CFA.My greatest accomplishment is a senseof teamwork in helping foster ourindustries educational efforts. Froma personal standpoint, the reward ofmeeting a number of wonderful peopleand seasoned professionals was atremendous opportunity.Any factoring professional who has apassion for the business should becomemore involved.What trends for this year andnext can you predict/care topredict?Hopefully we see the business cyclecontinue to rebound in a positivedirection. As an industry we will seemore competition, more new players inour space, and introducing new creditproducts.What about challenges in themarketplace?Our greatest challenge has always beenthe balance between an aggressiveThe Commercial Factor March/April 2012 9

growth strategy and risk tolerance. Inthe recent recession we saw significantfraud and debtor issues. Going forward,we face greater competition, hence theneed to achieve our growth objectivewhile maintaining sound credit judgment and controlling cost to create asuperior return for our shareholders.What is the greatest obstaclein the industry that you’veovercome or what do you see asa big obstacle today?Education. Educating people about thepositive benefits of factoring. For solong factoring has been the “f” word,with more negative connotation thanpositive. Yet, in other parts of the world,factoring is much better understood,more popular and plays a larger role infinancial markets.What are you most lookingforward to at the 2012Factoring Conference? (Otherthan beautiful HuntingdonBeach of course!)I’m greatly looking forward tonetworking with my colleagues andgetting their answers to some of thequestions I’ve been asked. It’s especiallyinteresting to get viewpoints from thosein different geographies and those thatfinance different industry sectors.Of the various places you’velived do you prefer thesouthwest or where you nowlive, New Orleans?Of all of the places I’ve lived, I preferNew Orleans! It’s the closest to Europethat you can get in the USA. Everyonethat knows me knows I visit Europeevery year; Paris is my favorite place. InNew Orleans you have a mix of FrenchSpanish, Italian, Irish, African, Asian andLatin influences – it’s a diverse meltingpot. I’d be bored anywhere else! In Jan 2011, Frederic along with Stuart Chesters, the former CEOof Bibby USA started Republic Business Credit. Frederic is currentlyPresident/CEO and a Director of Republic Business Credit. He hasnearly 18 years of factoring experience at Gulf Coast Business Creditas founder and President/CEO and previously at KBK Financial(now Marquette) as Senior VP. At Gulf Coast, Frederic took this from a start upoperation to a top 25 U.S. factor and one of the largest Southwest based factors. AtKBK he oversaw the New Orleans and St. Louis operations from start up. Prior to thishe had over 20 years of commercial banking experience, with his last assignmentas President/CEO of a New Orleans Bank. Frederic served 3 terms on the board ofthe International Factoring Association and chaired the Presidents Council (IndustryLeadership Conference). He is a Director of the Commercial Finance Association andchaired the Entrepreneurial Finance & Factoring Committee, also serving on the CFA’sExecutive Committee. He recently supplemented his strong industry leadership bybecoming President of the American Factoring Association which is the factoringindustry’s lobbying association. Allen earned both his Bachelor’s degree in business andMBA from Louisiana State University. Allen can be reached at afrederic@republicbc.comor 866-722-4987.10 The Commercial Factor March/April 2012

The United States Senate’sTransportation Bill: Good or Bad forthe Factor?The United States Senate passed its surface transportation bill on March 14, 2012.The Bill (S. 1813) deals with a tremendous amount of transportation related issues.There is no clear answer on whether the Senate’s legislation will be helpful or harmfulto the Factor. BY David Jencks, esq.The United States Senate passed its surface transportation bill on March 14,2012. The Bill (S. 1813) deals with a tremendous amount of transportationrelated issues. The Bill is commonly known as “Map-21” or “Moving Ahead forProgress in the 21st Century Act”. At its core, the Bill funds our nation’s transportation and infrastucture projects. However, as with most federal legislation,many amendments were added to the Bill. Senate majority leader Harry Reid(D.,NV.) brought as an amendment certain language that had been previouslydiscussed in the House of Representatives concerning the regulation of freightbrokers and freight forwarders.Buried on pages 1246 through 1259 of the 1676 page Bill, the Senate has moreheavily regulated the freight broker and freight forwarder, and their surety. Theprimary piece of this additional regulation is raising the minimum financialsecurity a broker and forwarder must carry from 10,000 to 100,000. Thisfinancial security may be in the form of a bond and/or a trust fund, in a form andamount determined by the Secretary of the Treasury to be adequate to ensurefinancial responsibility. The Federal Motor Carrier Administration (FMCSA)will likely administer the registration and monitoring of adequate financialresponsibility.The Bill as passed also requires that each surety issuing such bonds be approvedby the Secretary of the Treasury and that the surety consent to the administration rules of each claim. The last major component of the Bill is that every 5The Commercial Factor March/April 2012 11

years the Secretary of Treasury willreview the amount of financial securityrequired for brokers and forwarders todetermine whether the current amountis sufficient. Further, the Secretaryof the Treasury is authorized by theBill to raise the financial securityrequirements.As you might remember from civicsclass, a bill cannot become a law until itpasses both houses of Congress. ThisBill has not been passed in the Houseand therefore is not law. However,Speaker John Boehner has indicated that it will take up the Senate’stransportation bill for debate. Punditsbelieve the debate will begin in April of2012. At the time of writing, the Househas not scheduled debate. However, theHouse is under considerable pressurefrom a wide range of special intereststo do so.Transportation related accounts makeup approximately 22% of all purchasesby International Factoring Associationmembers. Transportation is the singlelargest sector from which IFA memberspurchase accounts. Therefore, anexamination of how raising the brokerand forwarder financial securityrequirements will affect the Factor isvaluable.It may appear at first blush that anincrease in the financial securityrequirements is a positive thing forthe factoring industry. The financialsecurity each broker and forwarderis required to carry is “available topay any claim against such broker orforwarder arising from their failure topay freight charges under its contracts,agreements, or arrangements fortransportation.” (S.B. 1813 at page1248, 1254). As a significant portionof the Factor’s account debtor base,more available funds from which toseek recovery for non-payment offreight bills appears to be a positive. Asany transportation financier knows,the current 10,000 bond is typicallyexhausted before the factor can recover,Transportationrelated accountsmake up approximately22% of all purchasesby InternationalFactoring Associationmembers.or the bond is paid on a pro-rata basisin such small amounts the monetaryrecovery from the bond is negligible.But before the Bill is declared to bea good deal for factors, an economicanalysis of the Bill’s potential affectsis important. Increased surety levelsmean increased costs in operations.Surety products and their costs areinfluenced by market demand, and itis possible a surety will require higherpremiums and significant collateralization before the issuance of a largerbond. That collateral may be something the broker or forwarder does nothave or cannot raise. If the broker orforwarder either has to pay too muchfor the bond, or simply cannot secureone based on the surety’s underwritingstandards, the broker or forwardercannot operate and will be out ofbusiness.12 The Commercial Factor March/April 2012

If the broker or forwarder cannotoperate, the transportation industryloses a portion of its account debtorsof whom motor carrier clients needand want to factor. A smaller andless diverse account debtor base mayvery well reduce the demand for theFactor’s services. Will the motor carrierhave the same need or desire for yourservices if its account debtor base issmaller and consists of larger, moreestablished, more credit worthy, fasterpaying account debtors? A reasonableeconomic argument is that higherbarriers for the small and new brokeror forwarder to enter, or stay in, themarketplace reduces the number ofaccount debtors whom the motorcarrier needs or wants to factor. Fewerfreight intermediaries could also negatively affect freight rates and invoicesize through less competition.Another economic issue is whethersurety companies will want to consentto the approval, monitoring, and bondadministration rules required in theBill. It is possible and reasonable thata surety will pass altogether in issuinglicense and permit bonds to transportation intermediaries in order toavoid regulation and unfavorable bondadministration rules. Under the SenateBill, a surety must: 1) respond to claimswithin 30 days following a notice; 2) setforth in writing for each claimant thegrounds for denial; 3) pay [Claimant’s]attorneys’ fees in any action against inwhich it successfully recovers againstthe surety; 4) provide notices of cancellation of all bonds to the Secretary ofTreasury; 5) publicly advertise for 60days the notice to cancel the financialsecurity; 6) pay within 30 days alluncontested claims; 6) be subject tocivil actions and penalties for failure tofollow any of these rules.The high level of administration, riskof payment of attorneys’ fees, even ingood faith disputes, the costs in publicnotification of surety cancellation, andthe risk of civil actions and penaltiesmay cause sureties to avoid the transportation marketplace altogether orprice accordingly. This, combined withincreased bond amounts, could drivebond premiums and collateralizationrequirements of remaining participating sureties higher.There is no clear answer on whetherthe Senate’s legislation will be helpfulor harmful to the Factor. It seems fromthis author’s viewpoint that the legislation may be helpful on some isolatedcollection actions but harmful to thelarger market in that the number andtype of potential account debtors whomthe motor carrier will want or need tofactor will be diminished. David Jencks,Esq., is an attorneyand consultantspecializing inworking with factorsand asset based lenders serving thetransportation industry. He can bereached at 605-256-0121 ordavidjencks@gmail.comThe Commercial Factor March/April 2012 13

The State of Export FinancingAn Interview with Ian VarleyManaging Director, Bibby International Trade FinanceWhat are the most recent developments in InternationalTrade Finance?A. In the U.S., the conversation has shifted from massive companies thattraditionally export to small to medium-sized businesses that are lessexperienced with exporting. The National Export Initiative, announcedin the 2010 State of the Union address, is fueling the increased interest.The Initiative set the ambitious goal of doubling U.S. exports by the endof 2014 in order to grow the economy and create new jobs. Regardlessof political leanings, this initiative has lit a fire under the official exportcredit agency of the U.S. government, the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im),which is now producing more programs to help small business exportgoods.For example, its Working Capital Guarantee program is aimed atexporters, but in my experience I’ve found it’s hard for them to qualifyand take advantage of it.What types of companies do you come across that needexport financing?A. We’ve seen anything and everything in terms of the variety of productsand services that are exported. They generally fall int

ITC Invoice to Cash Tim Valdez Chief Lending Officer of Transportation Alliance The International Factoring Association’s (IFA) goal is to assist the factoring community by providing information, training, purchasing power and a resource for factors. The IFA provides a way for commercial factors to get together and discuss a variety of issues