ICC will hold a one-and-a-half day workshop in Paris on 18-19 June to show how a better structure of the letter of credit itself and the correct application of the UCP 600 rules can help all parties better manage the documentary credit process and alleviate many of the problems being experienced at this critical time.

Indeed, w ith the global financial crisis having a major impact on the issuance and handling of documentary credits, many exporters are looking to bank undertakings as the means of securing their exports. At the same time, exporters who have traded on open account terms are examining their transactions more closely to see whether a form of added protection is required for certain markets .

The current situation has given rise to a demand in the need for issuance of documentary credits and their confirmation, a demand that not all banks can fulfill. An i ncrease in requests from exporters for settlement by way of documentary credit has been countered, in most cases, by a reduction in credit lines being afforded by issuing banks to importers.

On the importer side, where documentary credits have already been issued, banks are placing more stringent reviews on documents, and there are reported instances of applicants seeking their banks 'assistance' in refusing documents where an underlying commodity price has fallen or poor quality goods have been known to have been shipped.

The key is a properly structured transaction that serves the purposes of both importers and exporters.

This workshop, aimed at examining these issues, will be led by  Gary Collyer,   Technical Advisor to the ICC Banking Commission, and with a panel of speakers that includes Vincent O'Brien , a long-standing member of the ICC Banking Commission and a member of the ICC's Guarantees Task Force.

The sessions  will offer the international audience of  bankers, exporters, importers, lawyers and academics a   valuable opportunity to network with some of the people with answers and to bring their experiences and concerns to the debates.

To register for this workshop, please  click here 

For further information, please contact:

Jennie Irving
Project Coordinator
ICC Services - Events Department
38, Cours Albert 1er
75008 Paris - France
Tel: +33 1 49 53 28 70
Fax: + 33 1 49 53 30 30
e-mail :   jiz@iccwbo.org