ICC and TradeFlow Capital Management join forces to enable commodity trade for SMEs

ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO announced an ambitious partnership with TradeFlow Capital Management during the World Trade Organization’s 2021 Global Trade & Blockchain Forum, as part of ICC’s growing effort to enable SME access to short-term liquidity to survive the ongoing economic crisis and thrive in the post-pandemic future

Leveraging TradeFlow Capital Management’s innovative non-lending and non-credit based instruments and ICC’s global network of over 45 million chambers of commerce and businesses, the partnership will enable the creation of an ICC SME Fund to provide small businesses with the right level of financial support to execute import/export trades in bulk commodities.

ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO said:

“Small businesses around the world continue to suffer from uncertain economic conditions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. While governments and financial institutions have taken steps to support SMEs, more needs to be done to ensure their survival.

“ICC is delighted to launch this partnership with TradeFlow Capital to unlock liquidity for SMEs and keep the global economy moving forward. We are confident that our partnership with Tradeflow Capital and other initiatives under our ICC TradeNow campaign will create new, tangible opportunities for SMEs everywhere.”

ICC TradeFlow Capital will be one of a diverse range of solutions offered through ICC TradeNow, a global ICC campaign to accelerate the provision of trade finance to SMEs.

Tom James, CEO and CIO, TradeFlow Capital Management said: “Tradeflow is proud to partner with ICC on this ambitious and much needed fund for small businesses. By leveraging the combined strengths of ICC and Tradeflow, ICC Tradeflow Capital has the potential to enable many billions of dollars of SME commodity transactions each year.

“TradeFlow applauds ICC’s continued support for businesses worldwide – especially in the face of the consequences associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Supported by ICC TradeNow, we are confident that this partnership will reduce risk, improve trade opportunities for SMEs, and alleviate poverty.”

ICC will host a series of workshops for chamber of commerce leaders in Asia and Europe to share insights on potential partners who could help finding the liquidity needed to bridge the trade finance gap.