Image of Ex-Im Bank Restored to Full Operation

Ex-Im Bank Restored to Full Operation

Washington DC – The Senate today voted overwhelmingly to confirm three board members for the Export-Import Bank of the U.S., our country’s federal export credit agency. Kimberly Reed will serve as president of Ex-Im Bank and Spencer Bachus III and Judith Pryor as members of the board of directors, giving Ex-Im Bank a board quorum and returning the agency to full operation for the first time since 2015.

While most U.S. exporters obtain international trade finance—for themselves and their overseas customers—from banks and other lenders in the private sector, some scenarios require the support of Ex-Im Bank. These include sales to countries with troubling commercial and political risks and exports by small businesses or those new to international trade.

For example, thousands of U.S. exporters rely on Ex-Im Bank export credit insurance to support their extension of competitive payment terms to their customers in other countries.

Specializing in credit insurance for more than 25 years, Meridian Finance Group brokers more Ex-Im Bank policies than any other broker in the country, while—as described above—the vast majority of the coverage we broker is underwritten not by Ex-Im Bank but by private-sector insurance companies.

In fact we regard Ex-Im Bank as the underwriter of last resort, turning to the public sector only when there are no viable commercial solutions elsewhere. The hundreds of Ex-Im Bank policies we broker are a testament to the importance of this small (around 400 employees) but impactful government agency.

You need to offer competitive payment terms to grow your international sales. But what happens if your foreign customers go out of business, file bankruptcy, run short on US dollars, or don’t pay you for some other reason?

Export credit insurance protects foreign receivables against virtually all nonpayment risks. It’s also a sales tool that can help you win more international orders and it’s a financing tool that makes your foreign receivables more attractive to lenders.

In addition to financing their borrowers’ insured foreign receivables, banks use credit insurance themselves to support confirmation and discounting of export letters of credit, receivables purchase agreements, and supply chain facilities.

With offices nationwide, as well as in London and Singapore, Meridian works with every insurer in the market that writes credit insurance policies. As significant as Meridian’s ability to place coverage is the comprehensive technical support we provide to our customers. Export credit insurance policies work differently from other kinds of insurance. Meridian assists with policy compliance at the same time as we help exporters get the most out of their coverage as a sales and financing tool.

To learn more about export credit insurance and Meridian’s brokerage services, contact us at 310.260.2130 or send an email to insurance@meridianfinance.com.

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