Barclays Works With CGI To Implement Trade Finance Platform

Barclays Corporate Banking is working with CGI to put the CGI Trade360 system into place, which will provide an international trade finance offering to the bank’s customers in Britain and across the globe, according to a Tuesday (Nov. 24) announcement.

“We have a longstanding partnership with CGI, and the CGI Trade360 platform will mean we can continue delivering the best possible trade solutions and service to our clients for many years to come,” said James Binns, global head of trade and working capital at Barclays.

Barclays will provide customers with a better connection and view into their supply chains, letting them make the most of “working capital efficiency, funding and risk mitigation” through the CGI Trade360 system, according to the announcement.

The financial institution will also have the capacity to provide an easily accessible user experience and a live connection to key data, along with modern trade solutions, by harnessing cloud-based features for business banking customers.

Neil Sadler, senior vice president of U.K. financial services at CGI, said in the announcement that the company has worked closely with Barclays for the past three decades.

“Not only do we have a history with them and understand how they work, but part of the CGI Trade360 solution includes a proof of concept phase, which is essentially seven weeks of meetings and workshops with employees across the globe to guarantee the product’s efficiency and answer all queries,” Sadler said.

In separate trade finance news, Alfa-Bank has joined the Contour international network of trade finance. Contour allows bank customers to follow the processing and updating of a trade finance transaction in real time using blockchain.

The Contour network is an online collection of organizations like applicants, issuing banks, nominated/confirming/advising banks, beneficiaries and other entities that take part in the letter of credit (LC) workflow.

Major financial institutions such as BNP Paribas, HSBC, ING and Standard Chartered were founders of Contour.