Sullivan
Microsoft has discontinued support for Internet Explorer. To access the Sullivan website, please install a modern browser like Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome.
Driving African Trade Growth Through African Banks, Funds and Capital: New Mindset Required?
When: March 12, 2026
Location: GTR Africa, 2026 – Cape Town
People: Simon Cook

Simon Cook moderated a panel discussion titled "Driving African Trade Growth Through African Banks, Funds and capital: New Mindset Required?" on the first day of GTR Africa, 2026, held in Cape Town on March 12 and 13.

That the US$2.5tn global trade finance gap reportedly stabilised in 2025 will offer small comfort to sub-Saharan Africa, one of the globe’s most acutely affected regions. While new industry-wide advocacy initiatives are reinvigorating efforts to enable the flow of traditional trade liquidity into emerging markets, soaring compliance and onboarding costs for trade banks indicate that alternative capital sources and financing structures will be required in tandem if we’re to avoid a lost generation of trade growth.

The African trade finance ecosystem’s unique characteristics both pose challenges and open opportunities for new ways of financing trade, but what action is required to realise tangible, timely progress? This discussion explored:

  • How an evolving global financial landscape is reframing the proposition for private credit investment in African trade finance
  • The challenges posed by the granularity of African SME trade finance and the opportunity to utilise existing financing infrastructure in new ways to unlock SME trade liquidity
  • The evolution from vanilla trade refinancings to structured Letters of Credit (LCs) and beyond: What’s next for African FI trade financing flows?
  • The transformational potential of African institutional capital: How are trade funds, non-bank FIs and development financing institutions working to unlock opportunities?

The panel also included George Wilson at ARM Africa Trade Finance Fund, Anne-Marie Woolley at Africa Global Trade Finance, Ian Henderson at Alteia, Umulinga Karangwa at ESATAL, TDB Group and Richard Agbenuat at Ghana International Bank.