The 2020 trade fraud scandals: have we learnt the right lessons?

THE year 2020 changed the world for most of us, but more so for the commodity financing sector.

Rocked by a raft of trade fraud scandals from the start of the year, the industry saw billions of dollars evaporated as a series of traders collapsed, unveiling a hidden world of fictitious trades and multiple financing.

The magnitude of the losses prompted some banks to downsize or withdraw from the commodity financing sector. In response, Singapore, a global commodity trading hub, announced the piloting of a trade finance registry and at the end of last year, a Code of Best of Practices to guide lenders in their lending practices.