TSL Feature Articles

  • Maria Dikeos Syndicated ABL Volume up in 2019, Deal Count Down

    Refinitiv’s director of analytics shares with readers the latest data surrounding the syndicated market.

  • Myra Thomas SFNet Education Focus 20/20 Dynamic Educational Content is Key for Members
    As the Secured Finance Network celebrates its 75th anniversary, its commitment to the education of its membership remains tantamount to the organization. Part of that commitment is making sure that secured lenders of all stripes are provided with the essential tools, training, and best practices to ensure their professional success.
  • Hamid Namazie Interview with McGuire Woods’ Hamid Namazie

    Hamid Namazie is managing partner of McGuireWoods’ Los Angeles - Downtown office. He concentrates his practice on representing a wide range of clients, including banks, institutional lenders and commercial finance companies, providing asset-based loans.

  • Ken Wengrod, FTC Founded for Entrepreneurs By an Entrepreneur

    FTC Commercial Corporation was launched in 2002 with a strong focus on small and medium-size enterprise. Co-founder Ken Wengrod tapped into his experience, having worked in factoring and retail to create a company that understands the entire trade cycle of manufacturing and importing.

  • Dave Kucera, Capital One Lenders Think About Recession Readiness
    The head of Capital One’s Financial Institutions Group reviews the trends that lenders should be watching as we shift into 2020.
  • Thoughts on the Third Quarter 2019 Asset-Based Lending Index

    Q3 2019 results generally demonstrate the continuation of trends observed throughout 2019.  Year to date, we continue to have growth in the industry as a whole and credit quality remains solid.  There are a few notable deviations from trends observed throughout the year as we will see.

    General economic conditions continue to be top of mind for the secured finance community, but it is interesting to note that we continue to see a divergence between Bank and Non-Bank Lenders with respect to the SFNet Confidence Index. As a reminder, starting in 2019, we have chosen to divide the ABL lender universe along Bank and Non-Bank lines, as opposed to our previous methodology of splitting up the ABL lender universe by portfolio size.

  • Joseph Nemia, TD Bank Review and Forecast with Joseph Nemia, Executive Vice President - Head of Asset Based Lending at TD Bank

    Joseph Nemia looks back at 2019 and discusses what the secured finance industry can expect to see in 2020.

     

  • HuntingfordArt Trade Finance Insights: Financing Trade Receivables Beyond ABL or Factoring

    A Demica senior director explains how trade receivable securitization programs can be used as a valuable alternative to other funding solutions, especially in cross-border or challenging credit environments.

     

  • TSL1119_DrinkDailyGreens Putting Capital to Work - Far West Capital Customer: Drink Daily Greens
    Jan 6, 2020
    Meet an entrepreneur trying to make the world a “greener” place.  


    At 33 years old, Shauna was diagnosed with breast cancer - a head-spinning diagnosis for anyone, but especially a new mother at 33 who considered herself fairly healthy. Then came the draining, life-sapping chemo that would save her life, but leave her feeling weak and malnourished

  • JeffreyWurst UCC Insights - Looking For A Better Mouse Trap? Article 9 Sales Spring To Action.

    The time and cost of liquidating collateral can often be prohibitive and is always a nuisance. Of course, this problem is exacerbated when the asset value is less than the balance owed to the secured creditor(s), leaving no value for unsecured creditors. Lenders often step up and carve out an amount to be distributed to unsecured creditors to enable a Chapter 11 to proceed to effect a sale of the debtor’s assets free and clear of liens. Some consider this to be a price to be paid by secured creditors for the privilege of utilizing the bankruptcy court to sell their collateral. Thus, the cost of a bankruptcy can be very expensive not only to the debtor, but also to the secured lender. As a result, small and middle-market companies and their lenders have grown receptive to non-bankruptcy vehicles for the disposition of assets.

  • PaulSchuldiner_Headshot_150X150 Purchase Order Financing: Then, Now and What’s Ahead
    Purchase order financing has been around nearly as long as its close relatives (factoring) and distant ones (merchant banking), but has become much more prevalent in the last decade. With better technology and other innovations accelerating manufacturing and production timelines to meet demand from e-commerce and big box customers, the global supply chain has never been under more stress. We see this with the China tariffs, Brexit and other significant changes to trade policy. Purchase order financing has never been a more valuable option for companies buying and selling around the globe.
  • KarabusArt The Digital Transformation is Severely Disrupting Retail: The Time for Action is Now

    The transformation of retail is creating new and significant challenges for traditional retailers. Antony Karabus, CEO of HRC Advisory, explores those obstacles and offers solutions to help retailers survive – and even thrive — during these tumultuous times.

  • jdepledge2 Interview with Incoming SFNet President John DePledge
    John DePledge currently serves as the head of Asset Based Lending of Bank Leumi USA. With over 35 years of ABL experience, John has built portfolios in numerous new markets and has held senior leadership roles in originations, portfolio management, underwriting, asset recovery and field examination. Here, he outlines SFNet’s 2020 goals after its recent transformation.
  • SFNHoF copy SFNet Hall of Fame Inductees
    Oct 16, 2019
    When we set out to rebrand the Commercial Finance Association over a year ago, we knew we wanted to build on our proud heritage while looking to the future. That timeless adage “remember where you came from” was at the forefront of our minds as we discussed the new brand. There were many positive attributes that we wanted to preserve as we planned to reposition our value proposition to align with the priorities of our diverse network. 
  • sharkey The TSL Interview: Michael D. Sharkey: Celebrating 40 Years in ABL
    Sep 20, 2019

    Michael D. Sharkey is the president of Fifth Third Business Capital. He oversees a nationwide market with regional offices across the United States and Canada. Sharkey is past president and chairman of Secured Finance Network.  He is also past president of the American Brain Tumor Association. Sharkey is a graduate of Rutgers University and J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Here he discusses his long career, the outlook for the industry and Fifth Third’s acquisition of MB.

  • airfianance Lending to Business Aviation: Don’t Wing It

    As with any industry, lending to the business aviation sector comes with its own set of risks. Shelley Svoren of First Republic Bank gives readers the insider’s tips on this industry.

  • ecommerce Ecommerce and the Omnichannel Equation

    Tim Anderson of Hilco Valuation Services discusses Omnichannel appraisals, which are now more common than traditional brick-and-mortar appraisals.  

  • food19 Middle-Market Companies Find Opportunity in Food & Beverage Disruption

    Capital One executives discuss how innovation in the food & beverage sector are making it an industry lenders don’t want to ignore.

  • construction Construction: Cycles and Considerations in Lending

    A Conway MacKenzie executive provides an overview of the construction industry, including its unique cycles. Lending into the construction sector can prove to be a lucrative decision if extensive due diligence is conducted deep into a company’s financials. There are a wide range of factors and potential pitfalls to consider, understand and navigate properly.

  • Cannibus Everything You Wanted To Know About Cannabis…But Were Afraid To Ask
    Sep 10, 2019

    Money-laundering statutes, restrictive banking regulations and the stigma surrounding the cannabis industry have caused established banks and well-known independent secured lenders to stay clear, but the possibility of new regulations may ease their fears.

Click on the link below to meet some of the “difference makers” in the secured finance community. This issue of The Secured Lender celebrates those who are having a profound impact on both their communities and their organizations. 

See Profiles


Previous TSL Articles

  • This Is Not a Drill - SFNet's Cross-Border Lending Summit 2022 Returns September 15 and September 22
    Sep 13, 2022
    SFNet's Cross-Border Lending Summit - “This Is Not a Drill” – is returning live online event on September 15 and September 22, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. ET each day. For the 9th year in a row, SFNet is bringing timely and provocative panels addressing issues that challenge asset-based lenders doing cross-border deals. So much has happened in just the last six months: Boris Johnson stepping down, Russia in Ukraine, potential food supply shortages, climate extremes. Companies now must reevaluate supply chains and vendors based in part of geopolitical risk. Not to mention an inflationary environment the likes of which we have not seen in years. In this time of rapid change, SFNet is gathering together industry experts to explore and illuminate the current landscape and what you should be thinking about in the months and years to come.
  • Too Little. Too Late. Too Much. Inventory Management Amid Ongoing Supply Chain Disruption
    Aug 22, 2022

    As recent years have demonstrated, a variety of events, from a once-in-a-lifetime worldwide health crisis like a pandemic to a regional conflict like the Russian invasion of Ukraine to long-planned political changes such as Brexit, can easily interrupt global supply chains. These recent events resulted in three phases of supply chain disruptions.

     
  • Interview with Mark Cuccinello, Member of SFNet’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusiveness Committee
    Aug 8, 2022

    Mark Cuccinello is a senior ABL originator for J.P. Morgan Commercial Banking, where he is responsible for providing asset-based loans to middle market companies. Mark has been with the bank for 17 years and has more than 25 years of asset-based lending experience. Mark resides in New Jersey with his family.

  • Eileen Wubbe 150x150 Ready, set, mentor!
    Aug 16, 2022
    The Secured Finance Foundation, in conjunction with SFNet’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, developed and launched a Mentoring Program that provides the next generation access to the knowledge and expertise of the most talented and respected executives in the secured finance industry. The mentoring initiative was created to serve the secured finance community by bridging the gap between established veterans and those new to their careers. By focusing on inclusivity, SFNet hopes to offer a missing component in its members’ professional trajectories.
  • Juanita Schwartzkopf_150 How are inventory levels impacting cash flow and performance?
    Aug 15, 2022
    Since the COVID-19 shutdowns, discussions about supply chain and inventory levels have focused on the need to build inventories to offset supply chain risk.  Companies have replaced just in time inventory approaches with higher inventory levels to offset the supply chain problems.  In addition to building inventory quantity levels, the per unit value of the inventory has been increasing as evidenced by inflation at 40-year highs.  The June CPI was 9.1% and the June PPI was 11.3%. 
  • Terry Keating - Access Capital - Headshot -2022 Interview with Terry Keating, CEO of Access Capital
    Aug 9, 2022

    In June, Access Capital, a leading independent lender to the staffing industry, announced it named Terry Keating chief executive officer. Recently TSL Express’ senior editor met with Keating to discuss how his career trajectory helped prepare him for this role, his goals and responding to some of the challenges the industry is experiencing.

  • LauraJakubowski_GoldbergKohn_150 SFNet International Finance & Development Committee Launches ABL Cross-Border Database
    Jul 28, 2022

    SFNet's International Finance and Development Committee has recently announced the launch of its ABL Cross-Border Database.  The database is a comprehensive compilation of information from publicly available credit agreements in large cross-border asset-based loans. The database currently includes 61 transactions, representing all ABL cross-border transactions closed and filed with the SEC from 2011 to present (excluding those transactions involving only the United States and Canada), and will be updated regularly to cover new transactions. 

  • Eileen Wubbe 150x150 SFNet's YoPro Leadership Summit Is Back in Person
    Jul 26, 2022
    After two years of virtual and hybrid conferences, SFNet's YoPro Leadership Summit returns in person August 3 to 4, 2022 at King & Spalding LLP in Atlanta, GA.  Young professionals of the secured finance industry will hear from industry leaders, connect with peers, and discover together how to find success in new, flexible work structures. This year’s speakers and panelists will provide a market perspective, share an e-commerce update, and discuss diversity, equity and inclusiveness initiatives. In addition, attendees will have the opportunity to hear from industry titans and former SFNet 40 Under 40 Award winners. We’ll also have small-group networking sessions, icebreakers, group social activities and receptions in the evening.
  • Juanita Schwartzkopf_150 What Are the Top Cybersecurity Concerns for 2022?
    Jul 18, 2022

    With the second half of 2022 underway, it is a good time to evaluate cybersecurity issues and concerns. The cybersecurity front continues to be an area of significant risk for businesses. In this article we will explore recent trends, and specific industries at more risk of attack. For a perspective on the dollar impact, the largest payment in 2021 was a $40 million payment made by an insurance company. For a perspective on number of attacks, there is a cyber-attack every 11 seconds.

    The National Cyber Security Alliance estimated that 60% of small businesses fail within six months of an attack. 

  • Mignon Winston_150 Mentoring or “Holding the door for those entering behind you”
    Unless you’re the most junior person in your work environment, everyone should mentor their less-experienced team members.  Helping them learn should be as natural an effort as holding the door for those entering a room behind you.  These efforts will create experienced individuals with broad-based perspectives on how to approach their responsibilities within the secured lending industry.  Leaders within SFNet member organizations generally agree there is a lack of “bench strength” in the secured lending industry.  Greater preponderance of mentoring would tie junior people more to their organizations and to the industry as a whole.