World Trade Consult, LLC, of Memphis, Tenn. Is Named Ex-Im Bank's Small Business Broker of the Year
World Trade Consult, LLC (WTC), a trade credit insurance broker based in Memphis, Tenn., is to receive the 2009 Small Business Broker of the Year award from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) at the Bank's 75th anniversary annual conference in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, April 16.
WTC grew its Ex-Im Bank business from 10 short-term insurance policies at the end of 2007 to 39 policies at present, a 290 percent increase. The company, which serves businesses nationwide with supply chain protection needs, has an additional 13 prospective clients in the pipeline. Of the 29 new Ex-Im Bank policies developed since January 2008, 84 percent went to small businesses, many of whom had hardly exported before.
We view our role as an extension of Ex-Im Bank's outreach program, said WTC President and owner John R. Koch. Now we're seeing record numbers of small businesses aggressively developing international markets with the support of Ex-Im Bank insurance programs.
Koch travels around the country working with Ex-Im Bank regional staff to educate U.S. businesses about the availability and benefits of the Bank's insurance programs. His comprehensive referral network includes commercial banks, insurance agencies, federal and state government agencies and business leaders, as well as client referrals.
I truly believe that 2009 and 2010 will bring continued growth in the number of U.S. businesses that use Ex-Im Bank services, Koch said. With Ex-Im Bank's online application process speeding the provision of the Bank's services, and our preaching of the many export success stories to prospective clients, I believe the volume of applications will continue to rise.
World Trade Consult's enthusiastic outreach efforts are critical in helping Ex-Im Bank fight the current economic downturn by boosting small business export sales, which ultimately lead to more U.S. jobs, said Kenneth M. Tinsley, Ex-Im Bank senior vice president, Credit and Risk Management. The fast growth of WTC's Ex-Im Bank-related business and its strong advocacy of our products make them an ideal recipient of this award.
Ex-Im Bank's 34th annual conference on April 16-17 will be held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. The award ceremony will take place after the April 16 luncheon program which begins at 12:30 p.m.
For more information on Ex-Im Bank and the annual conference, including the current agenda, and to register online to attend, visit www.exim.gov.
Ex-Im Bank is the official export-credit agency of the United States. The independent, self-sustaining federal agency, now celebrating its 75th anniversary, helps create and maintain U.S. jobs by financing the sale of U.S. exports, primarily to emerging markets throughout the world, by providing loan guarantees, export-credit insurance and direct loans.
In Fiscal Year 2008, Ex-Im Bank authorized $3.2 billion - more than 22 percent of total authorizations - in direct support of U.S. small businesses as primary exporters. The Bank approved 2,328 transactions for the direct benefit of small business exporters, representing 86 percent of the total number of transactions approved. In addition, an estimated $1.1 billion of Ex-Im Bank's long-term authorizations is attributable to indirect small business exports — goods or services that are sold by U.S. small businesses to other U.S. companies and subsequently exported.