From the First Brands saga to Trump’s tariffs, disruption in the UK non-bank lending market and a series of high-profile court disputes across the globe, these were the biggest stories shaping the trade finance industry in 2025.
Trade was thrust into the headlines in 2025 as newly elected US President Donald Trump slapped tariffs on the country’s top trading partners, threatening to upend global supply chains.
But a more diverse array of topics captured the attention of GTR’s readers this year, who were hooked on the First Brands saga, disruption in the UK non-bank lending market, a bumper crop of disputes making their way through the courts, the impact of tariffs and geopolitical turmoil, and the evolving roles of export credit agencies.
Here’s our round-up of some of the most-read articles of the previous 12 months.
First Brands: A US$11bn scandal
The September bankruptcy of US auto parts supplier First Brands rapidly spiralled into one of the largest scandals to hit the financial sector in years, with ramifications spanning invoice and inventory finance to private credit and asset management.
First Brands’ initial bankruptcy filings revealed the company owed creditors around US$6.1bn in on-balance sheet debt obligations, US$2.3bn in off-balance sheet financing, US$800mn in supply chain finance liabilities, and a further US$2.3b in factoring liabilities.
However, those creditors soon ran into difficulties tracking down the funds they were owed. Lawyers for Raistone, a working capital platform that had relied on First Brands for 80% of its revenue, said the expected income from factoring facilities “has simply vanished”.
In November, interim managers appointed to manage the firm’s bankruptcy accused its founder and former chief executive, Patrick James, of obtaining billions of dollars in financing against non-existent or doctored invoices, as well as inventory that had already been transferred or pledged elsewhere.
James has denied the claims as “baseless and speculative”.
Working capital provider Katsumi Global has said it is owed more than US$1.7bn by First Brands, and Bank ABC and ING Belgium have said they invested in Katsumi-originated receivables.
Jefferies, whose Point Bonita fund had a quarter of its trade finance assets linked to First Brands, is reportedly facing an investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
More trouble for UK non-bank lending market
Once touted as a much-needed remedy to bank retrenchment from commodity and trade finance, the non-bank lending sector continues to face upheaval.
London-based Artis Finance, which facilitated financing for mid-sized corporates primarily in Southeast Asia, entered administration in March, adding to a growing list of lenders to exit the space.
The administrators revealed that an internal investigation had uncovered “alleged misrepresentation” in reports provided to noteholders, which may have given an incorrect view of the performance of its loan portfolio. They said little recovery for creditors was expected.
The company’s downfall also had a knock-on effect elsewhere in the sector: a dispute between Artis and UK-based commodity trader DL Hudson over several buyer defaults on trades financed by Artis, led to DL Hudson filing for administration in November.
Separately, creditors of another UK non-bank trade lender, Stronghold Global Finance, were told in October they may not recover any funds from the company’s estate. Stronghold had been placed into liquidation the previous year, owing creditors at least £1.28mn, and has been the subject of legal action over a financing facility that allegedly never materialised.
The previous December, UK-based invoice financing firm Stenn was placed into administration following accusations of involvement in suspicious activity. The same month, Kimura Capital closed its London-based lending business and returned funds to institutional investor backers.
Disputes and defaults
As usual, trade finance disputes kept courts from Singapore to the Cayman Islands busy with rows over defaults, insurance and allegations of fraud.
The most high-profile case was the trial of Trafigura’s US$600mn claim against Indian businessman Prateek Gupta, which kicked off in London’s High Court. During the proceedings it was revealed the commodity trader’s trade finance team had sounded alarm bells about trading nickel with Gupta in 2020. Trafigura sought to prove it was the victim of a sophisticated fraud, while Gupta countered that the trader’s employees were complicit.
South Sudan’s hefty oil-backed debts spurred litigation in London, including a US$657mn judgment in favour of Afreximbank, and an injunction over an oil cargo said to be pledged to commodity trader BB Energy.
Also in London, administrators of failed energy company Prax said there was a “large hole” in its receivables securitisation facility.
Elsewhere, a company connected to crypto tycoon Justin Sun won a worldwide freezing order against the Aria Commodity Finance Fund, in which it had invested almost half a billion dollars in stablecoin reserves.
Years-old frauds and defaults continued to play out in the courts – although at a noticeably lower tempo than previous years – including a trade credit insurance case won by QBE and an unsuccessful appeal by Maersk against an order to pay Singaporean bank UOB over a Hin Leong cargo.
Meanwhile, BNP Paribas also alleged that collapsed trader Gulf Petrochem issued false invoices, knowledge of which was denied by former “owner-operator” Prerit Goel.
Tariff turmoil
The year kicked off with the second inauguration of US President Donald Trump and, several months later, his announcement that ‘Liberation Day’ had arrived in the form of steep tariffs for key trading partners.
The news prompted a range of responses, with the World Trade Organization (WTO) warning that global goods trade was expected to shrink in the wake of President Trump’s tariff overhaul.
In the trade finance world, many banks opted to “wait and see” what would happen. In May, HSBC chief executive Georges Elhedery said there has been a “major slowdown” in US-China trade flows, but that trade was strong elsewhere.
That month, the bank unveiled a tariff financing product designed to help US clients facing an increase in upfront import duties.
In July, Citi chief executive Jane Fraser was also upbeat about the performance of the bank’s trade and treasury solutions business.
Trade finance fund managers faced skittish investors, but many remain convinced the asset class will prove resilient. Bertrand de Comminges, head of Santander’s trade finance fund, pointed to robust demand from multinationals – though he noted that the fund had withdrawn from an investment in a company “particularly” hit by levies on US imports.
Despite the trade finance community remaining largely unbothered, the WTO has warned that the impact of US tariffs may only be felt next year.
ECAs evolve
Export credit agencies (ECAs) continued to support projects that serve their nation’s geopolitical alliances, be it shoring up critical mineral supplies, backing the energy transition or bolstering defence.
The Berne Union revealed that renewable energy had become the second-biggest sector for medium-and long-term business among its members, driven by support for offshore wind farms.
Worldwide, ECAs supported a range of critical minerals and renewables projects, as well as helping to boost financing for Ukraine’s reconstruction.
The Export and Investment Fund of Denmark guaranteed US$420mn in financing to expand a Ukrainian wind farm, while a consortium of ECAs and banks came together to provide a €1.2bn funding package to Vulcan Energy for a major lithium project in Germany.
Untied support soared too, continuing the rapid growth seen over the past few years.
One of the biggest stories involving ECAs was UK Export Finance and Dutch ECA Atradius DSB mostly withdrawing support for TotalEnergies’ US$20bn liquefied natural gas development in Mozambique – though the energy giant quickly made up the difference.
The project has been beset by civil unrest for several years and ECA involvement sharply criticised by environmental campaigners.
Elsewhere, ECAs and their sustainability track record were reported to be faring better.
The first annual report of the Net Zero Export Credit Agencies Alliance found that the ECAs of Denmark, Finland and Canada had publicly reported drops in their greenhouse gas emissions.
For some, though, no matter how much ECAs innovate, it’s just never enough.