Talking Trade Finance Header-1

Amanda Montano

Amanda Montano is an associate in the Trade & Export Finance team in the London office. She specialises in advising a broad range of clients on structured and unstructured trade finance and trade related disputes. Prior to joining the firm, Amanda trained with a City law firm, where she gained experience in international project finance, energy sector disputes and financial services regulation. Amanda also completed a six-month secondment with that same firm’s debt capital markets team in Singapore.

Recent Posts

Interpreting your contract in the wake of Russian sanctions – Commercial questions to consider

Posted by Amanda Montano on May 11, 2022 10:12:44 AM

Given the recent expansion of the regulatory landscape in light of the ongoing events in Russia and Ukraine, namely the imposition of extensive sanctions on Russia (and certain Russian banks and nationals), there has been a lot written and published on the black letter terms of the sanctions themselves. This update focuses on the common “secondary issues”, these being the commercial questions that arise from the implementation of sanctions that are most likely to impact on parties’ contractual obligations.

Read More

Topics: Force majeure, Russian sanctions, Frustration, Illegality

Can you make your trade finance transactions more secure with or without security?

Posted by Amanda Montano on Dec 9, 2021 3:20:04 PM

By Amanda Montano, associate, and Talal Khan, trainee

In the latest edition of Sullivan's webinar series, Geoffrey Wynne, Head of the Trade & Export Finance Group at Sullivan's London office, discussed key aspects of structuring trade finance transactions, including best practice approaches and risk mitigation. Geoff was joined by Jacqueline Cook, Of Counsel and Senior Knowledge Development Lawyer, who gave an informative overview of the key aspects of security used in trade finance structures. Here are some of the key areas discussed.

Read More

Topics: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), risk mitigation, financial crime risk

Digital trade transactions – what next?

Posted by Amanda Montano on Aug 13, 2021 3:49:02 PM

By Amanda Montano, associate, and Stefan Bateson, trainee

At the latest Trade & Export Finance webinar, Geoff Wynne, head of the Trade & Export Finance Group and Sullivan's London office, gave a whistle-stop tour of recent developments in digital options available in trade finance, including the multi-jurisdictional efforts to recognise electronic transferable records.

Read More

Topics: electronic signatures, ITFA, digitisation, URDTT, MLETR, UNICITRAL

Payments - Problems and Practical Solutions

Posted by Amanda Montano on Jul 22, 2021 2:57:59 PM

By Amanda Montano, Associate, and Raghav Vohora, Trainee

This blog post is the second instalment of our two-part series covering our June 2021 Trade & Export Finance Webinar, "Payments, Problems and Practical Solutions for Trade and Export Finance Transactions".

Following on from our recent coverage of the Revlon loan dispute[1], we briefly consider the nature of payments, as well as the consequences of making an erroneous or late payment. We also address the ways in which parties risk payments being diluted by virtue of forces beyond their control or as a result of common contractual provisions.

Read More

Topics: payment disputes, payments

What Happens if You Make a Payment in Error? – The LMA Responds to the Revlon Loan Dispute

Posted by Amanda Montano on Jul 2, 2021 2:33:56 PM

Few cases in recent memory have stirred up as much concern and controversy in the syndicated loan market—on both sides of the Atlantic—as the Revlon case.[1] The ruling of the New York federal court in Revlon was that the recipients of erroneous wire transfers made by Citibank N.A. (Citibank), acting in its capacity as administrative agent for a syndicated loan facility made available to Revlon, Inc., were entitled to keep almost $500 million of Citibank’s own money. This was notwithstanding the fact that Citibank had only intended to transfer $7.8 million in interest payments and not the $900 million or so that was actually transferred by mistake. Indeed, had it not been for some of the recipients returning the mistaken payment they received, Citibank’s losses could have been even more significant.

Read More

It’s a Digital World – Embracing Technology in Trade Finance

Posted by Amanda Montano on Jun 4, 2021 8:26:17 AM

By Amanda Montano, Associate

Following Sullivan’s recognition as a Leader in Trade for Innovation by Global Trade Review (GTR) for recent contributions to the digitalisation of trade finance, this is an opportune moment to recap the progress that has been made in this space over the past 18 months.

The various local and global lockdowns forced by the COVID-19 pandemic, which no one could have foreseen at the beginning of 2020, have put the spotlight firmly on the challenges of operating a paper-based industry—such as is international trade finance—in the 21st century and the practicalities of obtaining original documents (e.g. bills of lading and warehouse receipts) and wet ink signatures in a world where many are working from home. In considering how the industry has adapted, one thing has become clear—there is certainly scope to improve the manner in which trade transactions are conducted going forward.

Read More

Modernising Disputes: Practical Points to Consider for Litigation and Arbitration

Posted by Amanda Montano on May 7, 2021 9:05:16 AM

By Amanda Montano, Associate, and Theodora Okocha, Trainee

Although parties rarely consider dispute resolution provisions in any great detail at the contractual negotiation stage of a transaction, they should. Time spent on considering these issues at the outset will ultimately prove to be invaluable down the road should a dispute occur, saving time, costs and energy in the long run.

At the latest Trade & Export Finance Webinar, we looked at key considerations parties should take into account when opting for litigation versus arbitration and offered some practical tips to bear in mind for drafting dispute resolution provisions for your contracts.

Read More

Topics: Litigation, Arbitration, ICC, dispute resolution, LCIA

Financing Receivables – Structures and Issues

Posted by Amanda Montano on Apr 12, 2021 9:54:44 AM

By Amanda Montano, Associate and Andrew Thompson, Trainee

At the latest Trade & Export Finance webinar, partners Geoffrey Wynne and Sam Fowler-Holmes delved into the topic of receivables financing. Given the manner in which COVID-19 has impacted businesses’ cash flow and supply chains, financing receivables has, perhaps unsurprisingly, accelerated over the past year. With the recent fallout of Greensill, the ideal opportunity arose to discuss the nature of receivables finance, the challenges facing the industry and key factors in mitigating risks and achieving the benefits the industry has to offer.

Read More

Topics: Trade Finance, Receivables Financing

What 2021 holds in store for trade and commodity finance

Posted by Amanda Montano on Jan 29, 2021 11:16:39 AM

By Amanda Montano and Humzah Irfan

Jacqueline Cook, Senior Knowledge Development Lawyer at Sullivan's London office, broke ground on our first Trade & Export Finance Webinar of 2021, held on 21 January, and the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (the TCA) for the post-Brexit position was top of the agenda. London's Senior Partner, Geoffrey Wynne, followed with thoughts on what the trade finance industry should be looking out for in 2021.

Read More

Topics: Brexit, LIBOR, Digitalisation

Some Issues to Look Forward to in 2021

Posted by Amanda Montano on Jan 8, 2021 2:37:22 PM

By trainee Humzah Irfan at Sullivan in London

At Sullivan's monthly seminar in December, Mark Norris, partner at Sullivan’s London office, reflected on a roller-coaster year in 2020, breaking down key trade finance related events and picking up on common themes with a view on how issues from 2020 might feed into 2021.

Read More
Sullivan 4c

About the Blog


Talking Trade Finance is here to provide you with all of the latest updates in the Trade & Export Finance Industry.

The material on this site is for general information only and is not legal advice. No liability is accepted for any loss or damage which may result from reliance on it. Always consult a qualified lawyer about a specific legal problem.

Meet the Editor


lawson_ellis_highres

Ellis Lawson is a partner in the Trade & Export Finance Group in Sullivan's London office. He has extensive experience across a wide range of finance products and geographies, having spent significant portions of his career based both in London and in the Middle East and having advised on transactions across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Ellis is also a speaker for Sullivan's Trade & Export Finance webinars.

 

Subscribe Here!

Recent Posts

Posts by Topic

see all