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San Francisco - Pacific Rim
POTENTIAL
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What'S NewS Issue 7 November 1995
When manager Bill Bishop joined the San Francisco
operation in 1991, there were four staff and a portfolio of
around USD20 million.Today, the 14-person west-coast
team has USD1.5 billion on its books and is hoping for an
upgrade to take full advantage of the massive trade and
investment flows to and from the Pacific Rim region.
'There's a feasibility study on-
going as we speak,' confirms
Bishop. 'If we want to issue let
ters of credit for trade finance,
then we would need a different
legal structure. At present,
we're still a loan production of
fice (LPO). An upgrade would
mean we'd be able to build on
the network the bank has es-
tablished in Asia.'
FOLLOWING TRADE
FLOWS
As part of the feasibility study,
survey letters have been sent
out to the whole of the inter
national network. 'We've out-
lined our current status and
asked for quantitative and
qualitative information on type
of exports, the trade services
they need, and how much of
that is going through the wes
tern US, say San Francisco,
Seattle, Los Angeles, etc.,'
Bishop says. 'We're hoping to
have the results fairly soon. It's
my belief that an upgrade
would actually make sense
here, especially when you
think in terms of Pacific Rim
trade flows.'
FOOD AND FIBRE
The potential upgrade is clearly
a hot topic on the US's west
coast. But the San Francisco
team still stresses their regional
focus, both on food and agri-
business and the new corporate
business they are trying to
bring in. 'I assume you'11 have
heard a lot about F&A and the
new sectors we're focusing on
now,' Bishop says. 'The last
thing I want to do is repeat in
formation as these areas are
clearly nationwide strategies.
But I would like to teil you at
least something about our
F&A business here because
there's one area where we're
rather unique and that's what
we call our food and fibre port
folio. It's probably one of the
most diverse in the US. Did you
know we have clients in over
200 varieties of fruits and nuts.
We're also involved in the
winery industry, of course. And
we do seafood, a little cattle -
nothing major, not like Texas -
some poultry, and even pre-
cious metais, like gold and
silver. Our clients are also in
grocery retail, veterinary sup-
plies, medicines, the timber in
dustry, forest products, cotton,
rice, Hispanic food processors.
And that is just a selection. So
you see no single sector dom-
inates our portfolio.'
INFORMATION
EXCHANGE
One direct consequence of San
CAREFUL WORK
Like the rest of the US network, San Francisco has also been focusing
strongly on health-care and the team's choice of a recent deal reflects
that focus. 'We worked hard on obtaining a mandate for a USD225
million liquidity facility for Catholic Healthcare West (CHW) which
operates 17 acute care hospitals in California, Arizona and Nevada,'
says corporate account manager Pieter Kodde.
The transaction financed the merger of CHW with the Daughters of
Charity National Health System. 'We underwrote the entire facility,'
Kodde explains,'which provides liquidity for an issue oftax-exempt
variable rate revenue bonds.This was the bank's first syndicated
health-care transaction on the west coast. We think the transaction
has positioned us as a major player in this industry in the region and
will probably lead to further business.'
Francisco's eclectic cliënt base
is very specific staffing require-
ments. 'What we need is gener-
alists, rather than specialists,'
Bishop explains. 'We've tried
to build a team of very ex-
perienced corporate bankers
who have solid experience on
the financial side. Then we can
equip them with the sector
know-how they need by bring-
ing in our experts from other
offices. We have set up a
regular exchange of infor
mation. Once a year, we get to-
gether to discuss industries and
sectors and specialists from
other offices spend time with
our corporate bankers in order
to provide them with the more
indepth knowledge they need.'
ON THE MOVE
If all goes according to plan,
there is one specialist the San
Francisco may be needing in
the near future. 'If we get the
go-ahead to start up trade
finance, then we'11 definitely
need an expert,' Bishops con
firms. 'But even more pressing
than that is a new location.
We've grown so fast, we're out
of office space. We're looking
at the moment and we'11 keep
you informed.'
SAN FRANCISCO - PACIFIC RIM POTENTIEEL
Nu nog als Loan Production Office (LPO), maar op korte termijn wellicht als kantoor, houden Bill Bishop en zijn dertien medewerkers zich bezig
met de financiering van bedrijven in de doelsectoren. Met het oog op de enorme handels- en investeringsstromen vanuit de hele wereld van en
naar de Pacific Rim regio wordt een studie verricht naar de verdere mogelijkheden.
Een speciaal aandachtsgebied zijn klanten in de voedsel vezel industrie. Verder financiert men de wijnindustrie, edele metalen, medicijnen,
houtprodukten, katoen, rijst, etc.
