RAL - BUILDING CLIENT BASE
australia
C5
\JïUJL vUZOVic*
12
What's News Issue 1 January 1996
And I think we are a very
welcome new element,
especially for farmers. Banks
here tend to be bureaucratie.
We try to make fast decisions
and cut through red-tape. It's
appreciated. But only by our
customers. When we first
arrived, the banking
community also welcomed us.
RAG generated a 31 percent
increase in total revenue over
1995.
Now, they are not so friendly
anymore. I think we've
frightened them. We are pretty
aggressive. I don't mean
pricing, but in the quality of
our products. And we have
very good people on the
ground. Who have excellent
agribusiness know-how and
real expertise in banking. We
actually manage to beat the
competition without losing
margin. And we intend to keep
it that way.'
DEAL OF THE YEAR
The transaction selected by the Rabo Australia Group as its 'F&A Deal of
the Year' is the AUD 53,980,000 multiple option facility for asset
acquisition finance of the Victorian Grain Elevator's Board (GEB) by
Vicgrain Ltd.The deal was arranged by Rod Campbell of Rabo Australia
with strong support from lan Charlton (left), the state manager for
PIBA's operations in Victoria.The Victorian GEB was the last of Australia's
mainland bulk grain handling authorities to be privatized.
'We've already opened a new
corporate banking office in
Melbourne,' Broekhuyse
confirms. 'And pretty soon
we'11 be starting a branch in
New Zealand. So we have to
get our product range right. It
will have to be expanded.
We're currently thinking of
M&A consultancy, corporate
finance, structured finance,
and so on. And I think we'11 be
looking at leasing in the
future.'
similar to our position in the
Netherlands.' However, he is
quick to add that the Rabo
Group is a local player. 'Our
international links are
extremely useful, but our local
focus gives us a lot of
advantages.'
CORPORATE EX PA NS ION
Rabo Australia is making full
use of those advantages.
AGGRESSIVE
MARKETING
When Rabo Australia was first
established back in the 1980s,
it was a very small operation.
However, the acquisition of
PIBA just after a merchant
banking licence had been
granted, meant a lot of
publicity for the combined
operation. 'We've had a lot of
good coverage,' Broekhuyse
confirms. 'I think one of the
reasons was that we're a new
element in the market here. No
one has seen anything like us.
For the corporate division (RAL), 1995 has been a year of
major growth - in all areas. Assets have tripled and cliënt
numbers have almost doubled. According to manager Chris
Abbenhuis, indepth knowledge and expertise in F&A is an
integral factor in the corporate division's success.
RAL's current main focus is to
build up its cliënt base. At the
beginning of 1995, it was
servicing 38 customers. It now
has 68, of whom 70 percent
are F&A-related. Trade finance
continues to be a priority. But,
says Abbenhuis, 'we are
stressing on- and off-balance
sheet lending products and
structured agri-finance for the
F&A industry here.' In fact,
RAL has already come up with
an interesting new product
which was developed in close
cooperation with the rural
division (PIBA). 'We developed
a structured product in
seasonal finance,' says
Abbenhuis. 'It provides
facilities for the larger
agribusiness cooperatives and
corporates for on-lending to
their members/suppliers.' This
structure was used to provide
funds to BONLAC, a large
Victorian dairy cooperative
and resulted in five other
enquiries for similar finance.
VICTORIAN EXPANSION
'It is new products like this
which get you noticed,'
Abbenhuis believes. 'We've
been through very significant
growth over the past 12
months - not only in terms of
clients. Profitability and assets
have also increased, and we've
gone from eight to 14 staff. In
fact, we expect to have 24
people by the end of this year,
partly because we have major
plans for Victoria and New
Zealand.' An office has already
been opened in Melbourne, the
Victorian state capital, which
is headed up by Andrew
Davison. Formerly with RAL
in Sydney, Davison says his
New rural lending stands at 144
percent of budget for 1995.
RABO AUSTRALIA LTD
De corporate division heeft in 1995 de activa verdrievoudigd en het aantal klanten verdubbeld. Handelsfinanciering blijft de prioriteit. Het
succes komt óók voor rekening van de ontwikkeling van nieuwe produkten. Hiermee heeft RAL de aandacht van nieuwe klanten op zich weten te
vestigen. Ondertussen houdt RAL vast aan de filosofie van het aantrekken van gespecialiseerd personeel - een bijkomende succesfactor. In 1995 is
een nieuw kantoor geopend in Melbourne, de hoofdstad van de staat Victoria. Een derde kantoor, in het Nieuwzeelandse Auckland gaat binnenkort
van start.
