8
worldwide
WHAT'S NewS Issue 4 April 1997
volatile market, or risk being
left behind. We are opening up
a market in a difficult financial
target zone, pushing into a
new environment. In a market
as complex as this you have to
understand the dynamics of
the whole chain, right from
raw materials to end product.
In fact, industrial rather than
banking knowledge is an initial
prerequisite.'
DEDICATEDTEAM
PLAYERS
The team-driven commitment
is instilled in all APFT
members. It has to be, Tozer
argues. 'Markets like China
can be a minefield. Committed
and open team work is crucial.
No single individual can ever
have all the necessary skills to
be truly effective. When we are
successful, it is due to joint
efforts and a combination of
every APFTers' expertise.'
According to Streefkerk, APFT
as a concept is not unique, it is
merely an extension of what
Rabobank has been doing for
the past 100 years. 'Although
we are operating in different
global zones, we still feel
connected as a team. We also
feel deeply connected to the
bank, connected to its history
and its culture. It's where we
get our kicks, our energy and
our hearings. Perhaps I'm old-
fashioned but, in my view, it's
very much the global-village
type survival thing.'
SKILLED INTERACTION
Patrick Guyver of the
Singapore team adds that
communication between the
clusters - as APFT groups
around the world are known -
is paramount. 'The whole
philosophy underpinning
APFT is that project finance
can only be transacted really
effectively if there is sound
cross fertiüzation. No one is
shy in our organization, so
there's no reason not to admit
Patrick Guyver
you have a problem. If you
need to know something, to
come up with a new idea, then
you bounce ideas back and
forth between the whole team.'
Guyver has any number of
examples of cooperation
between clusters. 'Fiere in
Singapore, we've been working
closely with our Flong Kong
people to assess a sugar
plantation in Vietnam. We're
also working currently with
APFT Australia on a dairy
project, which is Vietnam
again. The way it works out is
that Australia handles the legal
and economie side, while we in
Singapore provide the
specialized know-how on
Vietnam. It really is an
interaction of skills.'
KNOW HOW DRIVEN
This interaction also extends
to every discipline within the
bank. 'I like to think of APFT
in terms of a self-contained
unit, knowledge driven and
cliënt focused,' says Streefkerk,
'but with a very strong cross-
selling orientation to other
departments. We're not simply
selling project finance for the
sake of it. We want to create
value for customers by
searching out the best package
for them in terms of structures,
products and other services
that can be provided by other
colleagues in the bank.' What
the whole of the team would
like to see is more of the same
on a reciprocal basis. 'We
really need a stronger
integration with investment
banking and corporate
finance,' he argues. 'We're still
too focused on plain vanilla. If
we had more integration, then
we could generate more edite
value added, both for the
customer and for the bank.'
ONE-STOP SHOPPING
In addition to enhanced
cooperation with investment
and corporate banking, the
team also sees a growing need
for closer cooperation with the
various research departments,
mergers and acquisitions,
private placements, and so on.
'I think the market will dictate
a development in which we are
obliged to put all these things
together,' says Streefkerk.
'Customers increasingly want
the one-stop shop. They want
you to be able to offer them a
whole package of various
products and services, not only
F&A project finance. That is
the future and we have to be
ready for it.'
OFFICIAL FRAMEWORK
In spite of the team's
perception of itself as an
operation with a long way to
go and a lot to learn (the APFT
business plan was recently
Inge Skjelford
approved and sanctions
personnel growth around the
world to 50 by the millenium),
there are already highly
reputable agencies which see it
as a mature partner. One is the
International Finance
Corporation (IFC), the only
other organization according
to Streefkerk, which comes
close to APFT's expertise and
multi-disciplined approach to
project finance. In fact, the
two work closely together in
an official framework
agreement. Inge Skjelford,
based at IFC's head office in
Washington, is the APFT
representative working directly
with the idiosyncracies of this
international body.
IMPRESSIVE
INSTITUTION
'IFC is the corporate
investment arm of the World
Bank. The idea began around
40 years ago as a means of
assisting post-war Western
European economies to
develop. From that time, IFC
continues to be instrumental in
the emerging private sector
industries, which are springing
up mostly now in the
developing countries. As part
of the World Bank, the IFC has
a kind of de facto security net,
a protective umbrella in areas
such as taxes on loans, etc.
Things which can otherwise be
manipulated in politically
volatile developing countries.
They are a very impressive
institution with experience in
emerging markets in many
countries worldwide'.
GOOD VEHICLE
APFT has reached an
understanding with the IFC
whereby each provides mutual
support. According to
Skjelford, the IFC relies on the
aggression and expertise APFT
can offer and 'we count on
their intrinsic protection. It is
very much a two-way street.
VRUCHTBARE SAMENWERKING
Patrick Guyver in Singapore vindt de communicatie tussen de teams belangrijk. Als je iets moet weten of een nieuw idee nodig
hebt dan kun je van gedachten wisselen met het hele team. Guyver geeft voorbeelden van vruchtbare samenwerking tussen
verschillende teams.Niemand is verlegen binnen het team, dus er is geen reden om niet te praten over een probleem.
Inge Skjelford in Washington is voor APFT de directe vertegenwoordiger bij IFC. IFC is de bedrijfsinvesteringstak van de Wereld Bank. APFT en IFC
ondersteunen elkaar. Skjelford: 'Het IFC rekent op onze agressie en expertise en wij rekenen op hun bescherming op de achtergrond.'