TSL Feature Articles

Access to ready working capital is critical to the success of a business, whether it is for maintaining ongoing operations or investing in future growth. Yet, short-term liquidity constraints are common, particularly during uncertain economic times. Factoring can offer a critical lifeline – providing reliable cashflow, credit protection and trusted guidance to help companies navigate the current market challenges.

Asset-based lending offers many benefits to borrowers in need of capital, not the least of which is the partnership built between client and lender.

SFNet’s Crucial Conversations webinar, “The Value and Effective Use of Covenants in a Factoring Transaction,”

focused on why covenants are needed in a discretionary factoring facility; covenant types and reporting frequency; the art of picking the right covenant(s) and more. Here, panelist Hugh Larratt-Smith provides a recap of the webinar.

In December, Gordon Brothers announced that Norma Kuntz would be appointed CEO of the company, effective February 13, 2023. Ken Frieze and Michael Frieze will continue to serve the company as chairman and chairman emeritus, respectively.

Kuntz joined Gordon Brothers as its president and chief operating officer in June 2022 and quickly demonstrated her readiness to lead the firm. Prior to Gordon Brothers, she served as the chief operating officer and chief financial officer of global private equity at The Carlyle Group. Her nearly 25 years of financial services industry experience includes global roles within private equity, asset management, alternative investments and valuations, positioning her well to lead a multi-disciplinary global firm poised for growth.

Factors discuss what surprised them in 2022, California’s disclosure laws, rising interest rates, the move from ABL to factoring and what they expect 2023 will bring.

The global trade credit market continues to grow with increased international business opportunities and carriers making trade credit more accessible to the market. You may be asking – what is trade credit insurance? Trade credit insurance (TCI) insures your accounts receivables against losses due to bankruptcy, unforeseen insolvency, or protracted default. But, trade credit insurance is more than just insurance. Once your A/R is insured, it is a secured asset, and can be used to leverage many ROIs.

Why do companies acquire a trade credit insurance policy? Trade credit can help build a healthy pipeline of new revenue, increase access to capital, prevent a catastrophic loss, and strengthen an organization’s balance sheet. Here are the top four motivating factors for trade credit Insurance.

Many ABL professionals have little to no workout or bankruptcy experience thanks to the past ten years of relative calm. This article details the anatomy of an ABL workout and serves as a primer for many readers and a refresher course for more experienced lenders.

SFNet's Asset-Based Capital Conference was held February 11-12, 2025, at the Wynn in Las Vegas, NV. Now in its 17^th year, it is the premier event for those in the middle-market leveraged finance and asset-based finance world. Attendees walked away with up-to-date market insights from industry leaders, with panels ranging from the current state of the economy and industry, while benefitting from networking opportunities with key decision makers. Here, conference attendee Cheryl Mayo of Haversine Funding shares some of the key conference takeaways.

Sameer Kapoor is a seasoned Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditor Rights partner at Parker, Hudson, Rainer & Dobbs LLP, who provides legal support and advice to clients in defaulted loan workouts, various types of creditors’ rights litigation matters, and bankruptcy cases. Sameer’s client-first approach focuses on providing practical legal advice that efficiently and effectively mitigates the various types of risk faced by lenders.

Nominations for the 2025 SFNet 40 Under 40 Awards are open until Feb. 1. The Awards celebrate the secured finance industry’s rising stars. The SFNet 40 Under 40 Awards Committee Chair is Jennifer Wallace, loan portfolio manager, Wells Fargo Commercial Capital – Lender Finance. Here, we speak with Jennifer who shares her insights as a former winner on why SFNet members should consider nominating a rising star this year.

Throughout her career, Kristin has consulted with working capital providers to identify and resolve business challenges by leveraging technology. At Wells Fargo, her areas of focus include legacy application modernization, process improvement, automation, and simplifying tech stacks. 

Secured Finance Network posts Q3 survey results from bank and non-bank lenders

Data from the Secured Finance Network revealed generally mixed results in the asset-based lending market for the third quarter, with deal activity receding in response to fewer new client commitments, and the portfolio performance index improving for both non-banks and banks against already historically strong levels.

Tariffs, digitization, trade policy among top themes