News and Blogs Helping clients navigate global trade: Chen Zhao’s journey

Given how well qualified and experienced Chen Zhao already was before he took the CITR exam, why did he want to do it?

“My work focuses on letters of credit and documentary collection,” he says. “We’re there to help solve the toughest trade problems for many Chinese exporters so the more you know about the risks in global trade the better.”

He says that the major problems that firms need help to navigate include the fundamental challenge of ensuring that you get paid, very strict compliance rules in some jurisdictions, and increasing geopolitical tensions.

“Big companies are expanding their business all over the world, so trade bankers really need to know what they’re doing in order to be able to help them,” says Chen Zhao. Because of the depth of Chen Zhao’s experience in trade finance, the CCPIT Training Center invited him to share his experience in an online talk designed to help others understand the principles of letters of credit and the UCP600 rule.

Would he recommend working in trade finance? “It’s a very interesting and challenging career,” says Chen Zhao. “It can give you new insight into both domestic and international issues. It’s also important. Our crucial role is to help not only in the domestic market but also to assist Chinese companies that want to do business around the world. When our companies thrive, so do our people.”

As Chen Zhao further develops his own career, he wants to learn more about international supply chains and is thinking about sitting the Certificate in Supply Chain Finance (CSCF). “The process of how raw materials are moved to the manufacturer, who passes finished goods onto the retailer, who provides them to the customer is fascinating,” he says.

Does Chen Zhao have any advice for others building a career in trade finance? “It’s very important to pay attention to your daily work, and to learn from other people, especially the experts.” he says. “You need to think about how the rules and principles are applied in practice. If you do that, you will do a much better job and you will also find it much easier to study for exams like CITR.”

Trade bankers need to put time and effort into continuous learning and professional development. Does that sort of commitment still make sense in a world where artificial intelligence can increasingly automate many business processes?

Chen Zhao argues that it does.