In the fourth article of a cycle under the project "Business without borders" ("Biznes bez granic") run by Citi Handlowy we can read about banking tools and solutions allowing companies to build business loyalty in times of economic growth. The speakers are: Piotr Kalisz, Chief Economist of Citi Handlowy, and Magdalena Laskowska, Head of Trade Finance Department at Citi Handlowy

Enterprises need solutions that will help them build positive relations with business partners, reads "Rzeczpospolita". Poland entered a path to a clear-cut economic revival, which will be stronger than recently expected. It is based on a gradual growth in consumption and a slow-paced rebound in investments, which is additionally facilitated by an improvement of the economic situation in Germany, says Piotr Kalisz, Chief Economist at Citi Handlowy. A gradual return of economic growth creates a new challenge for enterprises; companies will adopt a new finance management strategy. Due to considerable uncertainty on the markets, companies had to focus mainly on results and strict cost control. Now, they have a chance to ramp up their revenues, however, the increase in demand will be accompanied by a growth in competition on the market. In the times of the economic crisis, the tolerance for delays in payments was high, companies were lagging behind even a few months. Instead of financing their operations with working capital loans, they preferred to finance it at one another's cost. These times are gone now and it is visible that the tolerance for delays in payments has decreased. Companies are attracting clients and they can choose the best ones, says Jacek Adamski, adviser to the Management Board of Lewiatan Confederation. Entrepreneurs are more eager now to ask for support from financial institutions, where they can find financing programs addressed to suppliers and consumers.
In an interview to "Rzeczpospolita", Magdalena Laskowska, Head of Trade Finance Department at Citi Handlowy, says: Building loyalty seems to be the key challenge for enterprises, both when the economy is growing and competitiveness is high and when we are witnessing an economic slowdown. In both situations, a need arises to develop solutions which would guarantee an entrepreneur an effective and flexible sales network on the one hand and a stable group of suppliers on the other hand. Financial institutions and banks have proper tools that can be applied in each of these areas, comments Magdalena Laskowska and adds: In the times of prosperity, it is of utmost importance to accurately ensure a stable chain of suppliers and recipients. As far as suppliers are concerned, an increasing interest in supplier finance can be observed, particularly among large companies. It started in Poland at the beginning of the previous decade and provides liquidity to the supplier, even in the case of extended invoice payment deadlines.

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