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The sixth Great
Southern
Business Money
Commercial Finance Dinner
February 2007
Our dinners at the Hilton London Paddington have
proved a great success over the years and in planning for around 280
people attending this year we were basing our projections upon our
experience of previous years.
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more...
The 10th FDA Conference, Rome
November 2006
All roads lead to Rome they say though not necessarily if you
entrust your baggage to BA. Such was the experience of several who
flew with the airline. My experience with it was different. When I
tried to book a flight for Tuesday 14 November, BA’s website
informed me that there was only club class available. How strange
then that everyone who used those flights reported them half empty.
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more...
IFG annual
meeting 2006
Rio de Janeiro
October 2006
Long time readers of
Business Money will be aware that, sad man that I probably am, but I
have always had a fascination with debt finance of business. I spent
28 very happy years as a banker then had the great good fortune to
be in the right place, at the right time, to launch Business Money
from my kitchen table in 1993 when life’s highway had thrown up some
ambushes and crossroads.
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More...
Commercial Finance Association (CFA) Conference
in Washington
25th - 27th
October 2006
Washington in the fall is a great time for sightseeing the capital
of the USA. There is the White House, Capital Hill and the multitude
of memorials along side the Autumn colours of the trees is
breathtaking. As I got there on Tuesday 24 October I managed a
guided tour through the main sites. Whilst it is not London, there
are some fantastic sights, buildings and memorials which I was able
to encompass in four hours. Washington was clean and most of the
people were friendly and willing to help. The underground train
system puts our London Underground to shame with its cleanliness,
feeling of space and easy to understand routes
Read More...
Manchester 2006
11 October 2006
It’s that time again… The Great Northern
Business Money Commercial Finance Dinner has taken place at The
Midland.
It
does not seem as though a year has passed since we last visited
Manchester for the annual commercial finance dinner but the archives
never lie, and it was in the October 2005 magazine that I last wrote
about the “Great Northern” event, so a year it must be.
Read More...
If the last conference
of this ilk was a big success, it has to be said that, despite the
near heroic endeavours of the team there, the hotel in which we held
it had seen better days and those were, regrettably, a long time
ago.
So this year, although we booked it last year before the
significance of the date hit us, we moved to the Copthorne.
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25 April 2006
Our first
conference was a success, although we felt that the location
could have been better. The second conference was a success,
and in the CBI Conference Centre we felt that we had chanced
upon a far better venue, but we still felt that there was
room for improvement – that there was a little something
missing. Our third conference was a success and this time we
think that we got the balance just about right...
Read more
23 February 2006
It is with great pleasure that I write this review
because the FDA has, quite rightly, decided that the annual
awards dinner should be an event in its own right and not incorporated into the
main annual FDA gathering, where the achievements of award winners are, perhaps,
not given quite the recognition that they deserve. The FDA courses and
qualifications are vital to the longevity of the industry and those individuals
who shine require acknowledgement.
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London, 9 February 2006
The
appetite of this industry to party never diminishes. 2006 was to be the year of
budget cuts and cost savings, yet the numbers for this event were so close to
that for last year as to make no noticeable difference. If the space for
pre-dinner drinks is only barely adequate, it makes for a cosy gathering but our
magician still managed to find space to entertain the assembly.
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Birmingham, 11 November 2005
The 13th annual
general meeting of the NACFB was held during the morning of 11
November in the unusual but delightful surroundings of the Botanical
Gardens in Birmingham.
Read more.
London, 20
October 2005
The Turnaround
Finance Dinner is always an enjoyable affair. Not just because it is
an excellent networking opportunity but also because turnaround, or
restructuring, is a sphere that I find truly fascinating.
Read More.
The Great
Northern Business Money Commercial Finance Dinner
Manchester, 27 September 2005
Manchester is always a
great place for a party and the pilgrimage to one of
Business Money’s annual northern dinners was no exception.
Read more.
The Business Money Small Business Factors Conference
Birmingham, 15
June
2005
Business Money spends its life working
with the business banks and invoice finance houses of
Britain though for the past few months it has become clear
that the small business factors are coming under increasing
pressure.
Read more.
The Great Central Business Money Commercial Finance Dinner
Birmingham,
15 June
2005 Following the
successful Business Money Small Business Factors conference on the
same day, most of the participants together with much of the
Birmingham professional community donned evening dress and headed to
the dining room for our first Birmingham dinner.
Read more.
FDA Dinner 2005
London,
12 May
2005 There had been a lot
of talk regarding the location for this year’s FDA Dinner.
Anecdotally at least, ExCel seemed not to be a popular choice and
whilst enduring an arduous urban trek across London from Paddington
to Royal Victoria Dock I could see why. But upon arrival the
facilities were fine and the bar area of the nearest hotel, the
Novotel, quickly filled as guests gathered and readied themselves
for the night ahead.
Read more.
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BCR Receivables Finance International 2005
Paris,
10-11 March 2005
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Paris in the springtime: an excellent location for BCR
Receivables Finance International 2005, and a wonderful opportunity for
the French to show-off their capital city in a bid to host the 2012
Olympics. If London is not selected then Paris would be my second choice
but I was still pleased to wake up on the morning of the conference to
the news that the French transport workers were on strike. This was,
after all, the day that the IOC was visiting to assess their bid. I love
France. It’s just so…different!
Read more.
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The Business Money All-Asset Finance Conference
London, 12 April
2005 On 12 April the Business Money team
descended upon the CBI Conference Centre for the second
annual all-asset finance conference. An impressive delegate
list once again and the prospect of a day’s discussion and
networking that would be beneficial to all concerned had us
all in good spirits and ready for what lay ahead.
Read more.
BBA's SME banking Seminar
1 March 2005
Over the past 11 years Brian has kept me informed on the, sometimes
almost bewildering, huge changes at the BBA. For its part, Business
Money says, and thoroughly enjoys saying, some of the more robust
things in defence of our bankers employing a direct and somewhat
less than diplomatic demeanour that may seem inappropriate being
uttered from the basement at Skinner’s Hall. Let me add that this
initiative is entirely driven by Business Money.
Read more...
The Great Southern Business Money Commercial Finance Dinner 2005
10 February 2005
I arrived in the foyer of the hotel early
and was not surprised that a number of the guests had made the same
prudent allowances for rush hour traffic. I found myself swiftly
furnished with ale and on the receiving end of the first
unrepeatable tale of the evening. You know who you are and I thank
you…for the beer.
Read more...
The IFG Conference in Beijing
17-20 December 2004
These are really exciting times for the International Factors Group,
with record numbers of members and sponsors. The conference welcomed
six new members and seven new sponsors. Over 50 members and sponsors
attended the conference, which commenced with a spectacular opening
reception including traditional Chinese dancing and the opportunity
to see in action many other traditional Chinese crafts.
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The 8th FDA Conference in Prague
1-3 December 2004
Like all great gatherings, it is sometimes easier to select the news
worthy points and ignore the fact that this was a hugely successful
conference. One of the key points of such gatherings is networking
plus socialising with fellow professionals serving a common cause.
It would not be the same without our great tribe of IPs brandishing
company plastic and ensuring wrecked diets and livers. This was the
theme of the leisure hours.
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The 2004 NACFB AGM and Dinner
17
November 2004
It has not been a year lacking in substantial elements of challenge
for the chief executive and board to face but, mindful that the good
name of the association is everything in the eyes of the sponsors,
the AGM was conducted in a manner befitting the occasion.
Read More...
The 60th Anniversary Convention for the Commercial Finance Association
3-5 November 2004
It was early – too early. Monday morning, 4am taxi to Heathrow (the
time a seasoned asset-based lending professional is just getting in
after a networking event).
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Smithfield 2004
2-5 December 2004
UK
rural business has had to undergo a lot of change recently, and the
CAP Mid Term Review that came into play on 1 January will mean that
landowners will need to change systems again, in some cases, to
access new forms of income and to qualify for Single Farm Payments,
so more upheaval is in store one way or another. But what is being
done to support the farmers through the transition period and by
whom? The Smithfield show seemed like the perfect place to find out.
Read more...
Turnaround Finance Group Awards Dinner
16
November 2004
On 16
November, some 170 guest converged at the Great Eastern Hotel,
Liverpool Street, for the 2004 Annual Turnaround Finance Group
Awards Dinner.
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Great Northern Business Money Commercial Finance Dinner
30
September 2004
John Spence will be known to many of you as
director, policy co-ordination and risk, Lloyds TSB, but he is also
known for his talent as an after dinner speaker. We were privileged
to have him as our guest at the first ever dinner that was held in
London to mark our 100th edition and even more privileged to have
him return for a second showing in Manchester.
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The 4th East European Factoring Association Conference - Vilnius,
Lithuania
14 September 2004
It was a pleasure
to be invited to address the fourth conference of the East European
Factoring Association in Lithuania and having prepared my
presentation on ‘Promotional Advertising in Factoring in the
Factoring Industry’, the flight from Bristol to Amsterdam thence to
Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, took a far shorter time than I
thought possible.
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FDA Educational Foundation Dinner and Awards
16
September 2004
The location: Café Royal, Piccadilly. The dress: black tie. The
invitees: Foundation students; lecturers; managing directors;
training managers; VIP guests; speakers and...Ben Lefroy.
Read more...
TMA Conference 2004
21
September 2004 If last year’s
conference agonised about the capacity to reach those businesses
needing the help of the TMA in time, this year’s conference tried to
examine, in some depth, the realities of turnaround. Is it working,
or is it merely deferring the moment of reckoning?
Read more...
Business Money 2004 All-Asset Finance Conference
21 April 2004
All-asset finance is here to stay in Britain. It is growing fast, it
is becoming more competitive. More American banks will be over here
to join in the party soon and if our major banks do not wake up and
start looking very closely at the situation then they may find some
healthy competition right on the doorstep.
Read more...
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