Robert Frank Email & Phone Number

London, United Kingdom, Gb

London, United Kingdom, Gb

Relocating from Gerald’s London HQ to its Stamford office to enhance overall management of the Group’s international trade credit/political/investment-related risk insurance programs, along with providing insured transaction implementation/funding solutions in support of the Group's structured trade and commodity finance / merchant banking requirements.

London, United Kingdom, Gb

Merchant Banking:●$3+ billion of international merchant finance transactions structured and implemented for this privately held commodities trading company.●Solicited and arranged funding from a broad network of international banks to finance the production, sale and/or purchase of non-ferrous and precious metals, raw materials and capital equipment.●Integrated merchant financing to support medium and long-term commercial contracts with governmental and private sector counterparties, including producers, smelters, industrial consumers, fabricators and select commercial and central banks in Russia, China, Central/Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Middle East, Africa, and Latin America.Trade Credit/Political Risk Insurance:●Structured comprehensive risk insurance programs to mitigate the political, performance, and trade credit risks of financed merchant banking transactions.●Negotiated and closed trade credit and political risk insurance policies issued by Lloyds of London syndicates, private market underwriters and multilateral and government-owned insurers.●Evaluated political risk insurance programs to mitigate the company’s exposure to the perils of confiscation, expropriation, nationalization and deprivation of use for an African mining/production asset, and arranged investment insurance cover to privatize a state-owned trade and development bank in Mongolia.

●Established the Northeast Regional Office for this Houston-based broker of international trade credit and political risk insurance, and implemented an aggressive marketing strategy to expand the company’s international insurance client portfolio and revenue stream.●Solicited, arranged and closed risk mitigation and trade finance programs for commercial and industrial corporations throughout the northeast US.

●Co-founded one of the first US/Russian finance companies exclusively dedicated to advising, structuring, and arranging trade and investment transactions between US corporations and the Russian Federation.●Developed comprehensive business plan and marketing strategy, established revenue targets and budgets, legal framework, administrative guidelines, and bank relationships to commence operations. ●Directed the division tasked with implementing structured trade finance programs on behalf of US corporations and Russian State-owned and private sector enterprises. ●Solicited and closed retainer and success fee-based trade and finance advisory engagements with US middle market, Fortune 1,000 and commodity company clients.●Sourced, negotiated, structured, and closed one of the largest export finance/defense conversion projects ever arranged between the US, Europe and Russia to retrofit a Russian defense plant from producing aluminum skins for jet fighters to producing foil packaging for food and medicine. The program comprised a $135 million US Export-Import Bank credit guaranty and a sovereign guaranty from Russia’s State Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs (VEB).

Us

●Recruited into Agency’s Career Training Program for university graduates specializing in international affairs. Granted security clearance "TOP SECRET UMBRA".●Assigned to Operations Center, Office of Current Intelligence, Soviet Union/East Europe Desk.●Subsequently assigned to Joint Intelligence Command (comprising UK MI-6 and US CIA), CIA Station (US Embassy), London.

Master’S Degree, International Trade / Security Studies

Bachelor’S Degree, International Relations

European Economics, Politics And History