News

WASHINGTON - Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) President and Chairman Kimberly A. Reed today concluded a series of teleconference listening sessions with 30 of EXIM's delegated authority lenders, discussing EXIM's temporary relief measures and other efforts to protect both exporters and the taxpayer during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"EXIM's delegated authority lenders are critical to the success of U.S. exporters, especially during this challenging time," said Chairman Reed. "We have worked closely with the private sector to ensure that EXIM efforts to combat the financial impact of COVID-19 provide the necessary relief for our customers and the financial institutions we partner with."

EXIM's Delegated Authority program enables certain trusted and approved lenders to underwrite EXIM guarantees for medium-term export credits that fall below the threshold requiring EXIM board approval.

Chairman Reed was joined by members of her senior leadership team, including Chief Banking Officer Steve Renna, Chief of Staff David Fogel, Senior Vice President of Board Authorized Finance David Sena, Senior Vice President of Small Business Jim Burrows, and Senior Vice President of External Engagement Luke Lindberg, who also moderated the calls.

Many lenders expressed appreciation for the swift and helpful actions EXIM has taken to date.

On March 12, EXIM announced initial relief measures-waivers, deadline extensions, streamlined processing, and flexibility-for its working capital loan guarantee and export credit insurance programs to its customers, primarily U.S. small businesses, that now have been extended through May 31.

At a March 25 open board meeting, which included non-voting, ex officio Board Members U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, the EXIM Board of Directors unanimously adopted a resolution affirming its support of temporary relief measures including bridge financing, progress delivery payment financing, supply chain finance guarantees, and working capital guarantee expansions. EXIM also expedited a change in the fee structure of Delegated Authority and Fast Track Loans to give small businesses better transparency into the fee structure and lower the fee rate by an average of 10 basis points.

ABOUT EXIM:

EXIM is an independent federal agency that promotes and supports American jobs by providing competitive and necessary export credit to support sales of U.S. goods and services to international buyers. A robust EXIM can level the global playing field for U.S. exporters when they compete against foreign companies that receive support from their governments. EXIM also contributes to U.S. economic growth by helping to create and sustain hundreds of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. In recent years, approximately 90 percent of the total number of the agency's authorizations has directly supported small businesses. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt.

For more information about EXIM, please visit www.exim.gov.