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Quarter 3, 2010<br />

Communiqué.<br />

<strong>Visit</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>new</strong><br />

interactive<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> <strong>website</strong>.<br />

www.octetfinance.com<br />

More power to trade<br />

For assistance with your <strong>Octet</strong> Facility phone:1300 8 OCTET visit: octetfinance.com<br />

Sydney<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> House,<br />

108 Ca<strong>the</strong>dral Street,<br />

Woolloomooloo NSW 2011<br />

Melbourne<br />

Level 8, Como Office Tower,<br />

644 Chapel Street,<br />

South Yarra VIC 3141<br />

Brisbane<br />

Level 18, Riverside Centre,<br />

123 Eagle Street, QLD 4000<br />

Shanghai<br />

1038 Nanjing Rd West,<br />

Westgate Mall Room 1608,<br />

Shanghai, 200041<br />

Shenzhen<br />

Suite 2617, L 26 Anlian Bld.<br />

4018 Jin Tian Rd,<br />

Futian District, Shenzhen<br />

Los Angeles<br />

10850 Wilshire Blvd<br />

Suite 1265, CA 90024


In late 2009 <strong>Octet</strong> opened its<br />

Business Transaction Portal to<br />

<strong>the</strong> North American market in<br />

partnership with North<br />

American working capital<br />

financiers to provide a system<br />

similar to that operating in<br />

Australia, New Zealand,<br />

China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.<br />

In response to increasing demand from<br />

existing <strong>Octet</strong> members who are trading<br />

with companies in <strong>the</strong> United States<br />

through its portal, we are now delighted<br />

to announce <strong>the</strong> opening of our own<br />

office in Los Angeles. As is <strong>the</strong> case in<br />

Australia, businesses and particularly<br />

small to medium sized businesses in <strong>the</strong><br />

USA are impacted by <strong>the</strong> general lack of<br />

available financing options for <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

working capital requirements – <strong>Octet</strong><br />

seeks to address this imbalance in <strong>the</strong><br />

US market.<br />

Clive Isenberg, Managing Director of<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> says, “Our <strong>new</strong> LA office will be<br />

headed by Daniel Mafrice in <strong>the</strong><br />

capacity of Executive Vice President<br />

Business Transaction Specialist, and<br />

supported by Ronny Grunwald. They<br />

will assist existing members who are<br />

<strong>Octet</strong>’s Total Working Capital Solution for Businesses<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> has now expanded its<br />

working capital finance<br />

product offering to provide an<br />

all encompassing solution for<br />

SME companies.<br />

<strong>Octet</strong>’s Total Working Capital Solution<br />

provides an integrated offering to<br />

companies that can finance domestically<br />

and internationally both purchases and<br />

sales, and provide o<strong>the</strong>r working capital<br />

requirements that will fund growth. This<br />

is particularly important in <strong>the</strong> current<br />

climate where <strong>the</strong> availability of credit<br />

for business particularly SME’s,<br />

continues to be scarce due to <strong>the</strong> lack of<br />

funds available from traditional financial<br />

institutions.<br />

Clive Isenberg, <strong>Octet</strong>’s Managing<br />

Director, says, “In order to fund growth,<br />

businesses are actively seeking ways to<br />

optimise cash flow by scrutinising <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

own balance sheets and exploring non<br />

traditional funding options. <strong>Octet</strong> is now<br />

in a position to provide <strong>the</strong> solution.”<br />

“<strong>Octet</strong>’s Business Transaction Facility has<br />

traditionally been used to optimise<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> Opens LA Office<br />

10850 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1265,<br />

Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA<br />

ei<strong>the</strong>r exporting to or importing from<br />

<strong>the</strong> US to increase <strong>the</strong>ir trading volumes.<br />

Businesses in <strong>the</strong> USA face <strong>the</strong> same<br />

challenges as those in Australia<br />

especially as far as <strong>the</strong> importing and<br />

exporting process is concerned. Even if<br />

<strong>the</strong>y can achieve competitive product<br />

cost structures through importing, <strong>the</strong><br />

general lack of working capital finance<br />

can prohibit success in <strong>the</strong> marketplace.<br />

<strong>Octet</strong>’s Business Transaction Facility will<br />

help US businesses to bridge this gap in<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir working capital finance.”<br />

Daniel Mafrice, Executive Vice<br />

President <strong>Octet</strong> in LA, says “There have<br />

always been large demands and<br />

insufficient capital resources dedicated<br />

to financing businesses in <strong>the</strong> USA.<br />

Although US companies strive to<br />

become more cost competitive both<br />

domestically and globally by outsourcing<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir production costs and importing<br />

goods from lower cost labour markets,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y still suffer dramatically from <strong>the</strong><br />

business cash flow by reducing <strong>the</strong><br />

critical timing gap between cash<br />

payments to suppliers and cash receipts<br />

from customers. With <strong>the</strong> recent<br />

introduction of <strong>the</strong> Total Working Capital<br />

Solution, <strong>Octet</strong> can now provide funding<br />

against <strong>the</strong> business’ accounts receivable<br />

and o<strong>the</strong>r asset based security.”<br />

<strong>Octet</strong>’s accounts receivable and asset<br />

based funding will be an additional<br />

source of finance available for<br />

businesses when <strong>the</strong> unsecured line<br />

of credit is insufficient to meet <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

needs. The asset may be fixed,<br />

such as property, or a current<br />

asset such as trade receivables.<br />

The business will have <strong>the</strong><br />

flexibility to draw down cash to<br />

<strong>the</strong> value of <strong>the</strong> facility limit or<br />

to allocate an amount to utilise<br />

under <strong>the</strong>ir Purchase Facility.<br />

Clive explains, “This is a true<br />

innovation for Australian businesses<br />

because it will provide an effective<br />

solution to maintain <strong>the</strong>ir working<br />

capital flow. There is no o<strong>the</strong>r facility in<br />

working capital constraints importing<br />

puts on <strong>the</strong>ir businesses.”<br />

“The <strong>Octet</strong> product is a true innovation<br />

to <strong>the</strong> US marketplace. <strong>Octet</strong> offers<br />

businesses <strong>the</strong> ability to match <strong>the</strong><br />

timing of <strong>the</strong>ir cash flow needs to that of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir vendors and customers. It bridges<br />

<strong>the</strong> major time gap and burden that<br />

importing puts on working capital and<br />

cash flow needs. While <strong>the</strong>re are o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

competitors working on building similar<br />

products, none seem to provide <strong>the</strong><br />

direct solution for increasing business<br />

working capital flow like <strong>Octet</strong>’s<br />

platform. I believe that <strong>Octet</strong>’s approach,<br />

which causes no interference with<br />

current transactions and ordering<br />

processes, makes it a key differentiator<br />

to o<strong>the</strong>r products in <strong>the</strong> market for<br />

businesses seeking import and<br />

exporting finance. This makes it <strong>the</strong><br />

best choice for businesses.”<br />

<strong>the</strong> Australian market like <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong><br />

Total Working Capital Solution. Whe<strong>the</strong>r<br />

your business is purchasing, selling or<br />

simply needs additional working capital<br />

finance to fuel growth, <strong>Octet</strong> can<br />

provide all of <strong>the</strong> above.”<br />

Patrica Kruse<br />

National<br />

Manager<br />

Marketing and<br />

New Membership<br />

Patricia Kruse joined <strong>Octet</strong> in 2007,<br />

bringing with her a wealth of knowledge<br />

in trade and financial services. Patricia<br />

has worked in <strong>the</strong> financial services<br />

sector in both Australia and <strong>the</strong> United<br />

Kingdom for over 16 years with a<br />

particular emphasis on SME financial<br />

management.<br />

Patricia has put her Masters of<br />

Commerce to good use; initially at <strong>the</strong><br />

State Bank of New South Wales, <strong>the</strong>n in<br />

underwriting at Trade Indemnity (now<br />

known as QBE), before moving into<br />

working capital finance and joining Clive<br />

Isenberg at Scottish Pacific Business<br />

<strong>Finance</strong> (SPBF). Patricia worked at SPBF<br />

in Australia and its sister company<br />

Kellock (part of Bank of Scotland) where<br />

she was seconded to <strong>the</strong> United Kingdom<br />

and Amsterdam. It was during her time at<br />

Kellock that Patricia was introduced to<br />

<strong>the</strong> excitement and challenge of<br />

international trade finance.<br />

Patricia said, “I was exposed to<br />

international trade finance when I joined<br />

<strong>the</strong> marketing committee of <strong>the</strong> world<br />

factoring body, Factors Chain<br />

International, in Amsterdam and it was<br />

something that immediately interested<br />

me. As a non-executive member of <strong>the</strong><br />

committee I travelled to numerous<br />

conferences and seminars on<br />

International Trade <strong>Finance</strong> in <strong>the</strong> USA,<br />

Norway and <strong>the</strong> Philippines. I learnt a<br />

great deal about <strong>the</strong> difficulties faced by<br />

SME’s in <strong>the</strong> international trading<br />

environment.”<br />

The ICAA Business Forum,<br />

held annually in cities around<br />

Australia, offers Chartered<br />

Accountants a diverse,<br />

engaging and interactive<br />

conference program to<br />

essentially workshop and<br />

refine <strong>the</strong>ir professional skills.<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> was proud to be a sponsor at <strong>the</strong><br />

ICAA Business Forums held in May 2010 in<br />

both Sydney and in Melbourne. The Sydney<br />

Forum attracted approximately 1,800<br />

attendees, including Chartered Accountants<br />

from <strong>the</strong> profession and industry. Similarly<br />

<strong>the</strong>re were 1,200 delegates in Melbourne.<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> sponsored and chaired five separate<br />

workshops during <strong>the</strong> two Forums and also<br />

ran business card draws with a prize of a<br />

$500 <strong>Octet</strong> Visa Card in both cities.<br />

“When I returned to Sydney in 1999 I<br />

moved into <strong>new</strong> business development at<br />

St George Bank, but eventually found my<br />

niche alongside Clive Isenberg at <strong>Octet</strong><br />

<strong>Finance</strong> in 2007.”<br />

“Although <strong>Octet</strong> is a relatively young<br />

organisation, I was drawn to <strong>the</strong><br />

challenge of building up a business that<br />

has a unique funding and trading<br />

platform at its centre. I believe that <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>Octet</strong> concept and process developed by<br />

Clive has all <strong>the</strong> features to benefit<br />

business whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong>y are big<br />

conglomerates or SME’s. <strong>Octet</strong>’s Total<br />

Working Capital Solution offers all <strong>the</strong>se<br />

companies <strong>the</strong> ability to fund both<br />

purchases and sales (domestically and<br />

internationally), and o<strong>the</strong>r working capital<br />

requirements to promote growth. This is<br />

particularly important in <strong>the</strong> current<br />

global financial climate where <strong>the</strong><br />

availability of credit from traditional<br />

lenders continues to be an issue.”<br />

“As a sales executive, it is really satisfying<br />

to see <strong>the</strong> positive impact that <strong>Octet</strong>’s<br />

Total Working Capital Solution has made<br />

to our client’s businesses. Helping our<br />

clients to grow and thrive despite <strong>the</strong><br />

fiscal scarcity in <strong>the</strong> current market<br />

demonstrates <strong>the</strong> effectiveness of <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>Octet</strong> solution.”<br />

Primarius Resource Management and<br />

Alliance Group HK has partnered with<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> <strong>Finance</strong> to provide savings and<br />

improvements by sourcing and managing<br />

product supply in smarter ways.<br />

Primarius’ focuses on improving inventory<br />

usage, which in turn improves working<br />

capital utilisation and increases<br />

profitability.<br />

“What we do is provide companies with<br />

<strong>the</strong> ability to understand product demand<br />

and create forecasts for <strong>the</strong> products <strong>the</strong>y<br />

sell,” said Paul McCarthy, a director of<br />

Brisbane-based Primarius Resource<br />

Management. “We <strong>the</strong>n use our planning<br />

tools to construct purchasing plans that<br />

increase stock turn rates and minimise<br />

product stock-outs. We’ve been working<br />

in China for a long time and have been<br />

sourcing product via our strategic<br />

partners, Alliance Group HK, for<br />

Australian businesses.”<br />

“Alliance takes out all <strong>the</strong> headaches for<br />

our customers. They have offices all over<br />

China, <strong>the</strong>y share <strong>the</strong> same language and<br />

cultural background as <strong>the</strong> suppliers, and<br />

<strong>the</strong>y know how to negotiate. Alliance are<br />

linked into our forecasting and demand<br />

planning systems, and <strong>the</strong>y can feed<br />

forecasts to <strong>the</strong> suppliers so that<br />

suppliers know what our customers need<br />

all <strong>the</strong> time, even identifying when<br />

products could run out of stock and be<br />

able to do something about it. This has<br />

made a huge impact in reducing costs<br />

and lead-times”.<br />

Willy Bagg, a Chartered Accountant and<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> Business Transaction Specialist, said<br />

“These forums provide an intimate and<br />

direct way in which to educate <strong>the</strong><br />

accounting profession on alternative,<br />

creative and non-traditional forms of<br />

financing that are available to SME’s o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

than from traditional banks. Accountants are<br />

trusted advisors to <strong>the</strong>ir clients so<br />

<strong>the</strong>y need to be aware of all<br />

available financing options to be<br />

able to provide <strong>the</strong> value-added<br />

services that make <strong>the</strong>m<br />

important to <strong>the</strong>ir clients. We also<br />

need to let Accountants know that<br />

accounting practices can offer<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> as a payment mechanism<br />

for <strong>the</strong>ir clients. This enables <strong>the</strong><br />

accounting practice to be paid<br />

quickly while still offering terms<br />

and a reward program to <strong>the</strong> client”.<br />

Primarius Resource<br />

Management uses<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> to add value<br />

and reduce costs<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> Communiqué / Quarter 3, 2010 More power to trade For assistance with your <strong>Octet</strong> Facility phone: 1300 8 OCTET <strong>Visit</strong>: octetfinance.com<br />

When <strong>Octet</strong> released <strong>the</strong>ir Business<br />

Transaction Facility for China-sourced<br />

inventory, Primarius immediately saw <strong>the</strong><br />

benefits it could offer its customers. “We<br />

saw a fantastic opportunity to fur<strong>the</strong>r<br />

decrease costs and improve value for our<br />

customers by working with <strong>Octet</strong>. I<br />

contacted Michael Knauf in <strong>Octet</strong>’s<br />

Brisbane office and we pulled apart <strong>the</strong><br />

service offering we could provide. Our<br />

idea was pretty simple – use our sourcing<br />

ability from Alliance to find suppliers who<br />

could produce <strong>the</strong> ‘right’ quality products,<br />

on time, every time, and at quantities<br />

that suited our Australian customers, and<br />

utilise <strong>the</strong> Business Transaction Facility<br />

with <strong>Octet</strong> to improve payment terms.”<br />

“Our China-based partners, Alliance<br />

Group HK, were happy to become<br />

involved and our concept became quite<br />

simple – for companies wanting to source<br />

product on a consistent basis from China,<br />

Alliance would source <strong>the</strong> product, handle<br />

all negotiations with <strong>the</strong> original suppliers<br />

and manage all China-based logistics. In<br />

<strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> system Alliance became <strong>the</strong><br />

supplier and gained first-hand experience<br />

in how simple and effective <strong>the</strong> system<br />

could be. We have two clients using <strong>the</strong><br />

system at <strong>the</strong> moment, with great<br />

results.”<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> Sponsors <strong>the</strong> Institute of Chartered<br />

Accountants in Australia (ICAA) Business Forum<br />

<strong>Octet</strong>’s ICAA sponsorship and participation<br />

in <strong>the</strong> forum resulted in many enquiries both<br />

during and after <strong>the</strong> show, allowing <strong>Octet</strong> to<br />

communicate directly with accounting<br />

professionals and providing <strong>the</strong> opportunity<br />

to form relationships that have a mutual<br />

benefit.


Michael Rom<br />

Director<br />

Net Starter<br />

Late in 2009, <strong>Octet</strong> approached<br />

Net Starter, one of <strong>the</strong> largest<br />

digital agencies in Australia, to<br />

take <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> brand online. The<br />

agency utilised digital technology<br />

(such as video, interactive<br />

financial modelling, and a holistic<br />

content management system) to<br />

enable <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> <strong>website</strong> to<br />

engage and inform its visitors.<br />

The <strong>Octet</strong> and Net Starter<br />

partnership has produced a<br />

<strong>website</strong> that communicates <strong>Octet</strong><br />

as a market leader, offering world<br />

class financial products.<br />

Michael Rom, Net Starter Director, led <strong>the</strong><br />

development of <strong>the</strong> <strong>website</strong> from <strong>the</strong><br />

detailed blueprint designed by Information<br />

Architects, to a rich user journey that each<br />

visitor will eventually experience. As a<br />

As <strong>the</strong> Manager of Information<br />

Technology, Ian Rees is responsible<br />

for turning <strong>the</strong> often complex<br />

array of financial services that<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> offers businesses, into<br />

comprehensive user-friendly<br />

details on <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> portal.<br />

With an accounting tertiary qualification and<br />

proven software developer experience, Ian<br />

joined Scottish Pacific Business <strong>Finance</strong><br />

(SPBF) in 1989 to build, extend and improve<br />

<strong>the</strong> application that enabled SPBF to service<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir clients. Since 2001, Ian has served on<br />

<strong>the</strong> Communications Committee of Factors<br />

Chain International, which is charged with<br />

<strong>the</strong> responsibility of overseeing <strong>the</strong><br />

management and ongoing development of<br />

<strong>the</strong> communications portal that allows its<br />

252 members in 66 countries to transact<br />

with one ano<strong>the</strong>r.<br />

Chartered Accountant himself, Michael was<br />

able to digest <strong>the</strong> key distinguishing factors<br />

of <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> platform from both an<br />

accounting and finance perspective and<br />

succinctly translate this to <strong>website</strong> visitors.<br />

Michael said, “Due to <strong>the</strong> high level<br />

competition in <strong>the</strong> market, <strong>the</strong> primary goal<br />

of <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> <strong>website</strong> was to deliver a strong<br />

message swiftly to time poor decision<br />

makers. Just like a bricks-and-mortar<br />

business, visitors form an opinion within a<br />

few seconds, so it is very important to<br />

deliver an engaging experience quickly that<br />

In recent months, Ian has been a group<br />

leader at Factors Chain International<br />

Communications Seminars examining <strong>the</strong><br />

feasibility of introducing a PO management<br />

product into <strong>the</strong> FCI community.<br />

Ian moved from SPBF to <strong>Octet</strong> with Clive<br />

Isenberg to set up <strong>Octet</strong>’s intricate online<br />

Business Transaction Facility and to oversee<br />

<strong>the</strong> development of <strong>the</strong> company’s portal.<br />

Ian says, “The <strong>Octet</strong> <strong>website</strong> is <strong>the</strong> first port<br />

of call for many of our clients to investigate<br />

<strong>the</strong> facilities that we can offer <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

businesses. It needs to be easy to<br />

understand, succinct and uncomplicated to<br />

navigate. Allowing our clients to find<br />

information quickly on <strong>the</strong> site has been a<br />

feature we have placed considerable<br />

emphasis on throughout <strong>the</strong> <strong>website</strong>’s<br />

development.”<br />

“We take <strong>the</strong> same care with <strong>the</strong> design and<br />

styling of <strong>the</strong> portal that our clients use on a<br />

day to day basis, as we do with <strong>the</strong> publicly<br />

“Allowing our clients to find information<br />

quickly on <strong>the</strong> site has been a feature we<br />

have placed considerable emphasis on”<br />

<strong>Octet</strong> Communiqué / Quarter 3, 2010 For assistance with your <strong>Octet</strong> Facility phone: 1300 8 OCTET <strong>Visit</strong>: octetfinance.com<br />

users can identify with. We delivered a<br />

comprehensive and cohesive message that<br />

could be easily understood by anyone in<br />

business, answering <strong>the</strong> most common<br />

question asked by prospective <strong>Octet</strong><br />

members – in relation to how <strong>the</strong><br />

product worked.”<br />

“The old <strong>Octet</strong> <strong>website</strong> attempted to answer<br />

this question in a detailed, feature-rich<br />

manner, which was informative – but overly<br />

complex. In contrast, Net Starter developed<br />

an immersive video presentation that walks<br />

users through <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> concept and<br />

value proposition.”<br />

“The video presentation is an interactive<br />

journey for potential clients, identifying<br />

inherent problems that exist in <strong>the</strong><br />

working-capital finance markets, explaining<br />

how <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> platform addresses <strong>the</strong>se<br />

issues and determining whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong><br />

offering is right for <strong>the</strong> user. In just a few<br />

minutes a user is able to fully comprehend<br />

<strong>the</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> offering and determine its viability<br />

for <strong>the</strong>ir business.”<br />

The <strong>new</strong> <strong>Octet</strong> <strong>website</strong> went live on <strong>the</strong><br />

15th June 2010.<br />

Ian Rees<br />

National Manager of Information Technology<br />

facing <strong>website</strong>. We want to ensure that <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

experience is a uniformly positive one.”<br />

Particularly as <strong>the</strong> <strong>new</strong> Total Working Capital<br />

Solution is now available for <strong>Octet</strong> members,<br />

<strong>the</strong> portal has become even more important<br />

because <strong>Octet</strong>’s reach has extended to o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

areas within our clients business and at <strong>the</strong><br />

same time opened up <strong>new</strong> markets for <strong>the</strong>m<br />

as well.<br />

“The portal helps our clients to apply online<br />

and get a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for approval in a timely<br />

fashion”, Ian explains. “Once <strong>the</strong>y come on<br />

board as a client, <strong>the</strong> portal helps <strong>the</strong>m to<br />

monitor <strong>the</strong>ir transactions and track <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

spending. The portal provides an overview of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir flexible funding, with a comprehensive<br />

back-end system to allow our clients to<br />

monitor <strong>the</strong>ir account. The <strong>new</strong> Total<br />

Working Capital Solution <strong>Octet</strong> has<br />

developed will provide our clients with<br />

greater flexibility in spending <strong>the</strong>ir funds, and<br />

still allow <strong>the</strong>m to monitor this spending<br />

through <strong>the</strong> Business Transaction Facility.”<br />

- Ian Rees, National Manager of Information Technology

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