Twenty years of cold chain

Qingyan Bank, established for nearly ten years, is one of the first urban commercial banks established in my country. It has ten branches in the province and its headquarters are located in Qingyan City.

The reason Hu Shutong kept contacting Qingyan Bank through Lei Xiaoxi was because he was eyeing a business that Qingyan Bank had recently launched – "Logistics Finance Connect".

Essentially, this is logistics banking business, officially known as "logistics bank collateralized loan business." Although it is a relatively new business, its prospects are widely regarded as promising, much like the booming logistics industry itself.

Ma Mingyu is the branch manager of the city branch, with a rank equivalent to the managers of the ten branch branches, not the head office manager. Normally, handling logistics financing wouldn't warrant a branch manager personally discussing such a matter. The reason Ma Mingyu personally intervened was because the business was still under internal discussion, and no funds had been disbursed yet. However, he couldn't withstand Director Lei's repeated inquiries, so he had no choice but to meet with Hu Shutong.

Ma Mingyu was in his forties. Because he was a local from Mozi, he had heard of Hu Shutong and would often hear about him during holidays. Looking at the materials in the man's hands, it didn't seem like he was handling business at all; instead, they seemed thicker and more convincing. The academic label made him feel that his expectations were indeed true.

"President Ma, these are the credit terms that Tongxing can offer. Please take a look."

As Ma Mingyu flipped through the documents, he gradually frowned, because Hu Shutong was not only providing business data and fixed assets, but also current assets, such as agricultural raw materials, which he was actually going to use as collateral.

This is undeniably innovative, but such assets are difficult to define. "Mr. Hu, isn't this collateralization of current assets a bit excessive?"

"President Ma, these agricultural raw materials are in a normal trade circulation state. For enterprises, they are not only current assets, but also the biggest assets in a healthy market environment. If only fixed assets are mortgaged, such as factories and vehicles, the development of logistics financing will be greatly limited."

"Oh? What do you mean by that?"

In recent years, banking policies have shown some favor to the logistics industry, but Hu Shutong's suggestion is still a bit bold. However, upon closer examination, his words are not entirely without merit.

For example, a small or medium-sized logistics enterprise with limited factory and equipment scale might be difficult to finance, let alone the amount of a loan. However, if the enterprise has a strong reach and substantial business volume, not providing logistics financing would contradict the policy of logistics banking promoting the logistics industry.

This also highlights the inherent disadvantages of small and medium-sized logistics enterprises. Without the addition of current assets, the difficulties in financing and obtaining guarantees caused by the lack of fixed asset support for small and medium-sized enterprises will never be resolved.

Therefore, it is even more difficult to refute, because this has never been a matter for Tongxing alone.

As he flipped through the pages, Ma Mingyu came across something that caught his eye and immediately surprised him, because it revealed to him a deeper understanding of "logistics and finance" from the person in front of him.

Although Hu Shutong's exposition may not seem systematic at first glance, some of his words and related arguments happen to coincide with what is being discussed within the bank.

For example, the "intermediaries" and "guarantees" he mentioned.

Intermediaries, introduced by logistics companies, bring logistics companies with financing needs to banks. Whether or not a loan is granted is entirely up to the bank. Guarantees, on the other hand, involve logistics companies providing credit guarantees to banks. In this case, the banks directly authorize the logistics companies to provide loan quotas, which the logistics companies then pledge as collateral.

These two points coincide with the system construction of Qingyan Bank's logistics and finance platform, but Hu Shutong had to be vague about these points.

The convergence of commercial banks' cash flow and logistics companies' logistics has already created a favorable environment. The integration of the logistics industry and financial services is not only relevant in the present but also crucial for the long-term future, and this path is highly feasible. In the revitalization of the logistics industry, the role of logistics banks is irreplaceable.

Ma Mingyu held Hu Shutong's documents in his hand and remained silent for a full fifteen minutes.

Gradually, Hu Shutong's sweat began to trickle down his spine. He was terrified of the quiet atmosphere. If Qingyan Bank couldn't lend the money, Tongxing's problems would be magnified infinitely. Ultimately, Hu Shutong didn't want Tongxing to slow down. Even if he himself was unsettled and under immense pressure, he wanted to give everyone the confidence to stride forward.

"Mr. Hu, I approve of some of your materials. Go back and wait for my reply. The bank still needs to discuss this."

"President Ma, if I may ask, how long will it take to get a response?"

Ma Mingyu laughed and said, "What? Is Boss Hu trying to squeeze me out of time?"

"No, no, it's just that things are a bit urgent, and we want to get things done as soon as possible."

"So you're in such a hurry that you don't allow us time to discuss it, huh?"

"No, no, don't worry, Tongxing will wait no matter how long it takes."

Ma Mingyu shrugged. "That's all for now. I hope it can be done quickly, but I'm sure Boss Hu is well aware of the procedures. I can't say when these materials will be available."

Hu Shutong stood up, thanked him, and walked out of the bank without saying anything more.

He got into the car and took out his phone, only to see a string of missed calls. Hu Shutong didn't call back; he knew what these calls were trying to say, so why listen again? This place needed additional payments, that place needed additional payments too.

Hu Shutong closed his eyes and leaned back in the car for a while. He turned a knob, and the song "The Original Scenery of My Hometown" started playing around him, instantly taking him back to a pure and tranquil time. He tried his best to calm himself down.

We've overcome the initial difficulties, so what are the hardships along the way? Besides, borrowing money and taking out loans are already familiar terms to us.

Now that it's established, all that's left is to accompany it on its journey.

Thinking of this, one becomes even more determined!

……

I've loved cold chain logistics for twenty years.