JP Morgan Chase plans logistics service entry

JPMorgan Chase Bank, the only global bank to have integrated trade logistics services with its financing solutions, plans to offer these services to companies in India.

The US-based bank would be seeking the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) approval to offer logistics management, a service alien to banks, to its clients in India.

JPMorgan Chase, a financial services firm with $1.4 trillion of assets, provides logistics management solutions through its subsidiary JPMorgan Chase Vastera.

The integration of logistics management with financial services is aimed at helping corporate clients ensure they are compliant with all the customs regulations of foreign countries, and also to save them from accidentally violating trade regulations.

"We will be going through the due (regulatory) process in India," said Asif Raza, head of Asia Pacific, trade and logistics management treasury services, at JPMorgan Chase Bank in Singapore.

Normally, companies avail of only financing solutions from banks and manage logistics requirements on their own.

Companies can also outsource to JPMorgan functions like keeping track of utilisation of benefits like duty concessions under free trade agreements (FTAs) and bilateral trade agreements.

"We make sure companies avail of all the benefits due to them under various trade agreements. Normally, companies end up availing only a small portion of the benefits," Raza said.

Regulatory requirements have changed constantly across the globe and several large companies have faced fines for violations of trade regulations. JPMorgan claims its integration of physical trade with financial trade solutions save substantial dollars for companies, as it ensures seamless customs compliance, supply chain performance, documentation fulfilment and global visibility.