AI-Driven Overhaul Set to Reshape Trade Finance, Bank Executives Say

AI trade finance is set to move beyond digitising paperwork towards redesigning end-to-end processes, bank executives said at a Hong Kong forum during International Financial Week 2026.

HSBC’s head of global trade solutions Raluca Popa said digitalisation often replicates existing workflows, while the next phase will require rethinking processes to expand access to financing.

She said AI trade finance systems could connect directly to clients’ accounting or enterprise resource planning platforms, extracting and processing data within seconds.

Gilbert Lee Man-lung, executive chairman of Heng Sang Bank (China), said clients’ main pain points remain time, cost and uncertainty, and that technology can improve visibility and efficiency across supply chains.