Faced with a mass of regulatory reform and the ill-effects of the sovereign debt crisis, transaction banking is set for more change. And despite the emergence of new competitors, the competitive landscape is contracting thanks to global consolidation. The Banker  speaks to some of the world's leading transaction bankers about their strategies for the coming year and beyond.

International business will become significantly more expensive if the impending Basel III regime does not make allowances for trade finance, bankers fear.

Short-term trade finance has come apart in Latin America but banks and governments are focusing on home markets to the detriment of a global solution. The effects are reverberating hard in emerging markets and a dependence on devalued commodities and over-aggressive hedging by exporters are exacerbating the situation. Writer John Rumsey.

Current WTO negotiations are encouraging a negative trend towards bilateralism and regionalism.

Bankers and governments have been moving back into trade financing in Africa and creating new financial structures to mitigate the risks.