Trade Finance Officer

About the role

PearlRun moves physical agricultural and industrial commodities between South East Asia, the mainland and the Middle East. Every cargo has a funding structure behind it, and the trade finance team of five is what turns a trader's handshake into a shipment the bank will finance.

Working in-house is a different job from the bank side. Here you are the applicant, not the issuer: you negotiate the LC terms our counterparties will accept, keep documents clean under UCP 600 so we get paid on presentation, and manage the utilisation of eight bank lines totalling around US$220 million.

The seat opened when our previous officer relocated. You will report to the Trade Finance Manager and sit beside the traders on the Sheung Wan floor — close enough that they will ask you before they agree a payment term, which is exactly the point.

What you'll do

• Prepare and check import and export letters of credit, standby LCs and documentary collections under UCP 600 and ISBP.
• Review shipping and title documents for discrepancies before presentation, and resolve them with counterparties fast.
• Manage utilisation across bank facilities, monitor borrowing base availability and prepare drawdown requests.
• Coordinate with traders, operations and shipping agents to align document flow with vessel schedules.
• Maintain trade finance records, cargo insurance certificates and inspection reports for audit and lender reporting.
• Prepare monthly facility utilisation and ageing reports for the finance director and the lending banks.

What we're looking for

• 4+ years in trade finance operations at a bank, trading house or freight-related business.
• Detailed working knowledge of UCP 600, URC 522 and Incoterms 2020.
• Higher diploma or above in business, banking, logistics or a related field.
• Native Cantonese with business English and Mandarin — counterparties span three markets.
• The patience to check a bill of lading five times, because the sixth read is where the discrepancy is.

Nice to have

• CDCS certification.
• Experience with structured commodity or borrowing base facilities.
• Exposure to physical agricultural or metals cargoes.

What you get

• 13th month plus a discretionary bonus tied to the firm's trading year
• Medical and dental cover extended to spouse and children
• Guaranteed 6pm finish outside shipment peaks — we track overtime and honour it
• 16 days annual leave rising with service
• CDCS sponsorship and exam leave