Export Canada given green light to provide temporary credit insurance capacity

With the passing of Bill C-10 on Mar.12, the Government of Canada has given Export Development Canada (EDC) a new, temporary ability to participate in domestic financing and insurance with private sector financial institutions, private insurance providers and the surety industry.
The temporary, two-year expansion of EDC’s mandate is intended to help increase access to credit for Canadian companies.
EDC is a Crown corporation that offers financing, insurance and risk management solutions to help Canadian exporters and investors expand their international business.
“EDC’s capacity to undertake this new temporary mandate has been supported by the government’s increase of EDC’s contingent liability, share capital and borrowing limits,” EDC says in a press release. “The Government has also increased the limit on the amount of activity under the Canada Account. 
“With this additional financial flexibility, EDC will bring enhanced capacity to domestic transactions that are creditworthy and supported by a viable business model, but for which companies are having a difficult time finding credit.”
EDC said it anticipates adding capacity to the domestic insurance market in three broad areas:
•    providing reinsurance to bring additional capacity to domestic credit insurers and help them to continue to serve their customers;
•    providing reinsurance and guarantees as additional capacity to the surety industry; and
•    providing loans and loan guarantees in the domestic market to assist companies facing challenges raising sufficient credit.
“We know we can contribute so much more if we partner effectively with others, private and public,” said Eric Siegel, president and CEO of EDC. “The partnership approach will ensure that we bring capacity to the marketplace in the quickest and most efficient manner possible, and will help maintain relationships between the private sector banks and private insurance providers and their customers.”