Jayanthara Raj Krishnan

A seasoned trade finance professional with a rich and diverse background in the banking and finance industry, spanning over 30 years. His career has been characterized by a series of challenging and rewarding roles in prestigious organizations, including Citigroup, Standard Chartered, Commerzbank AG, OCBC, etc., where he had honed his expertise in various aspects of trade finance management, training, coaching, and advisory.

During his tenure, he had the privilege of gaining extensive exposure to serving and collaborating with counterparts across Asia, Europe, and African nations. Some of his standout accomplishments include conducting seminars and training for several financial institutions and organizations, leading and successfully executing migration projects, which have been a testament to his dedication to technical, operational, cost-related, and process management excellence in trade finance.

His career diversification with various organizations has also led him to explore freelancing as a corporate strategic operations and trade finance advisor with organizations such as oil and gas, manufacturing, trading, and SMEs. His advisory consists of assessing and mitigating potential risks in local and international trading.

His career journey reflects an unwavering passion for trade finance and a commitment to excel in the subject field. He is very much looking forward to sharing the experience and knowledge gained all these years with organizations and fellow professionals in exploring opportunities for collaboration and growth in the dynamic world of trade finance.

• Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) Malaysia
• Master in Business Administration (MBA) Australia
• Certified Documentary Credit Specialist UK
• Postgraduate in Business Administration Australia
• Diploma in International Trade and Finance Singapore
• Diploma in Business Executive UK

1. Commerz Trade Services Sdn. Bhd, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (Subsidiary of Commerzbank AG, Frankfurt) (2012-2018)

• Started as Chief Operations Officer and later promoted to MD/CEO within 2 years.
• Instrumental in establishing a trade processing hub in Kuala Lumpur for Commerzbank AG.
• Responsible for setting up and hiring talents with trade finance expertise across the region.
• Managed company expenses, increased earnings and profits, and reduced expenses by 20% annually through process improvements and streamlining.
• Led the development of the "Commerz Academy of Trade – CAT" and implemented business processes, procedures, and new policies.
• Successfully rolled out pilot deployment in various Commerzbank AG subsidiaries worldwide.
• Actively engaged and motivated young managers, fostering collaboration between diverse branches to meet stakeholder, client, and business expectations.

2. Standard Chartered - Scope International Sdn. Bhd, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2010-2012)

• Joined the organization as a Senior Vice President.
• Addressed issues related to overcapacity, accuracy, people, and processes.
• Successfully contributed to improving and strategically resolving these issues within a year.
• Received significant recognition and rewards, including a promotion, within two months of joining, for the initiatives and ideas contributed.

3. Citigroup Trade Services Sdn. Bhd, Penang, Malaysia (1998-2010)

• Joined the organization as a Senior Vice President.
• Addressed issues related to overcapacity, accuracy, people, and processes.
• Successfully contributed to improving and strategically resolving these issues within a year.
• Received significant recognition and rewards, including a promotion, within two months of joining, for the initiatives and ideas contributed.