ECSA F.I.T. webinars - Finance, Innovation, Transition
The shipping and financial services stakeholders are meeting online to discuss the current opportunities and challenges of ship financing.
ECSA is organising an event to bring together regulators, maritime experts and the financial services stakeholders to discuss the currently ongoing finance initiatives and to find practical and usable solutions for facilitating the European ambitions.
In the times ahead, the European shipping industry is facing both opportunities and challenges.
The shipping industry needs sufficiently available and affordable financing to keep its commitment to work towards a sustainable economy. The success of the shipping industry goes hand in hand with the success of the financial services industry. Let it be regulator or market actor, the shipping industry and the financial services industry need to join forces to get one step closer towards the common goal.
European shipowners cooperate with the shipbuilding sector, ports, equipment manufacturers and the research community, to name just a few. This facilitates innovative and sustainable solutions to drive the whole maritime industry together towards a greener future in key areas such as air emissions, waste management, and the protection of marine life. The European shipping industry embraces these challenges and is committed to taking the global lead for green shipping.
The webinar will be held on September 9, 2021 (11:00am - 12:30pm CET).
This webinar is focusing on the short-term and mid-term financing needs and possible solutions for the entire shipping industry to advance in transition.
Programme:
1. Welcome speech by Martin Dorsman (ECSA Secretary General) – Introduction on ECSA F.I.T. webinars and brief summary of 1st and 2nd webinars
2. Transition
Setting the scene: Annika Kroon (EC DG MOVE)
Panel discussion:
- The nature of the risks involved
- Leaving no one behind
- Addressing transition financing
- Filling the financing gap
Annika Kroon (EC DG MOVE), Thomas Rehder (Carsten Rehder), Fabrizio Vettosi (B20 delegate on Innovation and Financing), Gust Biesbroeck (PROW Capital)
Moderator: Martin Dorsman, ECSA Secretary General
3. Round-up by Moderator
4. Closing remarks on ECSA F.I.T. by Philippos Philis, ECSA Vice President
For further information on the webinars, you are welcome to contact Francesco Tanzi, Senior Advisor Communications/PR (Francesco.Tanzi@ecsa.eu)
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Annika Kroon
Annika Kroon is deputy head of the Maritime Transport and Logistics Unit in the Directorate General for Mobility and Transport in the European Commission. Her areas of responsibility are related to logistics and digital transport solutions, but also funding and financing of transport. She first got involved with sustainable finance and the Taxonomy from the railways’ perspective and switched to the maritime angle in 2019. Before joining the European Commission in 2008, she has worked as financial and business analyst for various public and private organisations.
Thomas Rehder
Thomas Rehder has over 30 years of experience in the shipping sector. In 1981 he joined Intercontinent Chartering Inc., New York, as a chartering broker for 3 years. In 1984 he moved to Hamburg to work as a chartering broker with the family company Carsten Rehder (GmbH & Co) in 1984. Since 1987 he is managing partner at Carsten Rehder (GmbH & Co) where he also became responsible for the shipowning side of the business in 1996. Mr. Rehder has been active for many years in various trade organisations and has been President of the European Community Shipowners Associations.
Fabrizio Vettosi
A real expert on Corporate Finance, he’s been engaged in the Shipping Industry for the last 30 years and, throughout his career, he has established excellent relationships with most Italian ship-owners and some key international shipping players. Thanks to his long and recognized experience in shipping, he realized some of the most important operations on the Italian market as advisor, equity investor and in the structuring of complex financial operations of acquisition and development. In June 2020 he founded VSL Club S.p.A., extension of experience and track record matured through VSL. VSL Club is the first Investors Club fully dedicated to Shipping, Maritime and Logistic industry, prevalently sponsored by Italian respectful Private and Family Office operators, aiming to invest in the above mentioned sectors by flexible instruments through the “Club formula”. In VSL Club he assumed the role of Managing Director.
Gust Biesbroeck
Gust is a seasoned International maritime and ship finance professional. He has had an international career in the field spanning almost 3 decades in both commercial and risk management roles, based in the Netherlands, Greece and Hong Kong. Since 2018 Gust has focused on advisory work in the maritime space with a special interest in developing new business - and financing models - for investing in clean / alternative fuel propulsion, benefitting from his know-how gained through his involvement with the Sustainable Shipping Initiative, the Climate Bond Initiative, and several other projects and initiatives. In 2020, he co-founded Prow Capital, a fund manager focused on providing financing to the maritime industry’s transition towards a zero-emission future.
Philippos Philis
Philippos Philis is the founder of Lemissoler and has been Managing Director since its establishment in 1996. He has been appointed as Chairman and CEO of the Group since 2009. The Group is active in ship-owning, ship-management and ship commercial operations and chartering, as well as in R&D with focus on enhancing the ship’s efficiency and decreasing the carbon footprint. He graduated from RWTH Aachen in Mechanical Engineering, and he is also a Harvard Business School (HBS) graduate. He is elected Vice President of the European Community Shipowners’ Associations, immediate past President of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Shipping Chamber (CSC) and he Chairs the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Shipowners’ Employers Association (CySEA). Philippos is an elected member of American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), member of the DNV GL Cyprus Committee, and member of the Advisory Committee of the West of England P&I Club. He served as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the Board of Directors of USB Bank.
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Please note that this online event will be recorded and the recording is kept online as long as considered to serve the overall information and training purpose for the general public. Your participation to the online event involves your acceptance of being recorded, with respect to the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). You have the possibility to report any problem by lodging a complaint according to the procedure referred on ECSA website under Privacy and Data security Policy.
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