A non-bank letter of credit (L/C) and trade finance provider with three offices in the UK has entered administration and ceased trading with job losses.

Legion Trade Finance (LTF) called in the administrators from business recovery group Begbies Traynor in May.

Trade services

Trade finance services offered by LTF included L/Cs, loans and direct payments with typical facilities between £100,000 and £2 million over the trade cycle.

Alternative trade finance providers have become an increasingly familiar feature of the UK financial sector as banks have steadily backed out of the small- and medium-sized enterprise market since the 2008.

Office closures

LTF's offices in Manchester and Birmingham have now closed, with ten employees being made redundant while the firm's office in Henley closed earlier this year.

The firm had suffered cash flow problems following a string of defaults, and the administrators are now working with customers to try and reschedule payment plans.

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