Info: Avoid Scam on Asset Based Financing

 Two types of asset based financing for your information to avoid factoring scams. For Working Capital. Shaw Capital Management and Financing offers asset based lending for companies that need to maximize their borrowing capacity using accounts receivable and inventory as collateral. Receivable based financing combined with inventory finance has become a useful tool for many undercapitalized businesses.

Shaw Capital Management and Financing evaluate a client's business assets as its primary focus to establish the borrowing base. The result is usually far greater borrowing power than can be achieved from a traditional cash flow banking approach due to our expertise in industry specialization.

 Bank Financing. Shaw Capital Management and Financing offer higher advance rates due to our experience in receivable valuation. In the event where the client already has a bank line of credit, an Inter-creditor agreement is made between the bank and Shaw Capital Management and Financing where the receivables are assigned to Shaw Capital Management and Financing and therefore allows the client to borrow at higher advance rates.

“Due to the recession, many businesses have seen their credit rating dwindle and in most instances, the credit of small businesses is based off of the business owner's personal credit rating. Small businesses have not been the only businesses that have been affected by the recession and stricter lending standards however. Many large scale companies are getting rejecting for unsecured loans that they would have qualified for five to ten years ago.
After the markets started crashing a few years ago, most people thought that asset based lending and subprime loan companies would be put out of business forever. While subprime mortgage lending took a big hit, it has been found out that asset based lending for businesses is actually making a big comeback. With credit companies refusing to issue loans to companies that they may have leant to prior to the recession, businesses have had to find a way to obtain the financing that they need. Asset based lending companies have stepped in full force and are quickly growing in popularity.
Asset loans use a company's liquid assets to determine whether or not they are going to lend to them rather than using a credit score. Credit scores are still obtained but they are not the ultimate and definitive deciding factor with asset based lending. Liquid assets can be defined as the company's equipment, accounts receivable, restaurant assets and in some cases even real estate if it is owned by the business. The business enters into a contract that uses their assets as collateral in the event that they ever default on the loan. What used to be considered subprime lending is now becoming a very popular and widely used method of obtaining loans for business owners.
There are a few downfalls to pass around to asset based lending as well. The first major downfall is that if the business defaulted on the loan, then the lender has the right to seize physical assets and future payments that are due to the company depending on what asset is being held in collateral. Second, the interest rates are often above 10%, which is typically higher than standard lending rates. And last, the lending limits may be lower than traditional lending, as most asset based lending companies will only lend an average of 60% of the value of physical and hard assets and 80% of the value of future accounts receivables. By Vanessa Sweeney”

Shaw Capital Management and Financing provide same-day-funding. We can help you meet your cashflow needs immediately without entering into a long term factoring relationship. The money you get for the freight bills we purchase is payment in full.

Shaw Capital Management and Financing offer a complete line of factoring services, purchase order funding, asset based financing, accounts receivable management, and other related financial services.
Shaw Capital Management and Financing offer funding for a wide range of industries and flexible funding requirements that most businesses can easily qualify for.
Based in Baltimore, Maryland. Importing into the tri-state area mostly from the far east such as China, Thailand, Taiwan and South Korea.

Shaw Capital Awarded Construction Management Contract for Clean Fuel Project

Shaw Capital Awarded Construction Management Contract for Clean Fuel Project at Marathon Illinois Refinery – Good Warning!

BATON ROUGE, La.,--The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) today announced it has been awarded a capital contract from Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE: MRO) to provide construction management services for a benzene reduction project at its refinery in Robinson, Ill. Services include management of site construction activities such as contractor selection, safety warning, materials management and project controls. The construction is expected to be completed before the mandated date for reduction of benzene content in gasoline to meet new EPA standards.
The award follows Shaw's earlier project management, engineering and procurement services work for the feasibility and definition phases of the project.
"Shaw has extensive refinery expertise and a strong reputation for helping customers meet clean fuels regulations at their plants," said Lou Pucher, president of Shaw's Energy & Chemicals Group. "We place a priority on understanding key environmental and economic drivers and working closely with our customers to ensure success."
Most recently, Shaw management completed engineering and procurement services for another benzene reduction capital project at Marathon's Catlettsburg, Ky., refinery and a 70,000 barrel per day heavy gas oil hydrocracker unit and 47,000 barrel per day kerosene hydrotreater unit at Marathon's Garyville, La., refinery as part of that plant's recent major expansion project. Last year, Shaw was awarded a maintenance, capital construction, turnaround support and specialty services contract for Marathon's Texas Refining Division.
The undisclosed value of the new contract will be included in Shaw's Energy & Chemicals segment's backlog of unfilled orders in the third quarter of fiscal year 2010.
The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE:SHAW) is a leading global provider of engineering, construction, technology, fabrication, remediation and support services for clients in the energy, chemicals, environmental, infrastructure and emergency response industries. A Fortune 500 company with fiscal year 2009 annual revenues of $7.3 billion, Shaw has approximately 28,000 employees around the world and is the power sector industry leader according to Engineering News-Record's list of Top 500 Design Firms. For more information, please visit Shaw's website at www.shawgrp.com.
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for certain forward-looking statements. The statements contained herein that are not historical facts (including without limitation statements to the effect that the Company or its management "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "plans" or other similar expressions) and statements related to revenues, earnings, backlog or other financial information or results are forward-looking statements based on the Company's current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on the Company. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting the Company will be those anticipated by the Company. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions and are subject to change based upon various factors. Should one or more of such risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. A description of some of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements can be found in the Company's reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Form 10-K and Form 10-Q reports, and on the Company's website under the heading "Forward-Looking Statements." These documents are also available from the Securities and Exchange Commission or from the Investor Relations department of Shaw. For more information on the company and announcements it makes from time to time on a regional basis, visit our website at www.shawgrp.com.

Government bond Markets Part 2 of 3: Shaw Capital Management Newsletter

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article two of three - Bond markets in mainland Europe have also fallen back towards year-end. There are signs of a modest improvement in the background economic situation in the euro-zone; and this seems to be persuading the European Central Bank to withdraw some of the liquidity measures that it introduced to counter the recession as part of a general tightening of monetary policy that might soon include higher short-term interest rates.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article two of three - But a more serious immediate consideration for the markets has been the decision by some of the rating agencies to downgrade the credit rating of Greek government bonds, and to warn that other periphery member countries of the euro-zone have been placed on “credit watch” and might suffer the same fate. Investors have responded by widening the yield spreads between the bonds of member countries, and by pushing the overall level of yields higher. The markets appear to be expecting that the process will continue. The Fed appears to agree with this more optimistic view, arguing that economic activity is continuing to pick up, and that the deterioration in the labour market is abating. For weaknesses elsewhere.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article two of three - There is also a fear that the contraction that is occurring in banking lending, and in the money supply, may be leading to another credit crunch this year that could extend the economic slowdown. Bank loans to businesses were 1.9% lower in November 2009 than in same month in 2008, and M3 money supply was 0.2% lower, and has been shrinking now for several months. Since an expansion in banking lending was a major plank in the European Central Bank’s efforts to combat the recession, this latest evidence of a contraction is a major policy failure, and should be persuading the ECB to move very slowly in dismantling its emergency measures; but all the evidence suggests that it is preparing to act. The latest meeting of its governing council left short-term interest rates and overall monetary policy unchanged; but subsequently the bank chairman argued that some of the existing liquidity measures were no longer needed and would be gradually replaced. This was a disappointment for bond investors, not only because such action might be premature and extend the recession, but also because some of the funds that had been made available had been used to support government bond issues.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article two of three - However the more serious consideration was the downgrade of Greece’s credit rating, and the threat that other member countries of the euro-zone might receive similar treatment because of the increased risk of defaults. Bond issues in the zone reached the equivalent of $1350 billion in 2009, and are likely to exceed that figure this year, with Greece alone needing to sell $83 billion, and likely to try to rely on overseas investors for at least half the funds.

Article part two of three.

Shaw Capital Management Korea - Investment Innovation & Excellence.  We provide the information; insight and expertise that you need to make the right investment choices. Shaw Capital Management based in Korea typically offers its clients such services as asset allocation and portfolio design; traditional and non-traditional manager review and selection; portfolio implementation; portfolio monitoring and consolidated performance reporting; and other wealth management services, including estate, tax, trust and insurance planning, asset custody, closely held business issues associated with the establishment or expansion of a family office, the formation of family investment partnerships or LLCs, philanthropy, family dynamics and inter-generation issues, etc.

Every investor will achieve better long-term risk-adjusted results by working with a true open architecture advisor.

Shaw Capital Management February Newsletter: Government bond Markets 3 of 3

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article three of three - The markets are assuming that the more powerful members of the eurozone will support the weaker members in order to prevent defaults that might threaten the single currency structure; but the yield spreads have widened considerably to reflect the increased risks. Our tentative view is that the markets will “muddle through”, and that defaults will be avoided; but higher overall yield levels seem unavoidable. Prospects in these markets are therefore very unattractive. The gilt edged market has also come under pressure over the past month; short-term yields have remained basically unchanged, but there have been increases in medium and longer-term yields that has produced a much steeper yield curve.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article three of three - There has been evidence of a modest improvement in the economic background; and the Bank of England is proving to be a stabilising influence at a difficult time; but a very disappointing Pre-Budget Report has indicated that there will be no attempt to address the problems of the huge fiscal deficit until after the election. Our tentative view is that the markets will “muddle through”, and that defaults will be avoided; but higher overall yield levels seem unavoidable. Prospects in these markets are therefore very unattractive. Funding pressures will therefore continued to increase; and so, although there does not appear to be any real danger that the UK might join the list of countries that could default on their sovereign debts, annual debt issues in excess of £200 billion cannot continue for long if this is to be avoided. It is no surprise therefore that investors have reacted by reducing their exposure to the market.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article three of three - There is still some doubt whether the UK economy has moved out of recession. The pace of contraction in the third quarter of the year has been slightly reduced, and since then the pace of job losses has declined, and consumer spending has held up fairly well. But business investment and manufacturing activity remains weak, and so there may have been no overall improvement in the final quarter of last year. The Bank of England has therefore kept short-term interest rates at 0.5%, and maintained its quantitative easing programme, and this has provided support for the market, since the bank has been a major buyer of gilts in recent months.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article three of three - However it has not been enough to prevent a very adverse reaction to the Pre-Budget Report from the UK Chancellor. The market did not really expect any significant action on the deficit ahead of the forth-coming general election; but was still surprised by the apparent lack of realism. The government is prepared to allow the deficit to continue to accumulate, and is relying on the gilt edged market to provide the funds to finance that deficit in the hope that this will enable it to win the election, and has produced no real indications of how the deficit might be reduced even after the election is over. It is not surprising therefore that investors have reacted by reducing exposure, that 10-year yields have risen to 4% and longer-term yields to 4.5%, and that there are even suggestions that the country could face a capital flight and a full-blown debt crisis in the coming months. We do not share these extreme views; but clearly the prospects for the market are very unattractive, and higher yields appear unavoidable. Investors have reacted by reducing exposure... and there are even suggestions that the country could face a capital flight and a fullblown debt crisis in the coming months.

Shaw Capital Management Korea February Newsletter:  Article three of three - The Japanese bond market is basically unchanged over the past month; but there are fears that present yield levels are unsustainable. A sharp reduction in the growth estimate for the third quarter of last year, and weaknesses since then have raised the possibility of a move back into recession and a further period of deflation. The government has reacted by launching its fourth fiscal rescue package since the economic crisis began last year. It amounts to the equivalent of a further $81 billion to be spent in the regions and on subsidies for consumer durables, and is expected to lift the debt issuance this year to a record $835 billion, despite the indications that bond investors may be becoming increasingly unwilling to finance such a high level of new bonds, and the warning from the IMF that the government is risking a significant increase in debt funding costs. Since overseas involvement in the bond market is at a very low level, such a development is unlikely to affect bond markets elsewhere directly; but it could be a warning to other countries of the dangers of placing too much pressure on their own markets.

Shaw Capital Management Korea - Investment Innovation & Excellence.  We provide the information, insight and expertise that you need to make the right investment choices. Shaw Capital Management based in Korea typically offers its clients such services as asset allocation and portfolio design; traditional and non-traditional manager review and selection; portfolio implementation; portfolio monitoring and consolidated performance reporting; and other wealth management services, including estate, tax, trust and insurance planning, asset custody, closely held business issues associated with the establishment or expansion of a family office, the formation of family investment partnerships or LLCs, philanthropy, family dynamics and inter-generation issues, etc.

Every investor will achieve better long-term risk-adjusted results by working with a true open architecture advisor.

Factoring and Accounts Receivable Financing Expert Tips

Shaw Capital Management and Financing sharing information, tips and advice on factoring and accounts receivable financing and factoring to avoid scams and other fraudulent transactions. Information focus on the importance of choosing the right firm and understanding the intricacies of this financing alternative and what pitfalls to avoid.

There probably isn't a day when Canadian business owners and financial managers don't hear about factoring and accounts receivable financing as a method of financing their business in Canada. Despite its growing popularity and, we can say, relative importance in the Canadian business financing marketplace this financing mechanism is still somewhat understood.

What information do business owners need to know in order to assess if factoring, also known as invoice discounting, is a viable transaction? Also, are there mistakes and pitfalls to be avoided when considering this financing strategy?

Let's examine the answers to some of those questions. You can be forgiven for trying to figure out why factoring has increased in prominence from a time when no one had almost ever heard of it! The answer to that popularity is more simply and obvious than you might think, and its simply that Canadian chartered banks are finding it increasingly more difficult to fund accounts receivable (and inventory of course) to the extent that their customers need this financing.

When you have a situation where the actual need for financing is acute, and the benefits and flexibility seems significant it is not hard to see the rise in popularity of such a financing mechanism.

First of all, 99% of the time, factoring provides your firm with a greater level of borrowing based on your accounts receivable levels. Quite of 90-100% of you're A/R under 90 days can be financed.

So is it all good news? Not necessarily, as we are always meeting with clients that have chosen the wrong type of funding or factoring, and, even worse, find them locked into contracts they cannot get out of. That is uncomfortable for any size firm as you can imagine.

As with any newer type of financing the playing field is complex. You can be forgiven for not knowing how many factor firms are out there, how they run, what their own limitations are, and, even to a certain extent, do they in fact themselves have the funding to survive, let along finance your firm. For that reason we cannot over emphasize the need to work with a credible, experienced and trusted professional in this area.

Lets talk about some of the nuances, we can call them potential 'pitfalls 'also, of picking the wrong factoring partner. For a starter if you choose a firm who itself is not well capitalized, as we said, you might find that the financing commitments made to you cannot be honored. Canadian business has never had to think that the Canadian chartered banks could be 'out of money 'but the Canadian landscape is somewhat littered with small and medium sized factor firms that do not have the financial wherewithal to support their funding commitments in all places. That just re - enforces our idea that a trusted industry expert will guide you to the best partner for your firm.

Other issues, again, we can call them pitfalls, to look for include:

- being locked into a contract

- having the total factoring cost, or pricing, not reflected properly in your term sheet

- advance rates which don't make sense relative to the price you are paying for discounting invoices

- excessive notification and intrusion with your customers, which is very prevalent in the U.S. model of factoring (Many Canadian factor firms are branches of U.S. firms)

So let's recap. It's simply that factoring is growing in popularity. It works because it is providing funding where banks often cannot. If you don't understand who you are dealing with and the various nuances of this type of financing it becomes a burden, not a solution. Investigate this great financing mechanism, but ensure you know what you are getting into. Talking to an expert always helps - that's just common sense

Stan Prokop is founder of 7 Park Avenue Financial. Originating financing for Canadian companies, specializing in working capital, cash flow, and asset based financing, the 6 year old firm has completed in excess of 45 Million $ of financing for companies of all size.

Shaw Announces First Quarter Fiscal Year 2011 Earnings Conference Call and Live Webcast

BATON ROUGE, La., Dec 20, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) today announced it will hold a conference call Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011, at 5 p.m. Eastern time (4 p.m. Central time) to discuss the company's financial results for the first quarter fiscal year 2011. Shaw will release the financial results one hour before the call at approximately 4 p.m. Eastern time that same day. A slide presentation will be posted on the Investor Relations page of Shaw's website at www.shawgrp.com at that same time.

Interested parties may dial 1-800-471-6718 to listen to the conference call live or access a live audio webcast of the call on the Investor Relations page of Shaw's website at www.shawgrp.com.

A replay of the conference call will be available after the call by telephone, as well as on the company's website. To listen to the replay by telephone, dial 1-888-843-7419 and use pass code 28680770#.

The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE:SHAW) is a leading global provider of engineering, construction, technology, fabrication, remediation and support services for clients in the energy, chemicals, environmental, infrastructure and emergency response industries. A Fortune 500 company with fiscal year 2010 annual revenues of $7 billion, Shaw has approximately 27,000 employees around the world and is the power sector industry leader according to Engineering News-Record's list of Top 500 Design Firms. For more information, please visit Shaw's website at www.shawgrp.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements and information about our current and future prospects, operations and financial results, which are based on currently available information. Actual future results and financial performance could vary significantly from those anticipated in such statements.

Among the factors that could cause future events or transactions to differ from those we expect are those risks discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2010, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended November 30, 2009, February 28, 2010, and May 31, 2010, and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Please read our "Risk Factors" and other cautionary statements contained in these filings. Our current expectations may not be realized as a result of, among other things:

    * Changes in our clients' financial conditions, including their capital spending;

    * Our ability to obtain new contracts and meet our performance obligations;

    * Client contract cancellations or modifications to contract scope;

    * Worsening global economic conditions;

    * Changes to the regulatory environment;

    * Failure to achieve projected backlog.

As a result of these risks and others, actual results could vary significantly from those anticipated in this presentation, and our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, the occurrence of certain events, or otherwise.

Invoice factoring could be next big thing for fraud scam, predicts lawyer

Shaw Capital Management and Financing offer a complete line of factoring services, purchase order funding, asset based financing, accounts receivable management, and other related financial services.

One of the biggest challenges facing businesses in the current economic climate is getting invoices

paid and the use of invoice factoring could become a significant area for fraud, according specialist

fraud lawyer Arun Chauhan of Midlands firm Challinors.

“In the current economic climate the use of factoring is becoming more prevalent,” says Arun, a

Partner at Challinors and head of its Fraud & Asset Recovery department. “The problem of getting

invoices paid is a growing problem and an increase in fraud in Factoring is an area that will not be

immune from this threat.”

The issue of invoice payment is not unique to the economic climate but one that is encountered by

all businesses and in particular start up businesses. Factoring is the selling of a company’s

invoices, at a discount, to a ‘Factor’ - typically a financial institution - which then assumes the

credit risk of the account debtors and receives cash as the debtors settle their accounts. The

company then receives the value of the invoice less a percentage retained by the company as their

fee for the factoring service.

“The Factor will typically obtain a personal guarantee or some form of security from a director of a

company before commencement of any agreement,” explains Arun.

There are two specific types of factoring - Open and Hidden factoring. In Open Factoring the

company does not mind if its customers know if they are using a Factor. The debtor is sent

invoices by the Factor to recover the face value of the invoices.

If a company has decided to Factor invoices to improve cash flow, it may wish to keep this from its

customers. In these circumstances the practice of ‘Closed Factoring’ is used, which involves the

debtor being invoiced by the company not the Factor, who is sent the invoice and then pays a

percentage. When the debtor pays the invoice the sum due to the Factor is then paid.

“The process of factoring is susceptible to fraudulent activity, if there are not sufficient controls in

place within a business,” says Arun. “A Managing Director may not be aware that those dealing with the raising of invoices for the company may well be devising a fraudulent scheme by creation location of businesses: “The fact that the postcode of a company is the same or in a similar geographical location to the debtor is one warning sign to look for. Another is the existence of large invoice amounts relative to the average for that debtor.”

The fraud is sometimes not internal but purely perpetrated to cause loss to the Factor. “One

example of this was uncovered in 2008 where the Directors of a Manchester based computer firm,

Ravelle, were convicted in a £3.25 million fraud upon its creditors. The fraud was centred on the

creation of false sales documents and a complex web of inter-company transactions designed to

deceive Factoring companies into providing finance to the Ravelle Group. This is a prime example

of collusion, which is one pre-requisite for factoring fraud.

“Many types of fraud are only possible if collusion between parties exists. In the Ravelle case, the

collusion between the directors enabled the company to create ‘fresh air’ invoices and more

importantly partake in ‘circular trading’, the point of which is to create a complex set of trading

requirements which allow a systematic deception of the factoring company. The schemes that

keep companies running could not have been implemented without the continued input of the

parties at Ravelle, and one of the Directors was a qualified accountant.”

He adds: “In the current economic climate the temptation for directors to cross the line and partake

in Factoring fraud is greater owing to the constraints on cash flow. Any fraudulent activity is bound

to leave a trail of evidence that will soon be detected, and our specialist fraud lawyers are skilled in

finding such discrepancies. The fraud will eventually be detected, no matter how small.”

Challinors has offices in Birmingham city centre, Edgbaston, West Bromwich and Nottingham. The

firm has 23 partners and over 100 fee earners, and is ranked as one of the top legal firms in the

West Midlands, being Number 1 in the Chambers UK Directory in a number of categories. For more information visit: www.challinors.co.uk.

Shaw Capital Management and Financing offer funding for a wide range of industries and flexible funding requirements that most businesses can easily qualify for.