A leading bus finance broker is taking its industry knowledge to a national level, educating the finance sector on all matters ‘bus’
By David Goeldner | July 27 2011/a>
Bus finance specialists Heritage Finance will take its industry knowledge to the national stage with its 2011 Bus Industry Information Seminar in Melbourne on September 2.
Heritage Finance Director Adam Begg says the time is right to amalgamate its regular state based information seminars and wrap them together as a national event in Melbourne, providing information to bankers and credit providers about how the bus industry is positioned relative to other industry sectors.
Begg says the main theme of the seminar is to educate financiers about how bus industry contracts work.
“For a long time we had run finance information seminars in Victoria, NSW and Queensland periodically to educate credit staff in finance organisations about the bus industry,” he says.
Begg says financiers can quickly lose touch with the bus industry as public transport reform in Australia continues to occur and contracts change and evolve with a move towards commonality across state borders.
Consequently, Begg has opened up a national seminar to all participants in the capital market rather than just the major banks.
Senior credit people shaping credit policy at NAB, Westpac, ANZ, Commonwealth, Bank of Queensland and Bendigo Bank have each expressed interest in attending the seminar.
Accounting firms and lawyers involved in the bus industry are also expected to attend.
“We want to make it easier for all bus operators to get finance, whether they use Heritage Finance or another provider,” Begg says.
“By running this seminar we hope it will be easier for all bus operators to obtain finance.”
Begg says all participating banks will gain a better understanding of operators’ businesses and be in a better position to understand the credit risk.
Program:
Sessions 1: Overview of Australian Bus Industry from a National Perspective and Bus Passenger Transit Moving Forward into the 21st Century – BIC Executive Director Michael Apps
Session 2: Overview of QLD Metro and Regional Contract Environment – Wayne Patch, QBIC Board Member and General Manager Transit Australia Group
Session 3: Overview of NSW Metro and Rural and Regional Contract environment – BusNSW Executive Director Darryl Mellish
Session 4: Overview of Vic Metro and Regional Contract Environment – Mark Burton,
Pitcher Partners
Session 5: Energy and Resource Sector opportunities and risks – David Breese, General Manager, Surat Basin Corporation
Session 6: Overview of Resource Sector and the demand for bus passenger transport – Tony Hopkins, Vice President of QBIC and Greyhound Commercial General Manager