At the end of April, BP Petrochemicals implemented the first multi-bank BPO involving a different recipient and obligor bank. The baseline [details of the transaction] was established during the last week of April, shortly before BP Petrochemicals shipped the goods to its customer in Turkey. 

Unlike most BPOs, this one was based on European participants, the obligor bank was one of Turkey’s largest banks and the recipient bank was a French bank. BP were pleased to get a perfect match of the participants, as they have been promoting the use of BPOs since May 2012 when they first established an automated BPO with Octal Petrochemicals and Standard Chartered acting as both recipient and obligor bank on May 2012.

BP are hoping that the multiple participants in the company's BPO will establish a precedent to facilitate more widespread adoption of the new trade finance instrument.