Washington, D.C. – Today the United States Senate confirmed three nominees of President Donald J. Trump as members of the board of directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM). The bipartisan votes restore the export credit agency to full financing capacity.

The Senate’s action re-establishes the quorum of three members on EXIM’s board of directors that is needed for the Bank to authorize transactions greater than $10 million.  During the more than three years that the board was without a quorum, EXIM has been unable to approve these larger transactions, which prevented the bank from authorizing any long-term financings.

 “This is a great day for U.S. exporters, their workers, and their suppliers across the country. EXIM has nearly $40 billion worth of export deals in the pipeline that can move forward in support of hundreds of thousands of American jobs. The Senate’s bipartisan votes today renew opportunities for U.S. exporters to compete on a level playing field in markets and industries where China and other nations are aggressively supporting their exporters. With EXIM restored to full functionality, our exporters again have a fighting chance to win export sales on the fair basis of quality and price instead of on the availability of government-backed financing,” said Ambassador Jeffrey D. Gerrish, EXIM chairman and president (acting).

The Senate confirmed the following individuals to serve on EXIM’s board of directors for staggered terms that expire either in January 2021 or in January 2023, respectively.

Kimberly A. Reed of West Virginia was confirmed as president and chairman of the board of directors, with a term expiring in January 2021. Previously, Ms. Reed served in the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where she headed the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund that provides tax credits and financing to institutions investing in economically distressed communities. Most recently, Ms. Reed was president of the International Food Information Council Foundation, a nonprofit that collaborates on global food issues with governments, food and agricultural companies, and health organizations.

Spencer Bachus III of Alabama was sworn in as a board member, with a term expiring in January 20, 2023. Mr. Bachus was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 2015. He served as both chairman and ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee from 2008 to 2014, during the global financial crisis and its aftermath. Most recently, he was a partner of Bachus and Broom LLC.

Judith DelZoppo Pryor of Ohio was confirmed as a board member, with a term expiring in January 2021. Ms. Pryor has served as vice president, Office of External Affairs, at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a self-sustaining U.S. government agency that helps American businesses invest in emerging markets.

Senate action is pending with respect to two additional nominees of President Trump for positions on EXIM’s board:

Paul Shmotolokha of Washington State has been nominated to serve as first vice president for the remainder of a four-year term expiring in January 2021. Mr. Shmotolokha presently serves as a senior vice president leading the international division of Alpha Technologies Inc., a global provider of power solutions for the broadband and renewable-energy industries.

Claudia Slacik of New York has been nominated as a board member, with a term expiring in January 2023. Ms. Slacik previously served at EXIM Bank as the chief banking officer and senior vice president from September 2013 to May 2016.

ABOUT EXIM BANK: 

EXIM is an independent federal agency that promotes and supports American jobs by providing competitive and necessary export credit to overseas purchasers of U.S. goods and services. A robust EXIM can level the global playing field for U.S. exporters when they compete against foreign companies that receive support from their governments. EXIM also contributes to U.S. economic growth by helping to create and sustain hundreds of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. In recent years, 90 percent of the total number of the bank’s authorizations has directly supported small businesses. Since 2000, EXIM has provided $14.8 billion to the U.S. Treasury after paying for all of its administrative and program expenses.

For more information about EXIM, please visit www.exim.gov.

LINK: https://www.exim.gov/news/senate-confirms-three-members-for-exim-board-directors-restoring-full-financing-capacity