When addressing mounting payment delays, credit managers may be tempted to blame their slower-paying customers. While a late payment does hurt a department’s metrics, there are often holes within a business’s broader operations that also weigh on the credit department’s numbers.

Australia’s central bank raised the interest rate for the second month in a row on March 17. The decision follows fears of inflation all while the intensifying conflict in the Middle East ramps up oil prices with businesses and consumers bearing the brunt.

With conflict brewing in the Middle East, fluctuating economic policies and a cooling labor market, it is hard for credit professionals to predict where the economy is headed when each day seems to pull it in a different direction.

For many credit departments, the pursuit of stronger practices and better performance is a constant and ongoing effort. As economic and market trends fluctuate, the need for improvement only grows. Through benchmarking—comparing business processes and performance metrics to industry bests and best practices—credit teams are better positioned to achieve refinement.

No matter how sound your credit policy or how thorough your practice, bankruptcy can strike without warning. One day your customer is current and the next, they’ve filed. And when they do, the payments you worked hard to collect could be at risk of being clawed back through a preference claim. 

Honduras is the second largest Central American country. With its extraordinary biodiversity, the nation has built an agricultural sector that is both highly productive and resilient. Despite being a key trading partner for the United States, China, Mexico and other Central American countries, economic uncertainty from government policies and legislation has threatened key trading relationships.

The longer you work in business-to-business credit, the sooner you realize how interconnected everything is. Over the past few years, more organizations have either started operating or forming partnerships around the world. This investment has not only helped expand businesses, but it’s broadened the overall risk management perspective. 

The threshold for Subchapter V bankruptcy could permanently rise under a new bill introduced by Virginia Congressman Ben Cline. The Bankruptcy Threshold Adjustment Act of 2026 would raise the threshold from $3 million to $7.5 million, effectively allowing more businesses to file via a faster, cost-effective route to bankruptcy.

A thorough credit investigation is a hallmark of a strong approach to extending credit. Learning the ins and outs of a company’s operations, their financials and their ability to pay in a timely manner informs the credit manager on how to best extend credit without putting their company at risk.