A Guide to Warehouse Receipt Financing Reform

The main objective of this Guide to Warehouse Receipt Financing Reform is to provide technical advice and guidance to reformers, project teams supporting reforms, donor institutions, government officials, private stakeholders and other practitioners on the different aspects related to the implementation of the law and regulations governing the operation of warehouses, warehouse licensing and supervision, and the issuance and role of documents of title in emerging market countries. It is highly recommended that government officials rely on experts’ advice to introduce or to reform legislation governing the operation of warehouses, as the information provided in this guide cannot replace the on-the-ground experience of a warehousing legislation expert. The content of this guide walks the reader through the project cycle (identification, diagnostic, solution design, and implementation) on the major elements to be considered when introducing pertinent legislative and regulatory reforms. The recommendations presented in this guide are based on the World Bank Group’s experience in the warehousing sector, and particularly in the context of agricultural commodities, the contributions of a number of experts in this field, existing literature, reform experience in a number of emerging market countries and the existing best practices in jurisdictions with efficient and generally accepted warehousing systems. This Guide does not cover all aspects of warehouse law reform, which will vary depending on the form and substance of the existing legal system, but it aims at covering at least the minimum and most important elements of such a reform.