First we shipped goods. Then we shipped demand letters.
For years we were an ordinary international trading company: sourcing, shipping, invoicing, waiting. And like every trading company, we had a drawer of unpaid invoices — buyers abroad who took delivery and discovered sudden amnesia.
The polite options failed one by one. Collection letters from home were ignored. Local lawyers quoted retainers larger than the debts. Writing the money off felt like donating it.
So we learned to collect: which jurisdictions move fast, which documents win, which pressure is legal and which pressure works. Other exporters started asking us to recover their debts too. At some point the drawer of invoices had become a client list — and the recovery desk had become the business.
债越陈越香 — an aged debt, like pu'er, can still reward the patient. We just prefer to be the reason it pays.
How the firm evolved
Trading years
International trading company operating between Asia and North America. First encounters with cross-border non-payment — our own invoices.
Recovery becomes a craft
Systematic work with local counsel across our buyers' countries. First recoveries for partner exporters on a handshake basis.
Portage Collections founded
Recovery operations incorporated as a dedicated firm in Toronto. Contingency-only model adopted from day one: no recovery, no fee.
Network formalized
Vetted counsel network reaches 30+ jurisdictions across the Americas, UK, Europe and Oceania. Asset-tracing desk added in-house.
Creditors' side, full time
US$4M+ recovered for exporters, manufacturers and service firms. Still no upfront fees. Still one case manager per file.
