Athens-based Seaborne Shipbrokers is expanding abroad with the opening of a new office in Singapore, set to begin operations on 30 September, under managing director James Porter, a former sale-and-purchase broker with Howe Robinson Partners.

Seaborne’s first foreign branch is the most visible growth indicator yet for the Greek outfit, which was set up five years ago.

Led by low-profile founder Vasilis Koutroulis, a broker with two decades of experience, Seaborne weathered a tough shipping market in its first months of 2019.