What is trade finance?

Investec trade finance facilitates all your cross-border trade requirements, efficiently moving your goods while mitigating risk. Our international team of experts offer an innovative and unique blend of documentary, open account and logistics services to develop bespoke trade finance solutions.

Import and trade finance

for South African businesses

Access an integrated suite of specialist trade services encompassing import logistics and finance for foreign or locally procured goods, designed to help you purchase stock on repayment terms aligned with your cash flow cycle.

International trade finance

for corporates

Access an integrated suite of specialist trade services encompassing import logistics and finance for foreign or locally procured goods, designed to help you purchase stock on repayment terms aligned with your cash flow cycle.

Value adding services

Close up of stock on shelf in warehouse

Trade funding

Finance your stock purchase and logistics costs with trade credit that is optimised to your business’ cashflow and working
capital cycle. Covers all pre-delivery costs on post-delivery terms.

Cargo ship at sea

Documentary finance

Backed by the full range of documentary trade finance instruments including import documentary letter of
credit (LC), bills of exchange, bank guarantees, bills of lading, documentary collections and trust receipts.

Close up of stock on shelf in warehouse

Risk management

We minimise risk for both buyers and sellers through stringent due diligence, risk mitigation and assessment,
and regulatory compliance, as well as through hedging of foreign exchange risk, including duty, and freight risk.

Trading internationally?

Get in touch with a team of experts

Let us know more about your trading requirements

Quantum of funding required: Your business needs to be able to support a minimum lend of R5m (working capital) and R1m (asset finance).

For details on how personal information is processed please refer to Investec Ltd’s Data Protection Statement.
By submitting any personal information you agree to the provisions contained therein which shall form part of the Terms and Conditions.

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One point of contact for your inbound supply chain 

For importers, we are more than just import finance; we also facilitate order tracking, hedging of foreign exchange rate, and management of the import logistics, including the provision of a consolidated total landed rand cost per item on delivery. Providing you with real time notifications on the status of your shipments, the ability to leverage our economies of scale, optimised lead times and a fully managed service for improved decision making.   

Your benefits

  • Reduce risk around payment and delivery of your goods

  • Improve freight efficiency for optimised, reliable lead times

  • Optimise your working capital and liquidity cycle to focus on growth

  • Gain an accurate upfront understanding of costs and margin

  • A single point of contact across your international supply chain

  • Leverage improved relations and payment terms between merchants

Import solutions unpacked

We think about your business like you do

We appreciate that your business is a lot more than a set of numbers and financial statements. We also know that business can be complicated and that funding your trade cycle can have a very real impact on your operations. Our value is that we can provide the right funding at the right time, allowing you to capitalise on opportunities and optimise your ability to grow profits.

Let's talk

Discover how we can simplify and improve your global trade transactions to optimise your cash flow and lower your supply chain risks.

Let us know more about your trading requirements

Quantum of funding required: Your business needs to be able to support a minimum lend of R5m (working capital) and R1m (asset finance).

For details on how personal information is processed please refer to Investec Ltd’s Data Protection Statement.
By submitting any personal information you agree to the provisions contained therein which shall form part of the Terms and Conditions.

Sending...

Please complete all required fields before sending.

Thank you

Someone from the team will be in touch

Sorry there seems to be a technical issue

Interested in some of our other business lending offerings?

Import Solutions

We offer a bespoke import solution, streamlining your inbound supply chain  through a single point of contact so you can invest more time and working capital into your business.

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Asset finance

Avoid the strain of upfront capital investment and let our experienced team tailor an asset finance solution for you.

asset-finance

Debtor finance

Looking to optimise your working capital? Why not unlock funding using your assets?

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Private capital

We provide established entrepreneurs, business founders, and high net worth individuals with private capital solutions, transaction ideas, and access to Investec’s networks. Our commitment to you lies in our unrivalled service that aims to unlock or create value.

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