Funding Imports with Trade Finance

As less manufacturing takes place in the UK and greater numbers of cheaper goods are imported from abroad, the requirement for SMEs to fund imports increases because of the need to be price competitive within the marketplace.

Furthermore, if SMEs are to compete with the larger, more financially stable suppliers in the UK, imported goods represent the best opportunity to do so because of their lower cost without the need to invest in plant and machinery.

Small businesses usually enjoy lower overheads than their larger counterparts and if these costs can be controlled, SMEs can afford to sell at a cheaper price whilst delivering the same quality and still enjoying good mark ups.

So how can SMEs secure sufficient import finance?

Innovative trade finance specialist enable funding purchases from abroad for SMEs who have confirmed orders from creditworthy buyers or customers.

The flexible “use it as you need it” approach, offers SMEs a genuine, better alternative to traditional bank funding such as overdrafts and loans. Not only that, trade finance companies can offer a level of funding without onerous charges on property or Directors’ homes, which means deals get done rather than lost because of lack of funds.

As long as the Directors know their stuff and the goods and the supplier stack up, there is every chance trade finance will be able to help. More often than not, this form of trade finance will not interfere with existing banking arrangements.

The real benefit to SMEs is trade finance looks at the transaction rather than the balance sheet. For new starts or young companies, this is a godsend and trade finance enables young businesses to grow and flourish.