DigitalCFO Newsroom | 22 September 2021
Customised factoring solution provides the firm with working capital required to both maintain sales cycles in challenging times and efficiently serve its ESG-friendly customers
Global invoice financing marketplace Incomlend announced a new invoice financing programme for a pan-European metal trading firm whose buyers comprise some of the world’s most environmentally friendly steel companies.
The invoice financing solution will equip the metal trading firm with the working capital required to make payments when purchasing raw materials from their suppliers. The firm will also have the financial agility to keep its business running. This is especially important due to the decline in the supply of ferrous metals during the pandemic because of supply chain issues.
Furthermore, the global pandemic has pushed environmental, social and governance (ESG) to the top of the agenda for many businesses and investors. The metal trading firm can make more significant ESG-centric business changes by leveraging the financing solution to invest in products sought after by sustainable steel firms that focus on CO2 efficiency. Among its largest two customers includes a European steel company that created the world’s first metallurgical coal-free steel.
The typical trade cycle in this industry is approximately three to four months. It takes the firm additional 90 days to cash in an invoice that can range anywhere between €700,000 up to €2.5 million. With the quick turnaround facility provided by Incomlend, they can cash in an invoice as early as three days after the goods are shipped to the buyer. It also provides the company with the cash flow needed to fund the next batch of sales.
Founded in Singapore and with offices in Europe, India, and Southeast Asia, Incomlend connects small and medium enterprises (SMEs), like the pan-European metal trading firm, globally with communities of investors. This enables them to buy and sell individual invoices via a proprietary tech-enabled and secure invoice exchange platform.
The latest figures from World Steel Association show that global steel production decreased 0.9 per cent in 2020 to 1.86 billion metric tons[1]. Despite the slow-down, most of the largest European steel companies globally have committed to strict net zero-emission targets and significantly reduced their metallurgical coal use as an input, underscoring the growing focus and efforts that companies worldwide are placing on ESG.
Incomlend CEO and Co-founder Morgan Terigi commented:
“Lockdown measures have resulted in supply chain challenges and impacted the supply of steel and other raw materials globally, affecting the revenue and cash flow of SMEs in the materials trading business. We’re aware of the challenges faced by these businesses even before the pandemic upended the industries worldwide. Incomlend is committed to helping companies overcome these challenging times. Through our competitive invoice financing solutions, SMEs can finance their operations and continue to generate revenue for global trade to grow.”
For more information on Incomlend, please visit https://www.incomlend.com/.
About Incomlend
Incomlend is a global invoice financing marketplace for businesses and private capital. Founded in 2016, the Singapore-based company has processed more than 2,300 transactions and provides invoice finance services in over 50 countries worldwide. As one of the first alternative cross-border trade finance platforms globally, Incomlend enables companies to finance their export invoices by selling them to institutional investors at a discount. For more information, visit www.incomlend.com.
