Facility for export SME financing

The transactions will be conducted between €100k and a maximum amount per loan of €5 million by use of Bills of exchange. OHV has been successful in the last years with this product, but the company didn’t have the funds to roll out on a large scale. With the new collaboration more SMEs can be reached.

 

Expansion in the future

As part of the first phase, Invest International will set up a facility of €20 million. Being the start of scaling up the SME funding facility and its expansion in the future.

Ship in port Value Maritime company

Value Maritime is one of the first SMEs to make use of the new financing facility. The young, innovative company with its headquarters in Rotterdam has been helping shipowners and operators to achieve valuable emission reductions and financial savings since 2017.

They developed “Filtree”, a unique system that cleans both air and water from all ship types and includes an integrated carbon capture feature making today’s fleet (newbuild or retrofit) sustainable today and future proof for tomorrow. Foto: © Value Maritime.

Joost Oorthuizen, Chief Executive Officer at Invest International said: “Supporting Dutch SMEs is a very important part of our mandate at Invest International and by undertaking this initiative, we address the market failure for smaller ticket export finance and provide extra financing capacity.”

Jacco Vonhof, chairman of MKB-Nederland: “It is good and important that Invest International, together with the parties involved, comes up with an export facility specifically for SMEs. It has become increasingly difficult for entrepreneurs to obtain this type of financing at regular banks, while there are good opportunities for many SMEs in foreign markets.”

Liesje Schreinemacher, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation: “Our economy runs on small and medium-sized enterprises, and is therefore of great importance. Unfortunately it is still so difficult for our entrepreneurs to get international projects financed. This fund gives the companies access to export financing where they were previously rejected by banks. Both being beneficial for our economy and for achieving sustainable solutions, also in developing countries.”

Group pictures for signing at Invest International

The launch of the new financing facilty at the offices of Invest International. From left to right: Jacco Vonhof (MKB-Nederland), Joost Oorthuizen (Invest International), Erik Bakker (OHV), Rein Steeman (Value Maritime), Wampie Libon (Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and Stephan Naber (Atradius Dutch State Business). Photo: © Wilmar Dik.

“It has become increasingly difficult for entrepreneurs to obtain this type of financing at regular banks, while there are good opportunities for many SMEs in foreign markets.”

Jacco Vonhoff

Chairman MKB-Nederland

Erik Bakker, CEO of OHV:Over the past period we have worked closely with Invest International, which has resulted in a unique financing facility for entrepreneurs. With the granting of this mandate, we are able to make a further contribution to the sustainable growth of Dutch SMEs. We are delighted with this step and look forward to working together in realizing the international dreams of Dutch SME entrepreneurs.”

Bert Bruning, Managing Director of Atradius DSB: “This great collaboration gives the exchange financing a good boost and fits well with our focus on SME exporters. It is an excellent and relatively simple solution for the capital needs among exporting SMEs, which is less picked up by the market, but which can actually give many innovative and sustainable solutions a boost.”

More information

For more information on the export finance facility, contact OHV:

Robin Bakker, Manager Structured Finance.
E-mail: exportfinanciering@ohv.nl 
Phone: +31 (0)6-4810 4982.

 

Have a look at the OHV website on Export Finance (in Dutch)