Facilities developed in line with clients' operating cycles
PROVIDING TRADE finance and logistics solutions under a single umbrella is one of the services Sasfin offers its clients. Through its subsidiary Premier Freight, Sasfin's full package of trade finance can be supplemented with Premier's freight forwarding, customs clearing, warehousing and logistics services.
Says Maurice van Bergen, assistant general manager trade finance division: The range of services the group provides is growing: import and export (pre- and post-shipment) financing; foreign buyer credit facilities; local purchase finance; confidential invoice discounting; insurance broking (long and short term); private equity; freight logistics; treasury; corporate finance; and now, through the acquisition of Frankel Pollak from Societe Generale, the number of services will expand further.
The granting of a banking licence in July last year has added further impetus to Sasfin's activities, says Van Bergen.
We went for the banking licence because the traditional commercial banks were starting to encroach on our trade finance facilities by offering clients cheaper facilities. We are planning to attract deposits at bank rates, which will therefore level the playing fields, enabling us to become more competitive.
Small banks have recently attracted poor publicity and a number have experienced a run on the bank when clients wanted to withdraw their deposits and savings. We are presently not funded through deposits. We are funded by our own capital and banking lines, says Van Bergen.
He believes a major advantage in dealing
with Sasfin is its flexible
service and turnaround times. Whereas banks lend against set criteria, Sasfin will go beyond the balance sheets, assess the true financial position, and develop a facility in line with the client's operating cycle. We give the client a separate credit line, which does not affect his normal overdraft, and he pays us when he has been paid for the goods.
Once facilities are in place and the client submits an L/C application, he can rest assured that the L/C will be opened within 24 hours.
In some instances, when a transaction is beyond the levels of credit one can grant a client, but the orders he has are good, we can structure a ring-fenced facility, says Van Bergen. The incoming and outgoing orders are matched and the movement of cargo secured through Premier Freight for additional security. Working through Premier's partner, the multinational Hong-Kong based Hecny, goods can be controlled from point of supply to delivery to the end customer.
Through the Frankel Pollak offices a further nine branches are available to help expand the Sasfin horizons.
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