DP World to provide trade finance from DIFC in boost to SMEs

Licence granted to DP World Financial Services Limited to operate from the Dubai International Financial Centre

Arif Amiri, chief executive of the DIFC Authority and Mike Bhaskaran, chief operating officer of DP World. DP World Financial Services Limited is now licensed to operate from the DIFC. Courtesy DP WorShow more

DP World Financial Services Limited, a DP World company, will begin to provide smaller companies with access to trade finance after the Dubai Financial Services Authority issued a licence for it to operate as an authorised entity in the Dubai International Financial Centre.

The newly licensed company will connect small and medium enterprises with financial institutions on its DP World’s Cargoes Finance platform, the port operator said on Wednesday.

"Access to trade finance is critical to the survival and growth of exporters, importers and logistics companies, which are the drivers of the global economy," said Sultan bin Sulayem, chief executive and chairman of DP World.

"Cargoes Finance platform provides financial institutions the opportunity to lend with confidence and helps smaller companies to access the capital they need. It will be a lead generator and source of new business for financial institutions, and a window of financing opportunities for traders”.

SMEs make up the bulk of most economies around the world. However, one of the main challenges they face globally is securing access to capital because of limited data on their trading history.

Manual, paper-based processes used to move goods around the world also mean there is limited visibility on where goods are in transit, making it difficult for financial institutions to finance shipments, DP World said.

DP World’s Cargoes Finance platform plans to bring real-time data on trade passing through its digitised global ports and logistics network, and also provide financial institutions with the information they need to assess credit and compliance risks, the Dubai-based port operator said.

"Operating from the DIFC will give DP World access to the many financial services companies in our ecosystem, which provide solutions that facilitate global trade through Dubai," said Arif Amiri, chief executive of the DIFC Authority.

"Those firms will be able integrate with the Cargoes platform, which provides an innovative approach focused on giving support to small and medium businesses who play an important role in our economy."