World-class equipment with unbeatable financing and an integrated sustainability approach – that’s what you get when your clients source Swedish. Here’s how and why.
From 5G, infrastructure, steel and mining to medtech, greentech and digital services, Sweden is home to industry champions that rely on constant innovation and exports for success. Ericsson and Volvo are household names across the world, just like more recent champions like Ikea and Spotify.
With a modest domestic market, Swedish companies have had to rely on international trade to grow and prosper. To succeed on the competitive world market takes more than high-quality products. Attractive financing is equally important to secure a place at the table when contractors, governments and financial institutions sit down to structure billion-dollar deals and award contracts. And, where Swedish companies go, so does EKN.
We can help you lower your risk and let you offer customers more competitive financing and cheaper funding.
Marie Aglert, Director Large Corporates EKN
“More than ever, EKN is aspiring to expand its network of international banking partners,” says Marie Aglert, Director Large Corporates. “We believe we can add real value to any complex project by bringing experience from a range of different industries on every continent. And, as a government agency in one of only ten triple-A rated countries, we help you lower your risk and let you offer customers more competitive financing and cheaper funding. An EKN guarantee covers up to 95 percent of the risk to the lender – or 100 percent if the borrower is a sovereign.”
According to Aglert, there are several benefits for your bank if your clients source Swedish and thereby gain the support of EKN:
For a deal to be eligible for support from EKN, it has to benefit Swedish business interests. Given today’s globalized value chains, this can refer to many stages of the value-adding process, from research and development to production and marketing. Swedish sourcing can also mean buying from foreign-owned vendors based in Sweden, or foreign subsidiaries of Swedish companies.
Utilizing an EKN cover gives you access to the triple A-rating enjoyed by the Kingdom of Sweden. This reduces your risk and lowers the cost of funding to the lender, while enabling tenors and interest that commercial banks are unable (or unwilling) to offer without backing. Also, the risk mitigation means assets tied up are treated differently from a capital requirement point of view.
EKN’s cooperation with state-owned Swedish Export Credit Corporation, SEK, permits an optional transfer of the credit to SEK once the lead/arrange phase is completed. To the lender, this paves the way for longer tenors and lower rates such as CIRR. More favourable terms and rates means your customers can aim for higher quality components when sourcing and still meet their budget targets.
Financing large infrastructure projects that require imported goods to be paid for in hard currency can be a challenge for developing countries, where such investments often exceed the risk appetite as well as the balance sheet of local institutions. That’s why EKN/SEK offer funding in local currency with longer tenors and lower yields, when certain conditions are met.
At the forefront of digitalisation, EKN offers automated routines that guarantee short turn-around times for most applications. We mean business – and we help you do better business.