Contour, the leading digital trade finance network, announced that leading Pan-African bank, Absa Corporate and Investment Bank (CIB), is the first African bank to officially join its growing production network.
Absa CIB is positioning itself at the forefront of digital developments by being a part of Contour’s digital trade finance network. Many of Africa’s trade transactions are manual and paper-based, which slows down trade growth and creates another layer of complexity and costs.
Absa CIB’s clients will now have access to Contour’s digital Letter of Credit (LC), which reduces the process of presenting documents from an average of 5-10 days to under 24 hours.
Digital developments are a big part of addressing challenges and creating access to new markets. In Africa, digitisation is critical to the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a flagship project that aims to boost intra-Africa trade by 52.3 percent and expand the size of the continent’s economy to US$29 trillion by 2050.
With a presence in 15 countries, the Johannesburg-based diversified financial services group is banking on innovation to drive sustainable growth. Digital developments can reduce barriers to accessing trade finance and collectively, fintechs and financial institutions can work together to grow trade finance in a sustainable manner.
Carl Wegner, CEO at Contour said: “In today’s fast paced and interconnected world, digital developments are crucial in unlocking new opportunities for trade growth and access to new markets. By joining Contour’s digital trade finance network, Absa CIB and its clients are contributing to the growing momentum across Africa to accelerate digitisation.”
Michelle Knowles, Head of Trade and Working Capital Product at Absa Corporate and Investment Bank said: “Absa continues to be at the forefront of digital innovation in Trade, as a mechanism of increasing the availability of Trade Finance and reducing the costs associated with these critical solutions. We are excited to join the Contour network, which will further strengthen our digital capabilities and support our clients with leading-edge solutions.”