Lion Super Indo
Highlight: Because of high interest rates, the Indonesian retailer partnered up with BNI and its web-based financial supply chain scheme to better serve its suppliers struggling to get financing in what is an aggressively expanding industry.

Indonesian rupiah interest rates are high. Corporate customers have to swallow approximately 10% to 11% per year, while smaller commercial operations can easily stump up around 14%.
These conditions have driven treasurers to seek supplier financing schemes, notably Indonesia’s wholesale and retail business.  This is, in part, because of the large growth the sector has witnessed in the last five years – around 10% to 14%, according to Indonesia’s Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS).
In step with these developments, BNI established a web-based financial supply chain management (FSCM) application system that can accommodate supply chain transactions between principal, respective supplier or buyer and the bank.  
A few key benefits to using the platform include:

1.        A shortened supply chain transaction based on faster more automated confirmation from the buyer.
2.        A paperless system. Suppliers are not required to bring their invoices to the bank branch to get financed.
3.        Greater transparency as all three parties involved in the process can see the same information at the same time.

A retailer that benefitted from the programme is Lion Super Indo, a retail chain. Yustinus Kristianus, head of finance and tax, expressed his delight at the service: “SCF has become the solution for our suppliers to obtain working capital access. With joining this facility, they can grow their own business and get bigger chance to improve their business scale.”

Vale
Highlight: Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ’s bank payment obligation programme with Brazilian mining giant Vale was a groundbreaking deal, both for Vale and the development of the new trade financing technique.

The headline numbers are convincing. Vale was able to shorten its days sales outstanding (DSO) by 10 days, down to 15-20 days through a bank payment obligation (BPO). That might not seem like a game changer for some businesses, but for a company with $46.4 billion in annual revenue like Vale, it means a lot of money.

Through its programme with BTMU, Vale forecasts a financial gain of $37 million a year; the first trade was completed in July 2013. More importantly, the financing programme frees up more $600 million in working capital for the company.