Nedbank Business Banking offers relief for cash flow pressures

Even businesses with healthy order books need cash to pay monthly expenses and contractual loans, and fill current and future orders. With sales and revenue falling and debtors delaying payments, many businesses are struggling to manage cashflow and pay fixed and other operating costs.

According to an April release, Nedbank Business Banking has assisted more than 2,000 business clients with relief measures so far and is ready to assist more clients with a number of financing solutions that alleviate cash flow pressures. This will ensure businesses survive, and can thrive in the future.

Solutions include overdrafts, bridging working capital finance, loan restructuring and payment relief, and assisting with applications to the Covid-19 SME loan scheme.

Importantly, the solutions are tailored to each individual business and client. Nedbank won’t apply a one-size fits all model as they know each business has different circumstances and requirements.

Short-term overdrafts and bridging finance

Overdrafts are one of the most common solutions to cash flow pressures. They are easy to use — the funds are available in clients’ bank accounts, and easy to manage because clients can see at any time how much they’ve used and what funds are available. In the first few weeks of lockdown the bank extended more than R3.4bn in overdraft facilities to business clients, providing much needed relief for falling revenues.

Nedbank’s business bankers can assist with overdraft and overdraft extension applications, as well as identifying bridging working capital finance needs and offering financing solutions that can meet these needs.

Payment relief and flexi-payment options

Level 4 lockdown restrictions saw some businesses reopening. However not all businesses are able to operate and some can only operate under restricted conditions, resulting in limited sales and revenue. Nedbank Business Banking’s payment relief options include:

• Payment holidays: where payments are deferred on a loan facility for a period of time.

• Restructuring loan agreements to suit the business’s current capabilities including reduced interest rates and fees and increasing the term or changing the repayment structure (flexi-payments such as reducing current repayments). 

Covid-19 SME loan scheme

Launched in May, this scheme is part of the government’s broad Covid-19 relief programme. It offers government-backed loans to businesses whose turnover is less than R300m a year.

The loans can be used to cover operational expenses such as rent, salaries and lease agreements. Supply chain-related costs can also be covered.

The loans are offered over five-and-a-half years at the prime lending rate (7.25%). No repayments are due for the first six months, though interest will accrue. Qualifying businesses must be registered with the SA Revenue Service. There is no upper limit on the loan amount as each application is individually assessed.

Apply for relief measures

Your Nedbank business banker will work with you to review your cash flows, identify cash flow pressures, and find solutions that alleviate these.

Visit the Nedbank Business Banking website for the details.

Flexible, individual, personal

Banks’ and business bankers’ services extend beyond financing and banking solutions. Nedbank’s business bankers have expert insights and a wide range of business experience, and know which funding is available and how to access it.  

When clients apply for financing solutions and relief they need to have as much information on hand as possible about their business prospects — past, current and future. Business bankers use this information not only to find financing solutions, but also to offer different perspectives on the business and find new opportunities that could benefit the business.

Nedbank’s business bankers offer business clients a personal service. Solutions are flexible and individual, and business bankers are always available to discuss these and other banking and business issues.  

* Clients need to be in good standing with the bank to qualify for funding, overdraft facilities, bridging finance and payment relief.

This article was paid for by Nedbank Business Banking.