Questions & Answers

When exporting goods to buyers overseas, suppliers typically wait 30 - 120 days for payment. Such ‘deferred payment’ is normal in international trade but it ties up capital and can have a crippling effect on cash flow and business growth.

Invoice financing (also known as ‘invoice factoring’) provides the exporter with immediate payment of that debt – by transferring money to the supplier as soon as the goods are shipped and collecting money later from the buyer. In this way, the supplier gets the cash without delay and is protected against non-payment.

Read more about invoice financing here.

Stenn’s invoice financing platform provides fast payment of invoices and frees up working capital that could be tied up for between 30 - 120 days in international trades. It means that suppliers can get their invoices paid as soon as the goods are shipped, yet their buyers will not have to pay for them until later, giving buyers time to receive the goods and make use of them. In competitive international export markets, allowing buyers to pay later gives sellers a competitive advantage. Invoice financing means that sellers can offer such terms without tying up their capital and can deal with new foreign buyers without risking non-payment of invoices.

The cost of such financing is usually 0.65% - 3.8% of the invoice value (which equates to an Annualized Percentage Rate (APR) of 7.9% - 11.4%) and Stenn takes the risk of the buyer defaulting.

Stenn’s platform provides what is known as ‘non-recourse financing’, which means that suppliers have no risk of non-payment. This is particularly comforting when trading internationally with new buyers.
Read more about invoice financing here.

Find out more in this video from Stenn’s founder.

• A supplier must be an export company, a legal entity in existence for at least 12 months.
• It must sell consumer or professional goods, such as: apparel, automotive parts, electronics, finished goods, food products and ingredients, machinery, equipment, metals, packaging, etc. We can also finance professional services such as software development and consultancy.
• Stenn cannot finance invoices connected with oil, gas or coal; conflict minerals; sanctioned goods; weapons and firearms; precious metals.
• We can finance invoices payable up to 120 days (sometimes up to 180 days as an exception).
• Your buyer will be an importer in a country free of sanctions and cannot be one of your affiliated companies.
• Your buyer cannot be in arrears, insolvent or involved in court proceedings in the last two years.

Stenn’s online invoice financing is much faster than a bank (assessment is quick and funds are paid within 48 hours of only two documents being signed) and is better than a loan (it has no influence on credit history, needs no collateral, and requires no lengthy applications and interviews).

It also offers a much higher limit than bank credit typically would - up to $10 million (USD) per buyer - and covers you against the risk of your buyer failing to pay your invoice.

It can also give smaller companies tremendous leverage. For example, a company with assets of only $50 000 (USD) could finance a shipment of goods worth $500 000 (USD) if the buyer fits the criteria.

Finally, Stenn specializes in financing cross-border trade. Very often banks do not finance international deals because they don’t work in jurisdictions other than their home countries.

Read more about invoice financing here.

Yes. If the buyer defaults it’s a problem for Stenn and not for you as the supplier. You will not have to repay your financing to us. We provide ‘non-recourse’ financing, which means that we take the loss if the buyer defaults on payment.

Stenn advances 90% of the invoice value to suppliers when goods are shipped and the balance later, less pre-agreed fees. There is no need for later reimbursement of that advance payment, no matter what happens. It's our responsibility to claim payment from buyers on due dates.

Invoice financing combines cash-flow control and risk control into one simple package. Credit insurance, meanwhile, is limited only to payment protection in the event of buyer default or bankruptcy.

With credit insurance, if the buyer defaults the supplier may wait months to receive funds and the claim process is often paperwork-intensive. With Stenn’s non-recourse factoring, there is no risk and no time-consuming claim to make in the event of a buyer defaulting. The Stenn platform provides non-payment protection for the supplier and takes the risk.

Finally, Stenn allows suppliers to finance only a single invoice if they wish to. Credit insurance will often require them to cover an entire ledger.

• Stenn is the largest and fastest-growing online platform for financing small and medium-size businesses (SMEs) engaged in international trade.
• We provide rapid financing services in 74 countries.
• Stenn is fast, automated and easy to use. Using Stenn.com you can apply for financing from $10 000 to $10 million (USD) by signing only two documents.
• We assume your risk. You will not have to repay your finance if the buyer defaults.
• Stenn’s financing fees are extremely competitive.
• We specialize in financing sectors and geographic regions that other providers can’t, or won’t, serve.
• Stenn can finance invoices within hours, compared to weeks (or even months) with other organizations.
• We advance at least 90% of invoice face value, while competitors typically advance 70-80%.

Find out more in this video from our founder.

Stenn is a London-based FinTech that delivers rapid finance to SMEs in global supply chains.

Its high-tech platform processes onboarding, compliance (Know Your Client/Anti-Money Laundering) and risk management in one portal and can unlock working capital within 48 hours. This combination of advanced technology and commercial experience means that Stenn can provide cross-border funding solutions in transactions that banks may refuse.

Stenn specializes in supporting SMEs in 74 countries, has financed over $10 Billion (USD) since 2015 and is backed by financial giants like HSBC, Barclays, Natixis, Goldman Sachs and many others.

Read more here.

Find out more in this video from our founder.

• Stenn is based in London and backed by financial giants like HSBC, Barclays, Natixis, Goldman Sachs, and many others.
• We have financed over $10 Billion (USD) of invoices since our formation in 2015.
• Stenn has launched a variety of programs to help small and medium-size companies (SMEs) drive international trade in the developing world.
• We are regularly mentioned in the financial press.
• Stenn is run by a seasoned team of experts from the finance, FinTech, credit, and risk mitigation sectors. Meet our team here

1. You, the supplier, create an account on stenn.com.
2. Enter your buyer’s name and assess its financing limit.
3. You then submit your invoice and shipping document(s) (e.g. Bill of Lading, Air waybill, CMR documents) to the platform.
4. As soon as your invoice and shipping document are approved, you will get two documents - Stenn’s Agreement and a Notice of Assignment for the buyer.
5. You sign the Agreement and your buyer signs the Notice of Assignment.
6. We send a payment of 90% of the invoice’s face value to your bank account. We hold the remaining 10% as a reserve for our fees, potential off-sets, late payment charges, etc.
7. At the due date of the invoice, the buyer pays the invoice money to Stenn and we pay you the balance of any money due, less our fees.

In those instances when we are required to utilize trade credit insurance, we charge a fee of 0.32% applied to the face value of each invoice regardless of payment terms (so charges are the same for 30-day invoices as they would be with 90-day invoices). There are no other hidden charges.

Find out more in this video from Stenn’s founder.

Yes, no problem. Applying for invoice finance and obtaining a bank loan are vastly different things.

In fact, it is often the case that SMEs choose to finance their invoices because they are over their bank credit limits and need cash from other sources.

If your buyer fits Stenn’s criteria, you can get financed regardless of your current bank credit balance.

Stenn will finance international invoices for both ‘services’ and ‘goods’.

‘Services’ includes industries such as software development and consulting.

‘Goods’ includes most industries dealing in consumer goods, such as:

• Electronics
• Clothing
• Furniture
• Toys
• FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods)
• Automotive parts,
• Food and ingredients, etc.

Stenn will not finance invoices connected with the following industries: oil, gas or coal; conflict minerals; sanctioned goods; weapons and firearms; precious metals.

If you are not sure whether an industry is acceptable for our services, please contact our sales managers for more details or watch the videos below.

Find out more about sellers/exporters in this video from Stenn’s Global Head of Credit.

Find out more about buyers/importers in this video from Stenn’s Global Head of Credit.

Only two documents will need a signature – an Agreement with Stenn’s Financing Platform and a Notice of Assignment with the buyer.

When applying for finance, suppliers submit the invoice and shipping document(s) (e.g. Bill of Lading, Air waybill, CMR documents). We will then assess the application and, if accepted, will issue the two documents for signature.

No, Stenn's digital platform is fully automated and completely online. You apply online, sign documents online and are paid by bank transfer.

We use DocuSign for signing documents.

1. We pay 90% of the invoice’s face value initially. We hold the remaining 10% as a reserve for our fees, potential off-sets, late payment charges, etc.
2. We pay the remaining 10% of the invoice face value (minus any deductions) once the buyer settles the invoice in full.

In those instances when we are required to utilize trade credit insurance, we charge a fee of 0.32% applied to the face value of each invoice regardless of payment terms (so charges are the same for 30-day invoices as they would be with 90-day invoice). There are no other hidden charges.

Two documents will need a signature before the deal can be finalized – an Agreement with Stenn’s Financing Platform and a Notice of Assignment with the Buyer.

As soon as both documents are signed and the invoice approved, the transfer of funds takes up to 48 hours.

Yes. You can finance a single invoice, or a full ledger, according to the needs of your cash flow. It’s up to you to decide on financing volume throughout your financial year.

We can even finance a part of an invoice if the first part was already financed as a down payment.