EXIM Bank Supports Startups That Look To Expand Globally

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December 13, 2016 Office of Small Business

Tagged: Export Credit Insurance Exporting Basics Working Capital Loan Guarantee

Startups come in all shapes and sizes. According to Investopedia, “a startup is a company that is in the first stage of its operations,” however; it’s hard to define what constitutes a “first stage” because a startup may be three years old and still be considered in its “first stage” due to changes in its strategy and product/service. In 2015, the U.S. Department of Commerce officially launched the Startup Global Initiative, which is a program designed to help startups think global from day one of existence. Even the most advanced startups are reactive rather than proactive when they receive interest or demand from the global community. Therefore, these startups are usually left scrambling to find out how to export their goods, what government resources they can tap into, etc.

The Startup Global initiative was created to:

Answer strong demand from the startup community to provide more resources and technical assistance on exporting goods/services
Measure the interest and capacity of city startup hubs and accelerators, and partner with federal agencies to help startups achieve success early on
Evaluate the level of government engagement needed to have a measurable and positive impact on incubator partnership development and startup growth

Just this past July, the Department of Commerce, eBay, NYC’s Economic Development Corporation and the Global Innovation Forum hosted a forum for startups and small businesses to address the challenges and export opportunities in many key markets around the world. Some trade barriers discussed that startups need to address early on are intellectual property rights, access to capital, and shipping/licensing costs to sell abroad. As an example, agencies such as the International Trade Administration (ITA) have business counselors around the country to help streamline the process of going global and the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) provides resources to help protect a startup’s intellectual property – a crucial piece that is often overlooked or taken for granted.

Learn How EXIM Bank Can Support Your Startup

EXIM Bank is a federal government agency that provides support for startups by offering export credit insurance and working capital loan guarantees to support U.S. international sales. With export credit insurance, startups can obtain financial due diligence on foreign buyers, agents and distributors they meet at an event or trade show. For marketing/sales purposes, they are able to close deals faster when foreign buyers request open account (extended) terms. An EXIM guaranteed credit line provides the vital funds startups need to fulfill their new sales orders.

EXIM Bank can support startups, but there are certain conditions as to what kind of startup can be serviced. Startups who meet the following criteria can qualify for our financial products:

Must be in business at least 1- 3 years
Must have a DUNS #
Must show positive net worth

As mentioned above, startups can be defined broadly or very specifically, but nonetheless, as long as startups show some profitability and are established for several years, they can qualify for our programs.

EXIM Startup Success Story

SynTouch, a technology startup based in southern California, develops tactical sensing solutions for industrial and medical applications. Due to high fixed costs upfront, SynTouch could not afford if a buyer defaulted on payment, particularly a foreign buyer based across the world. As a result, SynTouch looked to EXIM Bank for export credit insurance, which protects against losses due to commercial and political risks, covering 95 percent of invoice sales to customers overseas. Currently, SynTouch has 25 international customers in 14 countries and they continue to grow!

For more information on export credit insurance and other financial products, click here.

EXIM’s Blog postings are intended to highlight various facets of exporting, but the postings are not legal advice, and are not intended to summarize all legal requirements associated with exporting.