Dubai government and Citi launch supply chain finance solution

The supplier payment mechanism enables the Government of Dubai to unlock liquidity and pay suppliers almost immediately. The two-part solution provides a Citi Corporate Purchasing Card (CPC) backed by Visa and a supply chain finance (SCF) working capital management solution. An expected 9,000 local suppliers, mostly small and medium businesses (SMEs), will benefit from the programme via a master merchant solution provided by Network International and Invapay, a UK based payment processing company.

Citi’s purchasing card and supply chain finance solution provides a customized structure that will cater to the Government of Dubai supplier segment, especially home grown SMEs. The custom-made solution will facilitate access to liquidity across businesses of all sizes and provide a platform for businesses to unlock the potential of the Smart Finance Solution.

DED is one of the pilot entities to pioneer the supplier’s payment solution. The testing of the solution will start with cards programme and eventually expanded to supplier chain finance, with other Government of Dubai entities.

Citi, a global financial services company, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services and wealth management.

In recent news, Citi and MasterCard have signed a new and expanded 10-year agreement.