SME financing partnership reaches milestone
The collaboration between Invest International, OHV and Atradius Dutch State Business combines financing, insurance and implementation. Thanks to this partnership, which celebrates its fourth anniversary in October, Dutch SMEs can compete more easily on the global market. The 100th export transaction was recently facilitated, involving machinery manufacturer Bercomex from Zwaag.
Export finance allows foreign customers to defer payment, whilst Dutch exporters maintain their cash flow. Invest International, OHV and Atradius Dutch State Business make this possible. The 100th export finance transaction highlights the strength of this collaboration.
In 2022, Invest International, OHV and Atradius DSB launched an export finance facility for smaller amounts, ranging from 100,000 to 5 million euros. The aim of this facility was to better enable Dutch exporters, in particular manufacturers of capital goods such as machinery, to reach international markets. Machinery has become a valuable Dutch export product. In 2022 alone, the machinery sector generated €25.5 billion in turnover. This makes it the country’s most important export category, accounting for a growing share of gross domestic product. Machinery manufacturers are therefore, often unseen, the driving force behind the Dutch economy.
Cooperation is essential, particularly in transactions of this kind. Koen Hamers, Head of International Finance SME & Midcorps: “More and more Dutch SMEs want to capitalise on their export opportunities to grow internationally. By joining forces with Dutch house banks and partners, such as Atradius Dutch State Business as an insurer and OHV as the implementing body, we can support these companies collectively. Through export finance, we strengthen the proposition of Dutch exporters. In this way, we enhance the competitiveness of innovative Dutch machinery and technology, and stimulate economic growth in the Netherlands and beyond.”
Growing support for SMEs, sustainable exports and trade in challenging markets
Alongside the strategic expansion of its range of instruments, regular export support also remained at a high level in 2025. Atradius DSB issued 165 policies and supported export transactions and investments totalling 2.8 billion euros. The share of SME transactions rose further to 41 per cent of the total number of transactions. The green portfolio also grew strongly: Atradius DSB issued 68 green policies, compared with 24 in 2021, representing a transaction volume of 781 million euros. At the same time, the share of fossil-fuel-related activities within the portfolio continued to decline. “The growth in the number of SME transactions shows that export credit insurance is becoming increasingly accessible to a wider group of entrepreneurs,” says Bruning.
“We are also seeing sustainable projects play an increasingly important role within our portfolio.” Atradius DSB also recognises a growing need for support with transactions in complex or high-risk markets. For example, cover for Ukraine was extended in 2025 from 95 to 98 per cent, making export transactions to the country easier to insure and finance. Atradius DSB also supported projects in the fields of infrastructure, food supply, energy and industrial innovation in various parts of the world. By underwriting risks that are difficult or impossible for market participants to insure, Atradius DSB helps Dutch companies to do business and invest internationally, even in complex markets.