Financing Service Exports

Service exports often appear more complex than product exports to potential partners, such as banks or other investors. Products seem more tangible and the concept of shipping a product to a foreign market in return for payment is a familiar transaction. Delivering services to a foreign market can be this simple; however, it can also involve more complex collaborative arrangements, longer timelines, shared responsibility for the final outcome and multiple deadlines and goals for successfully fulfilling the contract. This complexity sometimes clouds the simple truth. All export projects -- for both products and services -- comprise multiple phases, from the initial export idea through to implementation. Funds are required during all of these phases and exporters of services must ensure they have the resources available to carry their project to profitability.

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