INSIGHT · GLOBAL
AI reduces due diligence cost for trade finance, reviving small-company lending
Banks historically avoided lending against international trade receivables (30–90 day payment cycles) for small firms because manual credit checks and paperwork verification was too costly. AI can now automate due diligence, making sub-$1M trade loans profitable again for regional banks.
WHY IT MATTERS
Supply-chain finance, long dominated by large corporates, now unlocks for SMEs. Regional banks and fintech platforms will compete on speed and cost, creating new wholesale lending revenue streams and reducing SME working-capital drag.
Source: PYMNTS · 2026-09-02